The Herald Tribune runs with a feature on the rise of international buyers buying property in Florida. Western European buyers account for 38% of the total number of foreign purchasers in the Sunshine state with the British being the largest proportion.

Although there has been strong interest from Europeans over the past 18 months, it was almost impossible for foreign nationals to get U.S. mortgages at the start of Florida’s financial crisis says Patricia Tan, International Sales Director at Prudential Palms Realty in Sarasota. “But now large lenders like Bank of America are back in the market, even if they do have more stringent documentation requirements than in the past”. 

Europeans are increasingly attracted to the USA by the low property prices induced by the mortgage crisis and the weak dollar.  Relaxation of credit restrictions should fuel the market further.

Florida remains the top state for international transactions, tallying nearly one in four of all international sales in the United States in 2008.

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