Photo: Sinovision.net
U.S. property agents cater to Chinese buyers of farmland
As more and more Chinese buyers target farmland in Texas, local agricultural property agents have started learning more about Sino-U.S. trade and Chinese culture, according to Sinovision.net.
Minor Taylor, a farmland agent in Bay City, Houston, said he has felt the need to learn about Chinese market demand, as the number of Chinese buyers has spiked in the last few years.
Taylor said Chinese investors have mostly bought farmland that historically produced sorghum or soybeans, and that bundles of alfalfa have recently been transported back to China as cattle feed. "Then I learned that China imports more than 30 billion tons of corns from the U.S.," he added.
Taylor signed a deal in early August with a Chinese buyer who purchased 5,000 acres of farmland worth more than $20 million to grow sorghum. The crops will be sent back to produce liquor in China after being stored and processed locally. It is the first time for Taylor to taste China-made liquor.
In the past four years, Taylor has sold more than 50,000 acres of farmland to Chinese buyers, and the total investment in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana is estimated to reach 100 million acres.
More and more agricultural property agents like Taylor are turning their attention to issues like visa policies and rate changes, and look forward to more agricultural exchanges between two countries.
