Even with International travel bans, South Florida home sales to international buyers remain strong. This little pocket of paradise known as South Florida has outperformed the rest of Florida and […]
After more than a year and a half, on November 8th, the international travel restrictions to enter the US have finally been lifted for over 30 countries. The US is […]
Even with International travel bans, South Florida home sales to international buyers remain strong. This little pocket of paradise known as South Florida has outperformed the rest of Florida and the Nation in international home sales for 2021.
Foreign buyers purchased $5.1 Billion of residential real estate in south Florida during 2021, only down 9% from 2020 ($5.6 Billion). Statewide Florida saw a 22% volume decline, $12.3 Billion in international sales in 2021, compared to $15.1 Billion in 2020. Nationwide saw an even larger decline in volume of 27% ($54.4 Billion in 2021, and $74 Billion in 2020).
“For South Florida international home buying to remain essentially on par with the previous year despite the lockdowns and bans on international travel speaks to the incredible resilience and the allure of our market.” MIAMI Chairman of the Board, Jennifer Wollmann said. “We expect a significant increase in foreign visitors once the U.S. opens its borders to international travelers on November 8. Global buyers purchase in Miami because it is a world-class global city with better real estate prices than other similar global cities. Foreign buyers feel at home with our diversity and acceptance of all cultures.”
Florida has been the No. 1 state for foreign home buyers for the last 13 years.
According to the Florida Realtors 2021 Profile of International Residential Real Estate Activity in Florida, over half (52%) of all international home sales in Florida are in the South Florida Tricounty area (Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties). Orlando Finished in second with 10%, and Tampa third at 8%. One in five homes sales happen in Florida, and one in two in Florida are in the Miami Metro Market area.
Top Countries in South Florida
The top countries for buyers purchasing residential properties in South Florida are:
1. Argentina (13% of South Florida foreign purchases)
2. Colombia (12%)
3. Venezuela (10%)
4. Mexico (7%)
5. Chile and Brazil (6% each)
6. Peru and Canada (5% each)
7. Ecuador (4%)
8. Spain and France (3%)
Top Countries in Miami-Dade
The top countries for buyers purchasing residential properties in Miami-Dade County are:
1. Colombia (15%)
2. Argentina (14%)
3. Venezuela (10%)
4. Mexico (8%)
5. Brazil and Peru (7% each)
6. Chile and Canada (4% each)
Other countries purchasing in Miami include: Ecuador, Spain, France, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Costa Rica, Barbados, Bolivia, Paraguay, Egypt, Israel, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, United Kingdom, Sweden, Russia, China, India, South Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, Cuba, Haiti, South Africa, Singapore, Jamaica, Czech Republic, and more.
Top Countries in Broward
The top countries for buyers purchasing residential properties in Broward County are:
1. Argentina (17%)
2. Colombia (15%)
3. Peru (8%)
4. Canada, Venezuela and Chile (7% each)
5. Brazil, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico and Spain (3% each)
Other countries that purchased properties in Broward included: Bolivia, Ecuador, Bahamas, China, Czech Republic, India, Iran, Italy, Jamaica, Singapore, South Africa, United Kingdom and Uruguay.
Top Countries in Palm Beach
The top countries for buyers purchasing residential properties in Palm Beach County are:
1. Argentina, Brazil, Canada and Colombia (18% each)
2. Chile, Peru and Ukraine (9% each)
After more than a year and a half, on November 8th, the international travel restrictions to enter the US have finally been lifted for over 30 countries. The US is now allowing fully vaccinated travelers from these countries to enter the US upon showing proof of vaccination and a negative COVID test.
What does this mean for an already hot real estate market?
With the ban lifted, lines began forming at the US and Mexico borders even before daybreak. International flights are surging their way to the US with even dueling flights from cities like London, we are definitely seeing an influx of international travelers. On Monday November 8th, we saw 5,000 more arrivals than the Monday prior at Miami International Airport alone.
Though we believe many of the international travelers are here to see families after not being able to after over 19 months, we still think many are here with the purpose of investing in real estate both in this holiday wave of visitors and future waves in the new year.
International buyers in the past have made up to 5% of total sales volume in Florida. According to a report from the Florida Realtors, most foreign buyers that purchase properties in Florida come from Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela.The report also noted that the South Florida tri-county area gets the majority of foreign buyers (approximately 52%). It is likely many international travelers will also be interested in investing in Real Estate as well. In fact, we’ve started to hear that real estate brokers and agents have already started getting calls from foreign buyers in Canada, Latin America, Europe and other countries.
However, South Florida inventory is at an all time low currently. Palm Beach County has a little over one month of inventory, a 51% decrease from last year. Broward county has a one and a half month supply, a 40% decrease from last year. Miami-Dade County also has low inventory, only a 2.2 month supply of single family homes, a 42% decrease.
Bonnie Heatzig, executive director of luxury sales with Douglas Elliman in Boca Raton said, “An enlarged buyer pool looking to purchase when the inventory is at all-time lows will likely ignite the competitive bidding processes.”
“I’ve been trying to gear up as many off-market deals in the pipeline for when the flood comes in,” said Tony Rodriguez-Tellaheche, owner and managing broker at Prestige Realty Group.
With supply limited, options will be less. So the key question is, will foreign buyers be interested in the available real estate?
International buyers are not a “one-size fits all” type of group, instead their tastes differ. As Ignacio Diaz, co-owner of Group P6, a firm of luxury residential developers explains, some prefer luxury homes and condos, others look for properties with a “resort-like” feel, and some go for new construction.
“It’s hard to generalize, but mainly the foreign buyer tends to go towards condos because of the convenience,” said Edgardo Defortuna, President & CEO of Fortune International Group.
With record lows of homes, condos and townhomes in South Florida, the big issue facing all buyers (foreign, out of state and local) is lack of inventory. This makes the holiday season a great time for realtors to network with their friends and family to find out who in their network is looking to sell their home, as listings are “worth their weight in gold”.
Real Estate in South Florida remained strong in 2021, even amongst International Buyers despite COVID travel bans
UncategorizedEven with International travel bans, South Florida home sales to international buyers remain strong. This little pocket of paradise known as South Florida has outperformed the rest of Florida and […]
With International Travel Ban Lifted, How Will it Affect South Florida Real Estate?
UncategorizedAfter more than a year and a half, on November 8th, the international travel restrictions to enter the US have finally been lifted for over 30 countries. The US is […]