According to the 2018 Profile of International Residential Real Estate Activity in Florida report by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), Orlando held steady in 2018 as the #2 destination of choice for Florida's international buyers. Nine percent of all international buyers in Florida chose to buy a property in Orlando.
"The international real estate market is important to sustaining Orlando real estate and the overall economy," said Orlando Regional Realtors Association (ORRA) President Lou Nimkoff. "The profile results show that foreign buyers accounted for approximately 11% of the 44,000 residential sales in the Orlando-Sanford-Kissimmee Metropolitan Area during the study period from August 2017 to July 2018."
Orlando was Florida's second most desired destination for foreign buyers in 2018 and captured 9.4% of the state's market share (11% in 2017 and 12% in 2016). Only the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach area, which attracted 53.7% of all Florida's international transactions, surpassed Orlando. The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metropolitan area came in third with 9.0%. These rankings remain unchanged from 2017 and 2016.
Buyer origins
International buyers in the Orlando area in 2018 were mainly from Latin America and the Caribbean (47%), Europe (18%) and Asia (15%). From a nation-centric perspective, Brazilians were involved in 20% of Orlando's international transactions, while Canadians and Venezuelans participated in 8% each. China, Columbia and the United Kingdom provided 7% of Orlando's international buyers in 2018.
Several countries have appeared for the first time on Orlando's list of major foreign buyers in recent years: the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, France and the Russian Federation.
Popularity Rankings
Orlando was ranked as the number two collective buying place for international buyers in four of Florida's top six buyer markets in 2018. This year, Orlando took third place from the United Kingdom, which in 2016 attracted 29% of all Florida buyers from that country, and earned its first place in the ranking.
Financial issues
International buyers contribute significantly to Orlando's dollar volume statistic. "Purchases by foreign buyers tend to involve higher-priced homes and accounted for 19% of Florida's total home purchase dollar volume during the study period," continues Nimkoff. "That same 19% equals $1.9 billion when applied to the $10.1 billion in home sales by ORRA members during the study period."
International buyers are also very apt to make cash purchases as they may not have the credit required from the US to obtain financing from a US source. In fact, around 67% of all Florida's international transactions in the study period were in cash (down from 72% last year), with Canadians (84%) and UK citizens (81%) more likely to take this route.
Orlando's international buyers purchase properties for residential and vacation rental purposes. Those from China, Colombia and Venezuela, in particular, like to take advantage of Orlando's constant flow of tourists and invest in a rental property, while those from Canada and the UK are more likely to buy a property for private vacation use.
With its mix of resort, urban and suburban areas, Orlando is able to accommodate the ever-changing location preferences of foreign buyers. Thirty-seven percent of Florida's international buyers chose to buy in a city or central urban area, with another 37% opting for a suburban area. Only 15% bought in a resort area during the 2018 study period, down from a high of 53% a decade ago. This drop is consistent with the declining share of Canadian and UK buyers, who traditionally prefer these locations.