Australia is becoming a new hotbed for Asian investors as more middle-class families are choosing to send their children down under for education, and buying property along the way.

There were 9.5 million visitor arrivals in Australia in 2019, the highest on record, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The biggest proportion of them came from China, accounting for 1.4 million, or 14.7%, of the total.

Five other Asian nations fell within the top 10 countries of origin – Japan, Singapore, India, Malaysia, and South Korea – while Hong Kong ranked ninth.

Some 6.6% of short-term visitors who stayed in Australia for less than a year came for educational purposes [...]

According to a report by Chinese property portal Juwai in November, Australia has been the second most favoured country in terms of enquiries by Chinese buyers worldwide since 2015.

One factor driving the Chinese to Australia was the increased number of students opting to study down under, prompting parents to purchase homes for their children.

“Many middle-class families in Asia are becoming more wealthy and sending their children to study overseas in countries like Australia, and choosing to buy property there as well,” said Far East Consortium managing director Chris Hoong Cheong Thard.

“Especially over the past five or six years, we have seen more middle-class families from Asia investing overseas. This is part of a bigger trend, not just in Hong Kong, but also in other Asian countries. I think this trend will continue.”