Weak Australia, UK currencies lure Malaysian investors
Weak Australia, UK currencies lure Malaysian investors
International education driving residential property investment
The relative strength of the ringgit against the sterling and the Australian dollar has empowered Malaysian investors to acquire overseas property, according to Jones Lang LaSalle.
The Brexit referendum has weakened the British pound insofar as to make it “attractive for Malaysian investors,” according to Nick Charlton, from Jones Lang LaSalle Malaysia’s capital markets team. Closer to home, Malaysians have targeted Australian property for the same reason, with the dollar depreciating at a “similar rate” over the past 18 months.
This year to date, the Malaysian currency gained 17 percent against the sterling and 1.94 percent against Australia’s dollar. Faced with a slumping property market and a floundering economy, Malaysians have come to view the UK and Australia — markets with their fair share of real estate troubles — as safer havens for their money in comparison.
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The need to send children to quality higher education institutions has driven some investors to mull an acquisition in homes overseas. Australia and the UK are two of the world’s best-known international education destinations.
“The potent mix of education and property is playing a bigger role in dictating the flow of global private capital into real estate investments, especially in the residential sector,” said Ali Meadows, JLL’s head of global capital markets for Asia Pacific. “Top destinations have so far included London, New York and Sydney.”
Many Malaysian investors have previously been educated in such cities, making them familiar investment destinations, Charlton noted.
Last year, Knight Frank rated Malaysia as the third largest Asian investor in the Australian and British property markets.
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Source: Property Report