Chinese Investors in U.S. Real Estate Shopping Spree

Chinese investment in U.S. real estate has taken a dramatic increase during this decade, according to a new report by Asia Society and Rosen Consulting Group (RCG) titled “Breaking Ground: Chinese Investment in U.S. Real Estate.”

Between 2010 and 2015, Chinese investors acquired at least $17.1 billion of existing commercial property, representing an annual growth rate of 70 percent–with half of those investments taking place in 2015 alone. Chinese buyers spent at least $93 billion on residential real estate during the same period, representing an annual spending rate increase of 20 percent. Among the states, California accounting for 35 percent of Chinese residential investments, followed by Washington with eight percent and New York with seven percent.

The report also determined that the Chinese investment helped the economy: Chinese-funded projects under construction or planned totaled at least $15 billion by the end of 2015.

"This wave of investment is coming from diverse sources in China," said Arthur Margon, a partner at RCG and one of the authors of the report. "But that's really a small piece of the potential investor universe."