The amount of money that foreign homebuyers spent on U.S. real estate fell to a three-year low as the strengthening dollar and rising property prices cut into affordability.
Sales to nonresident foreigners from April 2015 to March 2016 fell to $44 billion from $54 billion a year earlier, according to a survey released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors.
It was the lowest total for foreign buying since the year ended March 2013, when $35 billion was spent. While Canada was the No. 1 source of nonresident foreign homebuyers, China led for the fourth year in a row when recent immigrants are included in the tally.
U.S. luxury markets from Miami to Los Angeles and Phoenix are losing a key source of demand as the strong dollar discourages purchases by Latin Americans, Europeans, Canadians and Asians whose home currencies have declined against the dollar.
"Weaker economic growth throughout the world, devalued foreign currencies and financial market turbulence combined to present significant challenges for foreign buyers over the past year," Lawrence Yun, the association's chief economist, said in a statement.
