Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Relocation
I am currently working with some buyers in Indonesia. It's been fun and interesting maneuvering communications and the purchase process through a 14 hour time difference! Skype has been wonderful, but timing has been interesting since mid-day here is middle of the night there, and vice-versa. I should 
know today if their offer has been accepted and they are going to be the proud owners of a beautiful piece of property on the shores of Coeur d'Alene Lake.
Perhaps these international clients of mine are why this particular story caught my eye this morning:
28 percent of Realtors reported working with at least one international client in the past year. This is up from 23 percent during the previous period ending March 10, 2009.
I was surprised to find that the National Association of Realtor's recently released 2010 study, Profile of International Home Buying Activity, estimated that 18 percent of all Realtors have completed at least one international sale. A year ago that estimate was 12 percent.
Now here's an eye-popping statistic: Foreigners invested $41 billion in homes in the U.S. during the period, 4 percent of the total $907 billion market. If you add recent immigrants and temporary visa holders, the total climbs to $66 billion, or 7 percent of the market.
Foreigners purchased property in 39 states, but more than half were in just four states: Arizona, California, Florida and Texas. By region, buyers favored the South (45 percent), then the West (32 percent) the Midwest (13 percent) and the Northeast (10 percent).
The survey found foreigners buying property in 39 states, but a bit more than half were in just four states: Arizona, California, Florida, and Texas. Where did they come from? A total of 53 countries, with the most coming from our neighbors Canada (23 percent) and Mexico (10 percent).
More than one in three foreign buyers weren't able to close. Thirty four percent had problems with their financing, but 55 percent of those who did close paid cash. This compares to only 8% of U.S buyers coming to the closing table with cash.
What did they buy? Sixty-six percent purchased a detached single-family home, 23 percent bought a condo, 8 percent bought a townhouse and 3 percent purchased commercial property.
I don't know the statistics for international purchases in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, but there will be at least one happy foreign family frolicking on Coeur d'Alene Lake next summer!
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