Colombian buyers overtake brazilians in miami property hunt
Colombian buyers have overtaken Brazilians in the hunt for Miami real estate.
Brazil has been the dominant foreign player in the market for some time, according to the Miami Association of Realtors. The country ranked as the top overseas nation using their search portal, Miamire.com, for 17 of the past 18 months. In fact, there have only been three months when Brazil has not led search activity since June 2014.
In December 2015, though, that all changed, as Colombians logged the most searches for property, beating out Brazil to the top spot for just the fourth time in 20 months.
"Colombian home buyers have long sought South Florida real estate," says Mark Sadek, the 2016 MIAMI Chairman of the Board. "Miami’s tropical climate, global business center, world-class shopping and history of multiculturalism are just a few reasons why Colombians and all international home buyers continue buying local properties."
Colombian home buyers tied with Argentinians in purchasing the third most Miami real estate among foreign countries, according to the 2015 Profile of International Home Buyers in Miami Association of Realtors Business Areas. Colombia registered 10 per cent of all foreign Miami deals, with only Venezuelan (13 per cent) and Brazil (12 per cent) purchasing more.
What kind of Colombians are buying property in Miami? According to Realtors, they tend to be upper-middle-class families, spending an average of $516,000 on a home - the same as those from Argentina and lower than the $766,000 spent by Brazilians.
Colombians are not the only ones stepping up their interest in the area, though, with both buyers from the Philippines and Spain accounting for more searches; The Philippines' fifth-place finish among Miamire.com foreign visitors was the country’s highest ever, while Spain's sixth place was its best ranking since 2013.
Within the US, there was a similar upset, as Texas toppled California from the number one slot for the first time, ending a 13-month streak.