According to Open4business, foreign buyers purchased residential property in the US worth $45.3 billion between April 2025 and March 2026, which is 19.1 per cent less than in the previous 12 months, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported in a report published on 29 July 2026. The number of properties purchased by foreign buyers fell by 14 per cent — from 78,100 to 67,100. This is the second-lowest figure since 2009, when NAR began compiling these statistics. The median purchase price was $465,000.
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun attributed the decline in activity to an overall reduction in international tourism and travel to the US. According to him, even a slight weakening of the dollar, which boosted the purchasing power of foreign buyers, was unable to offset high prices and limited housing supply.
Among foreign buyers who abandoned their planned transactions, 33 per cent were unable to find a suitable property, 28 per cent considered prices too high, and 19 per cent encountered difficulties related to immigration rules. High mortgage rates, inflation, trade policy and geopolitical uncertainty placed further pressure on demand. Canadian citizens accounted for 16 per cent of all foreign purchases, acquiring 10,700 properties worth $5.2 billion. Mexico came second with a 14 per cent share and 9,400 transactions worth $5 billion. Buyers from China fell from first to third place in terms of the number of purchases, accounting for 11 per cent of overseas demand. However, they retained the lead in terms of the total value of transactions — $7.6 billion. The average price of a property purchased by Chinese buyers was approximately $1 million.
The top five groups of foreign buyers also included Indian nationals, with a 9 per cent share and a transaction volume of $3.7 billion, and British nationals, with 4 per cent and $1.2 billion respectively.
Florida retained its status as the most popular destination for foreign buyers, accounting for 20 per cent of all transactions. California accounted for 19 per cent, Texas for 12 per cent, and New Jersey and Georgia for 4 per cent each. Foreign buyers continued to focus on the higher-end segment of the market. The median value of the homes they purchased was $465,000, compared with $413,600 for all existing home sales in the US. Around 15 per cent of foreign buyers purchased properties worth over $1 million. Almost half of the transactions – 48 per cent – were paid for entirely in cash, whereas among all homebuyers in the US, this figure stood at 28 per cent. Around half of the properties were purchased by foreigners for holiday use, rental income or a combination of these purposes.
In NAR’s statistics, foreign buyers include both non-residents living permanently outside the US and recent immigrants and holders of non-immigrant visas who have been living in the country for more than six months. Non-residents purchased 29,500 properties worth $23.5 billion, whilst foreign nationals residing in the US purchased 37,600 properties worth $21.8 billion.
The National Association of Realtors in the US brings together professionals in the residential and commercial property markets. The International Transactions Survey is compiled on the basis of a survey of the association’s members and has been published annually since 2009.