International buyers bought $42 billion worth of existing homes in the U.S. from April 2023 through March 2024, according to the newest data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
That’s down 21.2% from the previous 12-month period, per NAR figures. The count of properties purchased by international buyers also fell, plummeting 36% from the previous year to the lowest level since NAR began tracking in 2009. International buyers accounted for 2% of total existing home sales.
“The strong U.S. dollar makes international travel cheaper for Americans but makes U.S. homes much more expensive for foreigners,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Therefore, it’s not surprising to see a pullback in U.S. home sales from foreign buyers.
“Historically low housing inventory and escalating prices remain significant factors in constraining home sales for American and international buyers alike,” Yun added.
Foreign buyers who lived within the U.S. as recent immigrants or who were holding visas that allowed them to live in the U.S. bought $22.6 billion worth of existing homes. That’s down 3.4% year over year and makes up 54% of total international buyer volume. Foreign buyers who lived abroad purchased $19.4 billion in existing homes, down 35% annually and making up 46% of the dollar volume.
While dollar volumes and sales counts were down for international purchases, prices were up. The average and median existing home sales prices for foreign buyers, at $780,300 and $475,000, respectively, were the highest ever recorded by NAR. The average price was up 21.9% from the previous 12-month period, while the median price was up 19.8%.
Buyers from Canada bought the most American resale properties among internationals, accounting for 13% of the count of all foreign sales. China and Mexico, at 11% each, were next, followed by India at 10%. By dollar volume, China was first at $7.5 billion; China has topped the list every year since 2013. Canada ($5.9 billion), India ($4.1 billion), Mexico ($2.8 billion) and Colombia ($0.7 billion) filled out the rest of the top five.
Among states, Florida attracted 20% of foreign real estate buys, making it the top destination for the 16th straight year. Following the Sunshine State were Texas (13%), California (11%) and Arizona (5%).
