Canadian buyers are flocking to Southwest Florida to hunt for real estate bargains. These foreign real estate buyers come all the way from London, Toronto and Dusseldorf looking for profitable deals. They search the listings from throughout the Atlantic and come from the tundra region of Canada looking for real estate assets scattered with palms. The point is that international real estate buyers essentially seem to be on a shopping spree. These buyers are very optimistic regarding the overall real estate market, but are aware that this is the best time to make purchases in Florida. And, we welcome them with open arms!

Many are taking advantage of the drop in property prices, but most also see the Florida market as a desirable and secure investment for the future. In fact, during the last 12 months, foreign buyers purchased almost 25% of all the existing homes sold within the state.

According to an early 2011 survey conducted for the Florida Association of Realtors, a majority (65%) of Florida agents worked with an international client within the past 12 months and over 30% of them worked with 5 or more international clients in the same time period. Half of the survey respondents said that international buyers currently make up 25% of their business and 15% said they accounted for over 50% of their sales in the last year. The top international buyers of Florida real estate were Canadians, accounting for 36% of the foreign purchases. Other top foreign buyers included folks from Latin America at 16%, the United Kingdom at 15% and the rest of Western Europe at 14%.