亞洲豪宅成為國際房市寵兒 在今年的 5 月 5 日，WHO 宣布 2019 新型冠狀病毒疫情不再是全球公衛緊急事件，也等於向世人宣告生活將全面回復正常，同時亞洲與大洋洲各地也出現了報復性的旅遊潮，甚至出現了觀光業人手不足的景象，許多觀光重地都提出了新的大型飯店興建計畫。其實在這些現象出現之前，國際買家便已經看準了亞洲房地產市場的復甦力道，早早開始佈局入場，而度假區正是他們最看好的出手標的。 以最具指標意義的日本為例，外國人在日本置產向來就以「投資兼度假」為最大宗，當政府在去年底開始放寬入境限制時，就已經有眾多買家不遠千里去日本看房，尤其是新加坡、台灣和香港的投資客，今年則有更多的西方買家回流，最受歡迎的置產地點是二世谷、沖繩、京都、輕井澤、白馬和伊豆等觀光勝地。這些投資者不只是看好日本觀光業的雄厚實力，同時也是想趁著日圓匯率疲軟的時候逢低買進，因此一擲千金，高價的度假別墅變得相當搶手，讓低靡許久的日本房產市場又有了新的發展契機。 強勢美元並不只影響到了日本，亞洲各地的貨幣幣值現今都在相對低點。在大家印象中，新加坡並非是投資房地產的好地方，畢竟土地小且購買權有管制，但其實第 9、10、11 區的高級住宅區，以及聖淘沙灣的豪宅是對外國人開放販售的，只要經土地交易部門批准即可，近來也出現了許多外國買家，其中不少來自於日本與台灣。畢竟相較於歐美目前的金融圈狀況，亞洲不僅相對穩定，而且經濟情況也比較理想，國際貨幣基金組織（IMF）在 5 月 2 日還調升 2023 年的亞洲經濟增長預測 0.3 個百分點，增至 4.6％ 的水準。由於外國買家太多，新加坡政府為了防止房市過熱，甚至在 4 月宣布調高房地產的印花稅，將外國人買房稅率從原本的 30％ 升高到 60％，不過根據 2013 年簽訂的協議，包括美國、冰島和挪威等國的外國購房者並不在此次加稅之列，依然可以享有與新加坡公民相同的印花稅待遇。 亞太地區經濟體今年的表現相較於西方的衰退景象顯得更為出色，除了東亞與東南亞外，大洋洲也顯得欣欣向榮。紐西蘭在去年 7 月就率先向世界其他地區開放了邊境，讓許多海外人士湧入了紐西蘭，包括奧克蘭、皇后鎮等度假勝地的房產成為買家首選，而且對這些海外買家而言，紐西蘭不僅在稅制上非常討喜，限制也沒有那麼多，一些市中心的高樓層新建海景公寓大方歡迎非紐、澳、新的投資客購買，很受外國買家青睞，包括美國人、台灣人、新加坡人和澳大利亞人都在尋找合適的出手標的。 其實以整體市場而言，亞太地區的房地產也不能免於世界趨勢而轉為買方市場，但豪宅市場卻不一樣，在國際買家的加持下反而變得更加搶手，尤其是度假區的高級住宅，很多國家都是在疫情解封後很快迎來一波熱潮，例如泰國的曼谷、清邁、芭達雅等地也湧入了許多國際買家，豪宅尤其搶手，以亞洲華人為其大宗，這些亞太觀光勝地的房產不受利率上升和全球經濟放緩的影響，甚至成為現今環境下避險的好選擇，相較於歐美地區的房市現況，成為另一種「東升西降」的奇特景象。           International Property Buyers Seek Luxury in Asia On May 5th of this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a global public health emergency. This announcement signifies a step towards a normal life and provides reassurance to people worldwide. Meanwhile, various regions in Asia and Oceania have experienced a surge in revenge travel. The tourism industry is facing a shortage of manpower, and many popular tourist destinations have initiated projects for constructing new large-scale hotels for tourism recovery. However, before these phenomena occurred, international buyers had already seen the recovery of the Asian real estate market, and began to make early moves to enter, and the resorts were their most favored targets. Taking Japan as a typical example, foreign property buyers have traditionally viewed it as an investment and vacation destination. When the Japanese government began lifting entry restrictions at the end of last year, numerous buyers, especially investors from Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, traveled thousands of miles to visit properties in Japan. This year, there has been a resurgence of Western buyers as well. Popular locations for property investment include Niseko, Okinawa, Kyoto, Karuizawa, Hakuba, and Izu, which are renowned tourist destinations in Japan. These investors not only recognize the robustness of Japan's tourism industry but also aim to take advantage of the weak Japanese yen by purchasing properties at favorable exchange rates. As a result, high-end vacation villas have become highly desirable, giving new opportunities in the sluggish Japanese real estate market. The strong dollar has not only affected Japan, but currencies across countries in Asia are now at relative lows. Many people have the impression that Singapore is not a good place to invest in real estate. After all, the land is small and there are controls on the right to buy. But in fact, the high-end residential areas in Districts 9, 10, and 11, and luxury homes in Sentosa Cove are available for foreigners to buy, as long as they are approved by the Singapore Land Authority. Recently, there are many foreign buyers, and many of whom come from Japan and Taiwan. Indeed, compared to the current financial conditions in Europe and America, Asia is relatively stable and has a more favorable economic situation. On May 2nd, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) even raised its economic growth forecast for Asia by 0.3 percent to 4.6% in 2023. Due to the influx of foreign buyers, the Singapore government announced in April an increase in stamp duty for real estate to prevent an overheated housing market. The stamp duty rate for foreign buyers was raised from 30% to 60%. However, based on an agreement signed in 2013, foreign buyers from countries such as the United States, Iceland, and Norway are not subject to this tax increase, and they can still enjoy the same stamp duty as Singaporean citizens. Economies in the Asia-Pacific region have performed better this year compared to the Western region which is facing recession. Besides East and Southeast Asia, Oceania also appears to be thriving. New Zealand opened its borders to the rest of the world in July last year, attracting a large number of overseas visitors. Properties in popular vacation destinations such as Auckland and Queenstown became top choices for buyers. New Zealand is favored by foreign buyers not only due to its favorable tax system but also because there are fewer restrictions. Some newly built apartments with sea views in city centers warmly welcome investors who are not from New Zealand, Australia, and the Pacific Islands. Similar situations are common in Auckland, where Americans, Taiwanese, Singaporeans, and Australians are all looking for suitable investment opportunities. Overall, it's inevitable for the real estate market in the Asia-Pacific region to follow the global trends and shift toward a buyer's market. However, the luxury property market is a different story. Due to the support of international buyers, luxury homes have become even more desirable, especially in vacation resorts. Many countries have experienced a surge in demand after the lifting of travel restrictions with numerous international buyers being attracted to regions, such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Pattaya in Thailand. The majority of these buyers are from Asia-Pacific countries. Properties in these popular tourist destinations are less affected by rising interest rates and slowdowns of the global economy, making them a preferred choice for hedging in the current situation. This phenomenon can be seen as a unique trend of "eastward increase and westward decrease," compared to the real estate markets in Europe and the United States.