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When asked where they would consider investing in property abroad, Australia was top of the list with 32 percent. Image courtesy of IP Global.

Australia, UK and Japan are the top three destinations for Singaporeans looking to invest in property overseas, according to a survey commissioned by IP Global, a leading full-service property investment company.

When asked where they would consider investing in property abroad, Australia was top of the list with 32 percent*. The UK with 16 percent and Japan with 13 percent are the second and third most popular choices respectively. Singapore was one of the five countries where the survey was conducted, as part of IP Global’s research to identify investment trends in real estate across key markets. Hong Kong, the United Kingdom,

United Arab Emirates and South Africa were the other four countries. The results across the five markets highlighted the following trends:

• Australia is amongst the top three investment markets for real estate in all five countries.
• Japan is in the top three choices for investors in both Singapore and Hong Kong.
• The US is among the top investment destinations for respondents outside of Asia.

“Real estate has traditionally been the favoured investment choice among Singaporeans making them well-versed with spotting trends and opportunities in the sector. The rising value of the Singaporean currency, which has strengthened against the Australian Dollar, British Pound and the Japanese Yen over the past 12 months, has opened up new opportunities for Singaporean investors in these countries,” said Alex Bellingham, Director of IP Global.

“Property prices in these countries have also been rising, making them an attractive destination for investors looking at medium to long-term capital gains,” he adds.

The Singaporean dollar has strengthened almost 30 percent against the Australian Dollar and more than 14% against the Japanese Yen since the start of 2013. It has also started rising steadily against the British Pound, gaining 8% in just the past five months. The strength of the Singaporean Dollar, which makes overseas investment more affordable, has been a key factor behind investors looking at overseas assets.

In Australia, Melbourne and Canberra record highest annual house price growth since 2009, in the last quarter of 2015. In the UK, the average house price rose 7.7 percent over the year to November 2015, with prices in London up by 9.8 percent, according to the Office of National Statistics.

In Japan, prices of condominiums have risen by more 20 percent since 2013, according to data published by Japan Macro Advisors. Political stability, strong rule of law and ease of access are among the other key factors that have made these countries a preferred destination for Singaporean investors.

“All of the top three destinations have a developed real estate market and well-defined rules and regulations governing the sector. This adds to their attractiveness for Singaporean investors who are wary of investing in countries where they lack understanding of local regulations in the sector,” he adds.

This was backed by the finding of the survey, with 54 percent of respondents stating that a lack of understanding of the laws in the country where the property is located would put them off investing in it.