September 01, 2015 — Austin
Texas home sales purchased by international homebuyers contributed $8.32 billion to the Texas economy between April 2014 and March 2015, according to the 2015 Texas International Homebuyers Report released today by the Texas REALTORS®.
“With more international homebuyers in Texas now originating from China, Europe, and Africa than Latin America and Mexico, Texas truly has a global reputation as a great place to live, work, and raise a family,” said Scott Kesner, chairman of the Texas REALTORS®. “International homebuyers see Texas real estate as a strong investment, whether that be as an investment property, a vacation home, or a primary residence.”
Homes purchased by international buyers accounted for 4% (209,000 home sales) of all U.S. home sales and 8% ($104 billion) of total U.S. home sales dollar volume between April 2014 and March 2015. This is a 10.15% decrease in international home sales but an 11.4% increase in international home sales dollar volume from the same time last year. Approximately 8%, or 16,720 home sales and $8.32 billion, of this activity occurred in Texas—a 4% decrease from the same time frame last year.
For the first time in the Texas International Homebuyers Report history, homebuyers from Latin America (including Mexico) were not a clear majority of international homebuyers in Texas—comprising only 41% of international buyers. Homebuyers from Asia/Oceania (including China), conversely, doubled from 18% from April 2013-March 2014 to 31% from April 2014 to March 2015.
Texas homebuying activity among European and African buyers doubled during the same time, rising from 9% to 15% and 4% to 8% from April 2014 to March 2015, respectively. Meanwhile, Texas home sales from Canadian homebuyers decreased slightly from 5% to 4%.
Naturalized U.S. citizens in Texas continue to be significantly more likely to own a home than their native counterparts. Three in four naturalized U.S. citizens in Texas are homeowners compared to only 63% of native citizens in Texas. This trend does not apply nationally, where homeownership rates among naturalized and native U.S. citizens are virtually equal. However, non-U.S. citizens are 11% more likely (44.3% vs. 33.3%) to own a home in Texas versus nationally.
Chairman Kesner concluded, “The increasing diversity of homebuyers in Texas reinforces the importance for buyers to have a trusted advisor on their side to help them navigate the homebuying process. Texas REALTORS® with a Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS) designation are specifically trained to understand the unique language, qualification, and financing challenges international homebuyers sometimes face and can be instrumental in de-stressing the homebuying process for these families.”
Texas continues to be a hub for immigration to the United States. The Lone Star State is home to the third-largest immigrant population size and ranks seventh in the nation for percentage of foreign-born residents among the statewide population. In addition, two of the top 10 metro areas for immigration in the U.S. are in Texas—Houston/Sugar Land/Baytown (No. 6) and Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington (No. 8).