Examining the new players and new drivers in international investment

On March 27 the Property Council’s Future Directions Committee held their first event of 2015, titled New Players, New Drivers – Why Asian investors have their sights set on Brisbane.

The sold out event examined the full gamut of international interest in Brisbane, from land sales to commercial development and residential investment, and featured three experts who are experiencing this interest first hand.

Mike Walsh, Associate Director – CBRE | Capital Markets began proceedings with a presentation focused on Asian capital inflow. Mike discussed current Asian outbound investment levels, the mandate behind Asian buyers and origin of some of the major foreign site sales in Brisbane over the past 12 months.

Mike also provided an interesting comparison between Brisbane and Hangzhou, China, noting a number of similarities between the cities. Mike discussed these similarities as potential reasons Chinese investors may have the confidence to invest in Queensland.

Michael Sutherland, Director – Queensland – PDS Group then provided a presentation based on PDS’ extensive work alongside Asian clients, particularly in the residential sector.

Michael provided a detailed synopsis from the investor’s perspective of both sides of the Australian investment equation – opportunities and risks. Michael’s presentation also provided an apartment sales breakdown between local, interstate and overseas markets based on PDS’ recent experience in each capital city.

Finally, Mark Courtney, General Manager – Queensland – MacroPlan Dimasi provided the numbers to support the discussion, detailing the typical international buyer profile in Australia, the percentage of foreign investment occurring in each state and the level of investment in each sector.

The keynote presentations were followed by a Q and A session, moderated by the Chair of the Property Council’s Future Directions Committee Riye Arai-Coupe, Development Manager – Mirvac Group.

The Property Council would like to thank our speakers and moderator for providing their insights. We would also like to thank our principal sponsor Savills Project Management, supporting sponsor KPMG SGA and generous venue hosts CBRE.

Principal Sponsor

Supporting Sponsor

Elliott Gooch – Savills Project Management, Chris Mountford – Property Council of Australia, Riye Arai-Coupe – Chair of the Property Council of Australia Future Directions Committee and Mirvac Group, Mark Courtney – MacroPlan Dimasi, Mike Walsh – CBRE & Michael Sutherland – PDS Group