Sotheby’s International to Enter China Property Market
(Corrects first paragraph to show that Sotheby’s International Realty is owned by Realogy; clarifies licensing agreement with Sotheby’s auction house in ninth paragraph.)
Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC, a unit of Realogy Corp., plans to start business in China’s luxury property market by the first half of next year to tap the country’s growing wealth.
The company will focus on the first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, Chief Executive Officer Michael Good of the New Jersey-based firm said. Sotheby’s International Realty has affiliates in 45 countries and regions, including Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam in Asia.
“We’ve had a lot of global growth, but we’ve been very careful with China, because China is such an important emerging economy,” Good said in an interview in Shanghai yesterday. “We think it’s very, very important to be measured in our approach and make sure that we better understand the real estate players and the nature of the business in this country.”
Sotheby’s International Realty joins competitor Christie’s International to access growing wealth in China as buyers search for overseas properties amid purchasing and financing curbs imposed by governments in Hong Kong and Beijing to cool off the real estate market. The number of millionaire households in China climbed 31 percent to 1.11 million in 2010, ranking the country third behind the U.S. and Japan, according to a Boston Consulting Group survey last year.
The move will allow Sotheby’s International Realty to tap its network of some of the world’s richest property buyers to invest in China, while connecting the country’s surging riches with the world’s luxury real estate assets, Good said.
High-End Properties
High-end properties account for approximately 7 percent of China’s overall residential market, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., which defines the category as above 40,000 yuan ($6,285) per square meter. Just 1 percent of the residential market in Beijing and Shanghai is priced above 64,000 yuan per square meter, according to London-based real-estate broker Savills Plc. (SVS)
Sotheby’s International Realty seeks to work with brokerages, project sales or even developers, because the upper- tier resale brokerage operation in China is not as mature as in some western countries, Good said. He declined to elaborate how much returns the company expects to generate from China.
Christie’s International, the London-based auction house, set up a real estate franchise earlier this year in Hong Kong, its first in Asia, to access buyers in the world’s most expensive place to own a home.
Property Tax
Realogy, owned by private-equity firm Apollo Global Management LLC (APO), has a long-term strategic alliance with Sotheby’s auction house to license the Sotheby’s International Realty name.
Chinese authorities’ two-year efforts to crack down on “speculative capital” included the introduction of a property tax in Shanghai and Chongqing, higher down-payment requirements and limiting the number of home purchases by each family in metropolitan areas such as Shanghai and Beijing.
“There are cycles in all countries; we can’t change that,” Good said. “In the U.S., we’ve been through a very significantly challenging time in the real estate industry, and yet our brand has continued to grow during this tough time.”
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Bonnie Cao in Shanghai at bcao4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andreea Papuc at apapuc1@bloomberg.net
June 18 (Bloomberg) -- Peter Churchouse, chairman of Hong Kong-based property investment firm Portwood Capital, talks about real estate markets in China, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong. China’s home prices fell in a record 54 of 70 cities tracked by the government in May as developers cut prices to boost sales amid housing curbs. Churchouse speaks with Rishaad Salamat on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)
May 2 (Bloomberg) -- Peter So, co-head of research at CCB International Securities Ltd., talks about China's stock and real estate markets, and his investment strategy. Shanghai and Beijing, the two cities with Asia’s fastest-growing office rents, are set to lead a surge in commercial property transactions in China as more developers sell assets to raise cash for housing projects. So speaks in Hong Kong with Rishaad Salamat on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)
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