Jon Ellis is the CEO of Investorist

Jon Ellis is the chief executive of Investorist, an online purchasing platform for off-plan properties. We spoke with him about China’s Golden Week, and what it means for Miami.

Miami Agent (MA): Is there greater demand for property in China during the Golden Week (Oct. 1 through Oct. 7)?

Jon Ellis (JE): The first week of October is the highlight of the property calendar, as it is a national holiday week in China. This means that people have the time to visit property sites/research international purchases, discuss these with their families and sign contracts.

Golden Week is the peak week for selling property in the whole year in China, including international purchases. In China, there is a saying that “September is Gold and October is Silver” for selling property. September has the most sales overall for the month, but Golden Week represents the biggest single week for sales volume.

MA: Why is Golden Week a big deal for those selling Miami property?

JE: Those developers and brokers who are interested in marketing to Chinese buyers would do well to focus their promotions around the lead up to the Golden Weeks (around Chinese New Year and the first week of October) to capture the interest of wealthy Chinese buyers, who are increasingly combining property inspections with their holiday travel. As a prime holiday destination with global recognition, Miami is well placed to capture a healthy share of this new property investment trend.

MA: What is it about Miami’s real estate market that is so attractive to Chinese buyers? 

JE: Smart Chinese investors already understand Miami is the “gateway city” to both North and South America. Miami is where many South and Latin American companies choose to locate their headquarters and their senior executives, and it is seen as a strong and stable economy and an active trading city.

Miami is well served with luxury fashion, hotel and lifestyle brands which is appealing to wealthy Chinese buyers, as is its desirable beach and waterside location.

Several of the largest brokers in Miami are actively targeting Chinese buyers as both owners occupiers and investors, which is also adding to the profile of Miami as a desirable destination.

In comparison to New York and Los Angeles, Miami also offers good value property buying. These cities have captured the lion’s share of the Chinese property dollar, largely due to direct flights being available from China, but Miami is poised to catch up as direct flights between Miami and the major Chinese cities are planned in the not too distant future.