Canadians Are Now The Largest Cross-Border Investors In U.S. Real Estate
Canada is now the largest cross-border investor in America's property market.
Canadian investors ramped up their pace of U.S. property acquisitions in the first half of the year while Chinese investment waned, RCA Analytics reports.
Canadian investment amounted to $5.2B in acquisitions and accounted for an estimated 30% of the foreign investment activity in the U.S. in the first half of the year, according to a JLL report. Approximately one-third of these investments went toward multifamily assets while another third went toward industrial assets.
Last year Chinese firms invested $16.4B in the U.S. In the first half of this year they have invested $3.6B, according to JLL. This pullback in Chinese investment has been the result of several factors, two in particular: Chinese regulators have tightened restrictions on capital leaving the country for global acquisitions, and Asian buyers are increasing their activity in other property markets around the world.
Despite the Chinese pullback, Asian investment in U.S. real estate still increased in the first half with Hong Kong investment activity showing a 35% jump year-over-year. Japan and Singapore were also strong drivers of capital flow, RCA reports. Middle Eastern investment declined in the first half of the year, with some speculating a change in the political climate has slowed the region's spending.
