The tide could well be turning for US real estate as International Real Estate buyers slowly turn their heads towards the US. Overseas property portal Homesgofast.com and National Association of Realtors report that overseas investors are increasingly in search of US real estate bargains.
UK and European buyers are spoilt for choice when searching to buy property abroad from a range of emerging property regions such as Brazil, India, and Eastern Europe to the more established regions such as France and Spain. It seems that US housing market has not been the darling of the overseas property investor.
The sub prime market concerns and falling house prices in the US does not make good reading for the international real estate buyer. However as Nicholas Marr CEO of Homesgofast.com reports that the US housing market may now be ripe for picking he comments
“Investors have been sizing up the US market and are finding some real bargains. Florida properties for example are low priced and being offered with a host of incentives. Savvy investors know that profits are made on the purchase. We have investors capitalising on low property prices but are also taking advantage of the strong Pound against the Dollar. Investors with cash are in a win win situation. My top tip when buying abroad is make sure your exit strategy includes the possibility of being able to sell to more than one market of buyers. Owning investment property that is attractive to both a local and international buyers gives you a water tight exit strategy. Many US investment properties will provide this opportunity”
National Association of Realtors 2007 Profile of International Home Buying Activity shows that a quarter of REALTORS® report more international business in 2006 than five years ago. Nearly one in five respondents sold a home to an international client in the past year, and one-third say they believe foreign retirees are an increasingly important market in the United States.
“Just as many U.S. residents are looking overseas for retirement and second homes, people in other countries are considering a home in this country,” says NAR President Pat V. Combs. As international boundaries of homeownership dissolve, you must stand ready to serve an increasingly diverse and multicultural marketplace’
Conversely US investors seem determined to be part of the overseas property markets. This is despite the weak dollar and some tax issues US citizens have to deal with. Recent figures indicate that four million US citizens now own property abroad – a much higher proportion than among UK citizens. The exceptional investment opportunities available in today’s emerging property markets are proving too attractive to be ignored US real estate investors. Ibbotson Associates, a Chicago investment-research firm, recommends that foreign real estate should equal about 8% to 9% of an investor’s portfolio.
International Investment Property
