Report shows Canadians as most popular investors for Florida real estate

The United States has seen foreign real estate investors growing in numbers in recent years for many reasons. Some purchase real estate in our major cities for their children while they attend our universities, some buy investment properties for rentals while others seek vacation homes.

We have seen some of Canada’s Hollywood transplants purchasing here including Ryan Gosling and Ryan Reynolds while other investors from the North have been busy snapping up homes across the United States.

Canadians have maintained their ranking as the number two international investors in United States property. Florida has ranked as the most popular state among this investor group, according to the 2017 National Association of Realtors’ International Activity in U.S. Residential Real Estate Report.

Regardless of the weaker Canadian dollar, (one Canadian dollar is equivalent to approximately 79 US cents) Canadians remain popular homebuyers in our country. Of the nearly $20 billion in our country’s real estate purchases, $7 billion were in our state of Florida alone. Other popular areas include the states of Texas, California, New Jersey and Arizona.

Interestingly Canadians have more than doubled their spending on Unites States properties. Specifically, during the period between April 2016 and March 2017, Canadians spent $19 billion on real estate which is up from $8.9 billion the previous year.

In Canada, housing prices increased by 10% last year in 2016, compared to 5% in the United States. In particular, Vancouver home prices soared over the past year by 17%. The United States housing market has shown modest price growth compared to Canada’s housing markets, which may have played a role in increased spending on U.S. properties. Additionally, with harsh Canadian winters, it is no surprise Canadians flock to Florida to escape the cold.