A Charlottetown realtor has booked space at trade shows in Asia to take advantage of growing interest in P.E.I. real estate there.
Greg Lipton of Blue Ocean Real Estate has already been working with a Chinese agent. Now he is taking an additional step into the Asian market.
Vicki Li
Vicki Li, a Chinese immigrant who bought the Great Canadian Bagel in Charlottetown, believes there is still lots of opportunity to sell P.E.I. real estate in China. (CBC)
“I've been doing a lot of research. I've found two, they are international investment shows, trade shows, and we're going to be going there with all the listings we have,” said Lipton.
“There is one in Singapore and one in Beijing, both in April.”
Wayne Ellis, president of the P.E.I. Real Estate Association, said the P.E.I. real estate market is stagnant domestically, but interest from China is good.
“They want to come here and hopefully boost our economy,” said Ellis.
“That's what I see as the big plus."
Realtors across the province are doing what they can to attract Asian buyers, said Ellis.
Vicky Li, an immigrant from China who is now owner of the Great Canadian Bagel in Charlottetown, expects interest in P.E.I. from her home country to continue.
"Lots of [realtors from] the provinces in Canada, they have already been to China," said Li.
Li said for her family P.E.I. was the perfect place to escape the big city and start their own business. With the developing economy in China, she said, there are lots of people with money eager to invest abroad.
Even before his trade show trip, Lipton said the demand from Asian buyers is so high he's hiring a second Chinese broker who will start work next month.