The 54ᵗʰ SMART Investment & International Property Expo concludes successfully in Hong Kong

Smart Expo featured insight seminars presented by industry experts and overseas investment opportunities with over 70 booths covering 15 countries for overseas investment prospects

HONG KONG, June 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- SMART Investment and International Property Expo (SMART Expo), one of the largest overseas property and investment display platforms in Asia hosted by REA Group, has been the preferred investment expo for industry players and investors for many years. Over the past 14 years, 53 expos have been held in Hong Kong, mainland China and other locations in Asia, attracting more than 2,700 property-related companies and over 150,000 investors worldwide. The 54^th SMART Expo this year came to a successful conclusion over the weekend (15-16 June) at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The 54^th SMART Investment and International Property Expo meets the needs of investors by providing over 20 free seminars and professional property investment insights. Global and local real estate gurus was on hand to share their knowledge and experience of local and overseas investment opportunities with visitors. The expo also featured over 70 booths hosted by 46 exhibitors showcasing market information from more than 15 countries and 30 cities. In recent years, due to the high value of Hong Kong property prices, people living in Hong Kong are finding it more difficult to achieve their dream of owning property. Many have begun looking into mainland China, especially into cities in the Greater Bay Area, which enjoys close proximity to Hong Kong and excellent accessibility, allowing investors to easily manage their property and enjoy them recreationally as well. Apart from investment into the mainland Chinese market, overseas properties are also gaining popularity as an alternative for achieving the dream of property ownership; properties from Asian countries such as Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, the Philippines, as well as Dubai, Cyprus and Mauritius were featured, with various major destinations such as the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia were also included.

Investment in Overseas Emerging Markets: Mauritius' Market has Great Potential for Development

SMART International Real Estate and Investment Expo has been committed to providing local and overseas investors with investment information of different markets. Mr. Kenneth Kent, REA Group Country Manager -- Hong Kong said: "The expo has brought many new opportunities for investors in the past few years. Among them, developers from a number of emerging markets participated in the exhibition, including Cambodia and Cyprus, which have high potential in terms of real estate appreciation. This year, we are honoured to have invited the Mauritius Economic Development Board to participate in the exhibition for investors, to share the current market trends and promote local investment projects in Mauritius, for example, real estate, hotels and smart city, providing investors with a wider range of different opportunities."

Mr. Vedmani Munhurrun, Manager, Economic Development Board Mauritius, explained: "Even though global economic growth is cooling down, Mauritius has been steadily growing 3.8% annually, and is becoming the undisputed trade and investment platform for Africa that connects to other markets around the world. In addition, Mauritius has opened acquisition of freehold property to foreigners, while the real estate sector is particularly attractive due to the absence of any capital gains tax, estate or inheritance tax, which is of huge benefit to overseas investors in real estate property investment activity."

Become a Private Equity Developer by Investing in Land Overseas

On offer during this two-day expo was a wide range of overseas properties from top-tier luxury to high-yield investment-grade properties, covering apartments and houses to resorts and even land, so anyone can now be their own private equity developer with the insights provided. The fast-growing Indonesian real estate market in recent years has attracted many investors. One of the exhibitors, Invest Islands, brought investors the opportunity to invest in land in Awang, the famous fishing port of Lombok. Mr. Jim Birkett, Business Development Manager of Invest Islands, said: "Many investors are aware of the rapid growth of the real estate market in Indonesia and thus are deciding to purchase land for investment purposes, while 55% are overseas investors." Birkett analysed the return on investment: "The minimum investment amount starts from approximately HK$500,000, while the return on investment can be as high as 15%-20% annually. Many investors initially only bought land for land appreciation, but upon paying a 10% deposit for a site visit, they fell in love with the stunning environment and changed their mind, deciding to build a villa instead for personal vacation or rental purposes, whilst enjoying an estimated rental return as high as 8%."

Aging Population in Hong Kong Becoming More Serious, While Demand of "Aging in Place" in Mainland China has Increased Dramatically

In recent years, the aging population in Hong Kong has become more and more of a serious concern. According to statistics of the Census and Statistics Department, the population of Hong Kong will rapidly age in the next 20 years. The proportion of people aged 65 and above will rise rapidly from 17.9% in 2018 to 31.1% in 2036, and "aging in place" has become a major discussion among society. With the rapid development of the Greater Bay Area, the infrastructure for traveling to and from Hong Kong has been well established. One of the exhibitors, Dasin Real Estate, has been taking an interest in market demand for "aging in place" and started developing the Greater Bay Area's first one-stop living and medical elderly persons apartment, "Dasin Senior Community" in Zhongshan. Mr. Andy Yau, Chief Project Consultant of Dasin Real Estate Zhongshan Senior Community, said: "Hong Kong property prices have hit record highs. There are more and more Hong Kong people switching their interests to properties in the Greater Bay Area for the purpose of aging in place, while medical care and facilities surrounding properties is the most important consideration. The Dasin Senior Community is based on these two key factors; to provide one-stop living and medical services, including medical services and medicine from Hong Kong professionals, as well as the opportunity to enjoy relatively low-cost living."

Over 20 Experts Analyse Latest Developments and Investment Experiences of the Local and Overseas Real Estate Market

The 54^th SMART Investment and International Property Expo featured various activities in which guests could participate, including talks on the topics of a Forecast of the Property Market in H2 2019 by Dr. Lawrance Wong, President, Many Wells Property Agent Limited; How to Take Advantage of Your Investments Under the Turmoil of the Trade War by Mr. Alex Wong, Director, Asset Management, Ample Capital Limited; The Bull Market Hasn't Finished Yet by Mr. Francis Kwok, Chief Executive Officer, Emperio Securities and Assets Management Limited; Zhu Hai Withdrew its Home Buying Restriction Order: How to Invest in the Midst of Residential Market Ups and Downs by Dr. Stephen Shum, Principal Consultant, V+ Property Expo; New Reiwa Era for Japan, New Sights in Tokyo and Osaka's Property Market by Mr. Alex Yeung, Director, Century 21 Culture Center Property Limited; and the Hong Kong Stock Market Investment Strategy for the Second Half of 2019 by Mr. Michael Wong, Group Chief Investment Officer and Director of PC Securities.

About SMART Expo

SMART Expo Ltd. specialises in property and investment related events, conferences and exhibitions. SMART Expo is Asia's longest established expo of its kind that offers visitors global property options. It is determined to offer buyers with the latest market information as well as a wide variety of investment options to meet various market needs. Over the past 14 years, SMART has produced in excess of 53 expos held in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, China (Shanghai and Guangzhou), and Thailand. More than 2,700 past exhibitors and 150,000 investors have used SMART Expo to generate business opportunities.

About REA Group

REA Group Limited ACN 068 349 066 (ASX:REA) ("REA Group") is a multinational digital company specialising in property. REA Group operates Australia's leading residential, commercial and share property websites - realestate.com.au, realcommercial.com.au, Flatmates.com.au -- as well as Spacely, a short-term commercial and co-working property site. In Asia, REA Group owns leading portals in Malaysia (iproperty.com.my), Hong Kong (squarefoot.com.hk) and Indonesia (rumah123.com), and prominent portals in Singapore (iproperty.com.sg), and China (myfun.com), a leading property review site in Thailand (thinkofliving.com) and SMART Expo Ltd., a specialised organiser in property and investment related events, conferences and exhibitions. REA Group owns Smartline Home Loans Pty Ltd, an Australian mortgage broking franchise group, and Hometrack Australia Pty Ltd, a leading provider of data property services. REA Group also holds a significant shareholding in property websites Move, Inc in the US and PropTiger in India.