Bottom line: The record-breaking purchase of an Australian trophy hotel by a China buyer is part of a growing Chinese foreign real estate buying binge, which could ultimately produce a global bubble.
China’s nascent but rapidly growing appetite for foreign hotels continues to grow, with word that another previously unknown Chinese insurer has snapped up a trophy property in Australia for a record price. In this case it’s China’s Sunshine Insurance Group that’s buying a major Sheraton property in Sydney from global giant Starwood Hotels (NYSE: HOT) for an inflated price of A$463 million, or about $400 million. This sale is the third of a major western hotel asset to a Chinese buyer in just the last 2 months, and looks a lot like similar waves from the past 30 years that saw Asian buyers purchase trophy western real estate at inflated prices. Read Full Post…
