Real estate agencies in Melbourne provided special services for their clients for the holiday.
Chinese investors have flocked Melbourne's real estate on Li Chun Day. They preferred to "deposit" their money on real estate instead of stashing them away in banks. Therefore, some real estate agencies, reportedly prepared special services like picking up clients from the airport or booking their hotels for this special Chinese holiday, Domain has reported.
Esther Yong​, director at Chinese portal ACProperty, said her company got 35 percent more phone inquiries before Chinese New Year. On the other hand, Ming Xu of Biggin and Scott Glen Waverley said that his agency tried to be a one-stop shop for the Chinese investors. Xu Said, "Sometimes we pick up the clients from the airport, and we help them book the hotels because English is not their first language. We pick them up from the hotel and drive them to different properties. Some of them are looking to migrate, and the only time they can come here is during Chinese New Year, so at the same time we help the children enroll in different schools."
As previously reported, CBRE's Mark Wizel's received $14.8 million from a Chinese investor as payment for one of the development spots he was selling at 280 Normanby Road in South Melbourne. The buyer was reportedly following a common practice of depositing money on the first day of the Chinese spring festival known as "Li Chun." The tradition is believed to bring good financial luck for the entire year.
Meanwhile, in Singapore, where the practice is widely followed, people had flocked to banks, forming long lines, as early as the day before "Li Chun." According to The Strait Times, people born in the Year of the Tiger or Dragon, were majority of those who lined up before the bank was open for business on that day. They believed that by depositing money on that day, their wealth will be amplified through the year. Banks were not the only establishments that got business on the auspicious day.