According to officials at New York University, their School of Continuing and Professional Studies will launch the city’s first course in Mandarin for real estate professionals starting in February.
In an interview with the China Daily, Milena Savova, who directs the school’s Department of Foreign Languages, Translation and Interpreting, said that the school was opening the course in respone to the demand from local real estate brokers hoping to sell homes to Chinese investors.
The 12-week course, which begins on Feb 6, is for beginners in Mandarin. The goal is to help real estate professionals communicate with Chinese clients. In addition to language skills, students will learn about Chinese culture and how feng shui influences buyers’ decision-making. The course will familiarize students with greetings, exchanges of courtesies and customs useful to real estate deal-making.
Clients from China have become the second-biggest group of foreign buyers in the US residential property market, surpassed only by Canadians, according to the National Association of Realtors. Chinese buyers accounted for $7.4 billion of sales during the 12 months ended in March 2012, up 24 percent from the year-earlier period.
Also, Chinese buyers spent $1.71 billion on commercial property in the US during the most recent period for which data are available.
Kathy Tsao, a New York agent for 16 years and the chairwoman of the Asia Real Estate Association of America acknowledged New York’s status as a high-priced property market, but said that compared to big, expensive Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai, and considering that US inflation has been held in check for several years, New York can present good value to investors.
According to Tsao, the key to doing business with Chinese clients is understanding their needs and providing good service.
“If (Chinese buyers) are happy with your service, they will introduce their friends to you for more purchases in the future,” Tsao said.
The article did not make clear if this was expected to be a striking departure from the expectations of non-Chinese clients.
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