Economy

Shanghai investors still interested in Japan property market

By Qiang Xiaoji (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2011-03-18 14:31

While Japan is suffering from the devastating earthquake, Shanghai's investors are still interested in the Japanese property market. At an overseas property exhibition held in the city starting Thursday, Japanese developers attracted some investors, China News Agency reported.

"Most of the properties we presented at the exhibition are located in the western area of Japan such as Kobe and Osaka, which are hardly affected by the earthquake," said the chairman of an Osaka-based investment and consulting company.

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Housing safety has overtaken price as investors' greatest concern. In order to eliminate homebuyers' worries, exhibitors tried to emphasize the earthquake-safe quality of their houses and the property insurance of their housing, the report said.

However, houses in Tokyo are no longer Japanese developers' best recommendation because of the earthquake, the report said.

The chairman said it was still a good opportunity to purchase property in Japan, as the annual lending rate is between 2 and 3 percent now, much lower than the rate during the ballooning economy period, which stood at 8 to 9 percent.

He said although it was still difficult for Chinese people to apply for a loan in Japan, according to the latest news, it might be possible for Chinese investors to get loans from Hong Kong banks in the near future.