Inbound Foreign Investment Ramps Up

CCIM.com Newscenter  Posted August 18th 2011

Buyers from mainland China are increasing their U.S. investment activity, according to The New York Times. In Manhattan, luxury condominiums valued from $500,000 to $10 million or more are garnering the most interest. And while most of these new buyers are not interested in purchasing trophies, they are always focused on investment rationale, said Neil Palmer, chief executive of Christie’s International Real Estate.

The uptick in activity can be attributed, in part, to China’s newly relaxed banking regulations, which streamline the process for moving money out of the country. “Foreign exchange restrictions have not been entirely lifted but loosened,” Palmer said. “There is more ability to move funds offshore effectively and perfectly legally.” Approximately 50 percent to 75 percent of New York transactions involving Chinese investors are paid for in cash exclusively.

As inbound investment activity expands beyond the major metros, CCIM members can leverage Institute resources to capitalize on new opportunities. The Country Liaison Program was created to strengthen the CCIM Institute's presence outside North America and to provide a resource for North American CCIM members interested in doing business in the liaisons' host countries. Liaisons are currently assigned to China, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Norwa ...

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Despite the Market Turbulence, There Will Be No Double-Dip Recession

Aug 23, 2011 7:35 AM, By Victor Calanog, NREI Contributing Columnist
National Real Estate Investor

The tumultuous events of the last four weeks have prompted downward revisions to economic forecasts, and for good reason. On July 29, U.S. GDP growth figures for the second quarter came in at an anemic 1.3%, with first-quarter figures revised down to 0.4%.

Then came the debacle over the debt ceiling debate, and the S&P downgrade. The probability of a double-dip recession has now risen to between 30% and 50% based on consensus estimates, up from a relatively low 15% earlier in the year. 

And yet there is good reason to believe that the economic recovery will continue to putter at an uninspiring pace, but progress nonetheless. Monthly job growth has been positive for 10 straight months since October 2010. Some 930,000 jobs have been created in the first seven months of 2011, about as much as the 940,000 jobs that were created in all of 2010. 

Yes, it is disappointing that projections made early this year calling for 3.5% to 4% annualized GDP growth never materialized, but this is hardly like late 2008. Back then, major institutions were failing and had to be bailed out, and the economy shed hundreds of thousands of jobs beginning in January 2008.

Sentiment is a powerful force

The main problem is not an economy on the ropes, but a weak recovery plagued by institutional gridlock, and changing expectations of whether U.S. policymakers can encourage job creation while managing debt and deficit levels. We are at a critical juncture given the decidedly mixed nature of economic and financial data.

If we lose confidence as individuals and curtail spending quickly, and if businesses lower expectations and pull back on hiring, then we just earned ourselves the kind of low growth and high inflation environment that characterizes periods of stagflation. 

Already we’ve observed ...

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McAllen Awaits Approval for EB 5

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