Chinese are now by far the biggest foreign buyers of US real estate¹ in terms of units, dollar volume and price paid, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors, which tracks property purchases across the country.

全美房地产经纪人协会(National Association of Realtors)的一份报告称，中国人现在是美国房地产遥遥领先的最大外国买家，无论以数量、美元销售额还是交易价格衡量都是如此。该协会追踪全美各地的房地产购买交易。

In the 12 months to the end of March, Chinese buyers spent $28.6bn on mostly residential² property in the US, a 30 per cent increase from the previous year and more than two and a half times the amount spent by Canadians, the next biggest group of foreign buyers.

在截至今年3月底的12个月里，中国买家在美国支出286亿美元（主要用于购买住宅物业），同比增加30%，而且是第二大外国买家群体——加拿大人支出金额的2.5倍多。

With the Chinese economy and real estate market slowing dramatically and a vociferous³ anti-corruption campaign in full swing at home, Chinese buyers have been scrambling⁴ in the past few years to buy real estate abroad.

随着中国经济和房地产市场大幅放缓，同时声势浩大的反腐败运动不断深入，近年中国买家竞相在国外购买房地产。

As a group they have become the biggest buyers of housing in many major western cities, including New York, London, Sydney, Vancouver, Toronto and Auckland. Houses in English-speaking democracies with good education systems, excellent quality of life, strong rule of law and strong property rights are regarded by Chinese buyers as excellent stores of wealth.

作为一个群体，他们已成为许多西方大城市住房的最大买家，这些城市包括纽约、伦敦、悉尼、温哥华、多伦多和奥克兰。在中国买家看来，这些地方位于讲英语的民主国家，有良好的教育体系、一流的生活质量、强大的法治和产权制度，因此这里的住房是极好的保值工具。

In the year to the end of March, Chinese buyers spent more than three times the average American buyer, paying an average of $831,800 per property, compared with the national average transaction price of $255,600.

在截至今年3月底的一年里，中国赴美购房者的平均支出金额达到美国购房者的三倍多，平均为每套住房付出83.18万美元，而美国全国平均房产交易价为25.56万美元。

For all international buyers, the average purchase price was $499,600, although the next biggest buyers — from Canada, India, Mexico and the UK — all spent less than that on average.

就所有海外买家而言，平均购房价格为49.96万美元，尽管排在中国后面的最大买家群体——加拿大、印度、墨西哥和英国买家——平均支出都低于这个水平。

Although Chinese buyers of American property overtook Canadian buyers in total transaction volume a year ago, they only overtook them in number of transactions in the latest 12-month period measured by the NAR report.

尽管中国赴美购房者的交易总额在一年前就超过加拿大买家，但就交易数量而言，中国买家只是在全美房地产经纪人协会报告覆盖的最近12个月期间才超过加拿大买家。

Buyers from China (including Taiwan and Hong Kong) accounted for 28 per cent of total sales of US real estate to foreign buyers and 16 per cent of the number of transactions, compared with Canada’s 14 per cent of transactions.

就出售给外国买家的美国房地产而言，来自中国（包括台湾和香港）的买家占总销售额的28%，交易数量的16%，而加拿大买家占交易数量的14%。

The favourite Chinese investment destination in the US was California, accounting⁵ for 35 per cent of purchases, followed by Washington state, New York, Massachusetts, Illinois and Texas.

在美国，中国人最钟情的投资目的地是加利福尼亚州，占购房数量的35%，其次为华盛顿州、纽约、马萨诸塞州、伊利诺伊州和得克萨斯州。

About 70 per cent of Chinese purchases were reported as all-cash, compared with 55 per cent for all foreign purchases and 25 per cent for purchases made by domestic US buyers.

据报告，约70%的中国买家购房全部使用现金，相比之下，这个比例在所有外国买家中为55%，在美国国内买家中为25%。

Since China has strict capital controls that limit individuals to transferring just $50,000 a year out of the country, it appears that most of the money flooding into global property markets is technically⁶ illegal.

由于中国实行严格的资本管制，每人每年只能汇款5万美元到国外，涌入全球房地产市场的大部分资金看起来在技术上是非法的。

While there are legal ways to transfer larger sums, several major banks in Beijing told the Financial Times they had never conducted such transactions for offshore⁷ real estate buyers. People involved in the market say the vast majority of money for overseas property purchases is transferred illegally.

虽然存在汇兑更大金额的合法途径，但北京的数家大银行向英国《金融时报》介绍说，他们从来没有为海外房地产买家安排这样的交易。参与该市场的人士透露，绝大部分海外购房资金是非法转移的。