Long & Foster Real Estate has signed a new partnership with China’s largest international real estate portal, Juwai.com, to bring homebuyers from mainland China to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions.
About Chinese Home-buying in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast
Mainland Chinese real estate buyers, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), make up the largest foreign buyer group in the United States and account for 16 percent of international homebuyers. NAR estimates Chinese buyers spent nearly $29 billion on real estate in the US last year. By 2020, they are expected to spend $220 billion per annum on international property.
The United States is the most popular destination in the world for Chinese real estate buyers. They have clear preferences among the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states where Long & Foster operates, which include North Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, the District of Columbia, Delaware and West Virginia. Juwai.com data shows that North Carolina, Maryland and Pennsylvania are the most popular in this group.
In terms of growth in Chinese buyer interest over the past year, North Carolina leads among these states. The Juwai.com residential Purchasing Intent Index for North Carolina increased by 115.9 percent in the second quarter of 2015, compared to a year earlier. Virginia had the second-fastest growth in purchasing intent, with the Juwai.com residential Purchasing Intent Index for Virginia increasing by 83.3 percent over the past year. Maryland took third, with the Maryland Index up 77.9 percent over the same period.
About the Partnership
Under the terms of the new partnership, Long & Foster will advertise its listings on Juwai.com. Agents with the company will also be able to upgrade their own bios, office pages and individual listings to attract greater buyer interest.
P. Wesley (Wes) Foster, Jr., founder and CEO of The Long & Foster Companies, says, “One reason Long & Foster remains the No. 1 independent family-owned residential real estate company in the country is that we are constantly investing in new tools to help our agents and clients sell their homes quickly and at the highest price.
“This partnership with Juwai.com creates a direct link between Long & Foster listings and buyers in the fastest growing market in the world. Engaging with Chinese buyers is a strategic move that will have benefits for years to come. We did our due diligence and decided on Juwai.com as our ideal partners, since they have the largest audience of Chinese international homebuyers.”
Andrew Taylor, co-CEO of Juwai.com, says, “As the largest family-owned real estate company in the US, Long & Foster is an exciting partner for us. Our buyers are seeking property for investment and occupation on the Eastern Seaboard. They like to purchase in the US because they can own the homes outright, which is not possible in China. When you look around at the global economy right now, American real estate seems like a relatively safe, long-term investment.
“This partnership is of great benefit to Chinese buyers, because it makes it easier for them to access some of the country’s best real estate listings and most successful agents. Chinese buyers are motivated by investment, education, second-home lifestyle and immigration. Agents will do best when they take these motivations into account, and help buyers with the information they need, whether it’s local school information, tourist destinations or current yields on investment property.”
For more information, visit LongandFoster.com or Juwai.com.
