This post is written by Dr Patrick Liew, Ed.D, MBA, MSc, BSc, the Chairman of GEX Ventures Pte Ltd. A successful entrepreneur and investor in the region, he has listed multiple companies in different countries.
In Economy 4.0, you cannot afford to just be a local property investor – you need to be a global property investor.
Global diversification is crucial to maximise your returns and minimise your risks. You must strengthen your preparation, position and proficiency to become a global property investor.
Don’t be the proverbial frog in the well. The best opportunities and returns may not necessarily be in the domestic market.
While you are focusing on your local comfort zone, you may miss out on the next growth opportunities in another country.
History has proven that no single market can remain forever on top of wealth creation. The downturn of the local market may be the upturn of another property market overseas.
As a global investor, you are not only optimising your immediate returns. Ensuring that your portfolio comprises an appropriate mix of local and overseas investments will also balance your risk exposure. This will underpin stable, secure and sustainable returns in the long run.
Over the years, I have mentored countless students to become global investors. In doing so, I have helped many of them to achieve true financial freedom within a short period of time.
How should you invest in the global property market?
Let me share just 3 of my proprietary strategies to help you maximize your returns.
1. Arbitrage Strategy
There are different methods you can adopt to arbitrage between two economies, markets, finance and property cycles to enhance your profit, advantage and growth.
For example, you can capitalise on asymmetrical property cycles.
Invest at one of the low points and exit at one of the high points of a property cycle, and then catch the next wave of growth in the property cycle of another country.
A case in point would be when I helped many of my students to diversify their investments to property hotspots in Australia and other developed countries in the Western Hemisphere prior to the Asian Crisis.
By doing so, they were able to ring-fence themselves from the property downturn locally and profit from the growth of property markets overseas as well the strength of those foreign currencies.
2. Value-Transformation Strategy
One of the key advantages of investing in an overseas property is that there are many ways to improve and value-add to a property to generate a healthy profit from it.
There are likely an infinite number of uncomplicated ways to transform a property’s value, including changing its use and usage; feel and features; furniture and fixtures; movables and immovables; design and decor; and making additions and alterations to the size, space and shape of a property.
In addition, we have helped many of our students to invest in overseas properties by rezoning and redeveloping a property; improving a property’s values and utilities; and creating special functions, usages, and tenancy mix for a property so as to generate quantum leaps of returns.
3. Megatrend Strategy
One of the strategies that I teach my students is to study megatrends in different countries, in particular their property master plans.
Shifts in the demand and supply of a property market can generate opportunities for astute investors to achieve explosive returns.
For example, in many developed countries, the central business districts (CBDs) of their top cities will eventually become over-stretched.
Facing a limit in expanding the CBDs, the authorities will have to develop a second CBD to cater for further growth.
An astute investor will know how to monitor the way the authorities clear the land, improve the infrastructure, develop the built environment, and attract enterprises and other organizations to support the growth of the economy, market and communities.
By triangulating information from market developments, financial investments to that market, and ground study and sensing, an astute investor can strategically invest in an appropriate property at an appropriate time.
As a result of riding on market growth, the astute investor can generate good returns on investment.
There are many other easier and more sophisticated strategies that you can apply to achieve financial freedom in the global property market. In fact, if applied correctly, you can also own a property at low cost or even on a no-money-down basis.
The method in which you pay for your overseas property is equally important for cost saving. Your first port of call might be to use your bank – an obvious option for transferring money overseas. What many people often overlook, however, are the hidden fees and bad exchange rates that come with transferring funds with a bank.
Historically, banks were the only providers available to transfer money internationally – but in world where consumers demand more choice, we’re no longer restricted with options.
International currency transfer specialists exist to give customers more choice and better value for money. In fact by using a specialist provider, like global company WorldFirst, you could save up to three times more on your transfer in competitive exchange rates and avoid the unnecessary fees that the banks enforce.
I look forward to meeting you in one of my free public talks to share some of these powerful strategies to help you secure your financial destiny.
There are many opportunities that are waiting for you. I believe you owe it to yourself, your loved ones, and your future to capitalize on these opportunities.
Suffice to say, the time to become a global property investor is right now.
Register for a FREE Property Investment Masterclass workshop by Dr. Patrick!
About Dr Patrick Liew
Previously, Dr Patrick Liew was the Executive Chairman of HSR Global Ltd, which he listed on SGX. He also founded Success Resources, arguably the largest seminar organiser in the world, and listed it on ASX.
He held the position of Regional Director at the Gartner Group, listed on NYSE, as well. From his many years of experience in investment and entrepreneurship, he has amassed many lessons and strategies, which he now actively imparts to the members of the GEX community so that they may build on his experience.
Dr Patrick also provides leadership and advisory services to many professional and charity organisations. He is actively supports humanitarian, philanthropic, and charity causes.
He has won numerous awards including the Global Leader Award, Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award, and the Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Social Contributions.
About GEX Academy Pte Ltd
GEX Academy is one of Asia’s leading financial educators, with expertise in international property investment, business transformation and accessing the global capital markets. It has built a diverse and international community of over 3,500 active investors and entrepreneurs.
GEX Academy is a subsidiary of GEX Ventures, whose management team boasts over 100 years of combined experience in investment management and consulting. It has been awarded ShareInvestor’s “Most Preferred Financial Educator” Award 2018, the Enterprise 50 Award 2018, BrandLaureate’s International Brand Award 2018 and NVPC’s “Champion of Good” Award 2018.