China is one of the fastest growing overseas property investment markets, but there are currently no online resources allowing Mandarin-speaking Chinese investors to research and view potential property purchases.
Luckywu.com has been created specifically to deliver this service, with a high level of functionality and a layout/design created localised for the Chinese online consumer.
At the same time, while UK-based developers and other property vendors are keen to sell to Chinese investors, it is a an inaccessible market with a complex range of language, culture, social and economic differences to overcome.
Luckywu.com - with its easy-to-use English language interface and full integration with domestic property portals such as rightmove.co.uk and findaproperty.com - allows UK property
developers and vendors a cost effective means of showcasing properties directly to China's millions of high net worth individuals.
Initially Luckywu.com is focussing on the UK with a minimum of 500 searchable listings - covering off plan, new build, recently renovated, and second hand homes in and around the London area at launch.
Rollout plans include 5,000 listings in London and the rest of the UK in Q4 2011 and then adding targeted lifestyle destinations around the world in Q1 2012 and other international property areas (ie: USA, Australia,
Europe, Asia), in the latter half of 2012.
Luckywu.com charges for advertising in the same way as domestic advertising portals do.
At a special launch rate of just £100 per month, developers and agents can access the Chinese market in order to showcase data and photos of properties, generate leads, close sales, and plan further marketing. Luckywu.com allows for prominent advertising of agent and developer brands as well as links and contact information.
The site also includes information on overseas property news and specific regional/country information of interest to Chinese buyers (including education, residence, immigration, travel and economic information).
International Managing Director, Sherry Madera, said:
"While UK buyers continue to be held back by economic uncertainty and mortgage drought, mainland Chinese investors have money to spend. The country has the fourth largest number of high net worth individuals in the world.
"And, following recent changes in taxation in China and with the exchange rate on the Chinese Yaun up 50% against Sterling since the end of 2007, they have a real the appetite to spend it in the UK and the West.
"Chinese buyers already account for more than 5% of residential purchases in Central London last year and this is predicted to grow by 35% year-on-year according to recent research. However, until now there has been no easy means for Chinese investors and UK-based vendors to come together.
"Luckywu.com is the first property web portal to target the Chinese market and we are already receiving an exciting level of interest from both buyers and sellers."
Luckywu.com draws on the established knowledge of and business networks in China of its parent organisation Betex (which operates the leading Western lottery brand inChina) as well as its sister company, China-focussed residential property agency FiveContinents Property (which has offices in Beijing, Nanjing and Guangzhou).
Luckywu.com operates as a completely independent business from Five Continents.
