Chinese property hunters are buying Sydney real estate at an unprecedented pace, reports News.com.au (26 February 2016). A weak Australian dollar has strengthened Chinese purchasing power, whereby the Australian dollar has declined 3.9 percent over the past year and dropped 29.2 percent over the last five years. Findings in a recent report by Juwai.com revealed that current real estate prices in Sydney are lower by more than A$70,000 on average. However, Juwai.com CEO Charles Pittar explained that Chinese property purchases have, in fact, been instrumental in keeping property prices low, as they tend to buy off-the-plan properties, thus enabling more developments to be build. “They enable more supply, and that means less price growth,” shares Pittar.
