Sydney, May 16, 2008 (ABN Newswire) - Western Australia in particular has long been a preferred haven for cashed-up South African investors, but lately their attention is increasingly attracted to commercial property opportunities in South-east Queensland.

To gauge the level of this interest and how best to cater for it, leading Gold Coast property specialists MC Commercial recently undertook a fact-finding visit to the major South African cities which included participation in an expo on Australian migration and investment opportunities.

Said Business Development Manager Cheryl Callanan, 'Everywhere, I encountered considerable interest in Australia. For example, some 16,000 visitors paid $110 each to attend the expo where I was besieged with questions from people who had already done quite a bit of homework on the current Australian environment.'

Ms Callanan said that most of these spoke of their concerns about South Africa's political and economic stability.

South Africa is the sixth most important source of migration to Australia and in 2006-7 accounted for 4.1% of migrants to Queensland.

Cheryl Callanan said that most intending South African migrants and investors regard Australia as a most attractive destination. It is seen as an English-speaking nation with similar lifestyle and values, but with the advantage of high social, political and economic stability.

She said that, historically, South African migrants often favoured Perth because of its proximity to South Africa and what was more affordable housing.

'However, there are concerns about Perth's housing prices which are now on par with those of Sydney and unlikely to grow for some time. Also, many feel that Western Australia's prosperity is over-reliant on the minerals boom and thus vulnerable to any fall-off in demand from China,' said Ms Callanan.

'By contrast, S.E. Queensland's impressive growth has a much broader base. In addition to our own thriving resources exports, we also have the important tourism industry and rapidly-expanding light industry and services sectors.'

'And with the Gold Coast now one of the nation's fastest-growing cities, you have a very attractive environment, particularly in the high-demand commercial and industrial property sector with its solid and consistent yields,' she commented.

Not surprisingly, this has generated a surge of interest which is not limited to South African investors.

'As commercial property and developments specialists with much experience in catering for off-shore purchasers, MC Commercial is also negotiating with investors in New Zealand, Singapore, Dubai and elsewhere - including, of course, the rest of Australia.'