In any downturn of the markets, when the dust settles, those who still have sufficient funds will be able to earn even more money while everyone else is simply attempting to survive.
An interesting example of this situation is taking place in the Japanese property market. As financial problems seem to endlessly spread across the planet, foreign investors who own property assets in Japan are now cashing in those high valued properties in order to raise cash and supplement lost income streams.
Unfortunately for the Japanese property market, a significant number of foreign firms are selling their holdings and property shares are dramatically plunging.
As of last Friday, the real estate sector dropped nearly 54% as measured by the Nikkei Stock Average sub-index when compared to the benchmark high set on Sept. 9, 2007. In comparison, the Nikkei average in general has only dropped 33%.
With so much property being sold, firms with substantial amounts of buying power are lining up to buy the available real estate at discount prices. The latest of these firms is multi-national General Electric.
The company's property arm is set to purchase nearly $10 billion worth of real estate in Japan this year. These moves are apparently being done with the expectation that the continuing credit crunch and the increasing cost of borrowing money will force local real estate trusts to sell property, furthering the decline of prices.
Tomoyuki Yoshida of GE Real Estate stated, "The market is favourable to GE. Small to medium sized fund managers have a huge issue about getting financed. They have to dispose of a lot of properties."
That simple statement reinforces sentiments held by many other large firms who have a surplus of funds, allowing them to profit considerably from what seems like nearly everyone else's misfortune.
