Map Shows Where Foreign Citizens Are Buying Homes In US

Newsweek

a day ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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International homebuyers are losing interest in purchasing properties in the U.S., according to a new study by Realtor.com, with warm-weather markets suffering the most from this retreat—though Miami remains the most sought-after destination in the country. An expert spoke with Newsweek about what's driving the numbers.
Why It Matters
Foreign nationals represent a very small percentage of all homebuyers in the U.S., but their activities still bring dozens of billions of dollars to the country's housing market.
According to 2024 data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), foreign buyers made 1.3 percent of 4.06 million existing-home sales last year, for a total of $42 billion, which was about 2 percent of the total $2.1 trillion of the dollar volume of existing-home sales that same year. A majority of these foreign buyers lived in the U.S. (57 percent), while 45 percent bought the property for use as a vacation home, rental, or both.
Dwindling interest among international buyers—especially Canadians, who represent the majority of foreign nationals purchasing homes in the U.S., suggest that the U.S. housing market has become less appealing, partially because of Donald Trump's aggressive trade policies which have targeted the U.S. neighbor and the country's biggest trading partners.
This is very bad news for U.S. sellers, who are already struggling with rising inventory and falling sales, as buyers are kept on the sidelines by historically elevated mortgage rates and sky-high prices.
What To Know
Realtor.com's study, published earlier this month, shows that interest in buying a residential property in the U.S. fell in all countries that can be considered the top foreign customers in the world for American homes.
Between January and March, according to Realtor.com, Canadians represented the biggest share of foreign home shoppers in the U.S., making up 34.7 percent of international traffic, followed by the U.K. (5.7 percent), Mexico (5.4 percent), Germany (3.8 percent), and Australia (3.2 percent). These numbers represent the people who showed interest in buying a home in the U.S., not those who concluded a purchase in the country.
We find these same nationalities in NAR's 2024 data about international home buyers. According to the group, 13 percent of foreign buyers in 2024 were from Canada, while 11 percent came from China, 11 percent from Mexico, 10 percent from India, and 4 percent from Colombia. Together, these buyers put over $21 billion in the U.S. housing market last year.
This year, based on their diminished interest in the first quarter of 2025, their investment is likely to be a little smaller.
Online traffic from Canadian buyers, Realtor.com reported, plunged by 40.7 percent to 34.7 percent from the last quarter of 2024 to the first quarter of 2025. This retreat, according to Realtor.com economist Jiayi Xu, conceded exactly "with the implementation of U.S. tariffs on imported goods and a shift in U.S.-Canada relations," she told Newsweek.
Canada was among the first U.S. trading partners to be hit by the Trump administration's sweeping tariffs earlier this year, and it is now facing a 50 percent tariff on its steel and aluminum imported to the U.S. as well as a 10 percent levy on some energy products.
"These factors may have contributed to reduced interest among Canadians in purchasing homes or relocating to the U.S.," Xu said.
But it is not just tariffs that have antagonized Canadian buyers. Trump's rhetoric about annexing the U.S. neighbor and turning into the "51st state" has angered many in Canada, who are now reconsidering even whether they should vacation south of the border.
No Other Country Filling In For Canada
"The drop in the share of Canadian home shoppers from 40.7 percent in Q1 2024 to 34.7 percent in Q1 2025 is primarily due to fewer Canadians purchasing homes in the US, rather than growing demand from other nationalities," Xu told Newsweek.
"There is no significant increase in interest from other countries," she added. "In short, the decline is driven by reduced activity from Canada itself—not by increased competition from other countries."
Interest among Mexican homebuyers, which remains relatively high, has also slightly fallen from 5.8 percent to 5.4 percent between Q1 2024 and Q1 2025, Realtor.com found. The country is facing similar tariffs as those applied to Canada.
Florida Is Both Biggest Loser and Biggest Winner
"The Sunshine State, which has long been a magnet for out-of-state movers with its sunny skies and relatively low taxes, has experienced some of the biggest drops in the share of international views from would-be buyers," Xu said.
The most dramatic plunge in interest among Canadian buyers was reported in Naples, Florida, which until recently had been the most popular destination for Canadians looking to buy a second home in a warm destination.
Between October and December 2024, more than 73 percent of international traffic to Naples came from Canada. This number has now fallen to 59.6 percent in the first quarter of 2025, down 13.5 percent.
Other Florida cities suffered drops: North Port saw a fall in Canadian traffic of 13 percentage points during the same time, while Cape Coral reported a dip of 10.8 percentage points and Tampa one of 10.1 percentage points.
Florida, however, still has the number one metropolitan area Canadian home shoppers are looking into: Miami.
"Miami stands out for its year-round sunshine, beautiful beaches and vibrant lifestyle," Xu said.
"In addition to its cultural diversity and global appeal, Miami's tax-friendly environment and thriving luxury real estate market continue to attract international home buyers seeking both investment opportunities and a high quality of life."
Miami had the highest share of traffic from international buyers in the country in the first quarter of the year, at 8.7 percent, followed by New York (4.9 percent), Los Angeles (4.6 percent), Orlando (2.9 percent), Dallas (2.8 percent), Houston (2.6 percent), Tampa (2.5 percent) and Phoenix (2.3 percent).
"New York is known for its concentration of global business opportunities, world-renowned universities, and established luxury real estate, while Los Angeles appeals with its thriving entertainment industry, cultural diversity, and sunny climate," Xu explained.
"Both markets offer strong long-term investment potential and large immigrant communities that offer international buyers a welcoming and culturally connected environment."
Three cities in the West—San Francisco, San Diego and Las Vegas—fell off the top 20 markets that interested international buyers the most, mainly because of their ongoing affordability issues.