Foreign buyers purchased an estimated $66 billion worth of residential property in the U.S. last year, representing 7 percent of the market, according to a new report.
The survey by the National Association of Realtors covered the period between April 1, 2009 and March 31. International buyers were reported in 39 states in 2010, but seven states (Florida, California, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, New York and Nevada) accounted for 65 percent of the volume.
Realtors said the strength of the dollar and perceptions about the value of U.S. real estate have had a strong impact on international real estate business.
"While all real estate in the U.S. is local, the same is not true for property owners," said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox Real Estate in Tucson, Ariz. "The U.S. continues to be a top destination for international buyers from all over the world."
Slightly more than a quarter of Realtors, 28 percent, reported working with at least one international client in the past year. This is a significant increase from the 2009 report, when 23 percent of Realtors worked with foreign clients. Eighteen percent of all Realtors were estimated to have completed at least one sale, compared to 12 percent last year.
International buyers came from 53 different countries around the world. The top four countries were Canada, Mexico, the U.K. and China/Hong Kong. With 23 percent of international buyers coming from Canada, the country has remained the largest buying group in the past three years.
The median price paid by international buyers for a home in the U.S. was $219,400, a decrease from 2009’s median price of $247,100. However, the median price paid by foreign buyers was significantly higher than the overall median market price, which was $172,500 in 2009. On average, foreign buyers tend to purchase closer to the upper end of the market; 16 percent of the total international purchases were for homes priced at more than $500,000. According to Realtors, this was because international buyers are typically looking for a second home.
