Report: US Top Target for Asian Real Estate Investment
A new CBRE report says Asian cross-border commercial real estate investment surged in Q1, hitting $8.6B. CBRE Capital Markets Americas exec managing director Brian McAuliffe (snapped with his family before a March Madness tournament game) tells Bisnow Asian investors are attracted to US commercial real estate because of strong property fundamentals; namely, a robust economy creating healthy demand and a limited construction pipeline. He says yields on US investments are often higher than other parts of the world. Some of the top Q1 deals include Anbang Insurance Group of China picking up the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in NYC for $1.5B and a Washington D.C. office at 1801 K St NW selling to Mirae Asset Global Investments out of South Korea for $445M.
US investment volume reached $3.3B, with Asian buyers investing at least $600M in development sites in the Americas region in Q1. Brian says alongside more direct investment, institutional investors from places such as Korea and Japan also are gaining exposure via indirect funds and club deals. Moving forward, he expects new capital sources, like the Chinese insurance companies, to play a significant role in global and US real estate markets.
