The U.S. housing recovery is still happening and international buyers are giving a huge boost with the Chinese leading the charge. There is a lot of cash out there these days and much of it is coming from China. The Chinese are second only to Canadians in buying real estate in the US but the Chinese are spending a lot more than any other group, on average spending nearly 600,000 per property. Real estate prices in China are sky high making the US market much more safe and affordable. The other reasons can range from buying condos for the kids to live in while attending college; to buying homes to use a couple of times a year for vacations. Because of proximity to China the west coast is being bought up more rapidly than other states with California being the most popular.
Chinese buying was up more than 70% to $22 billion -- nearly 1 in 4 dollars of all foreign purchases, according to the National Association of Realtors.
In addition to the tide of Chinese buyers and the Canadians, those from Mexico, India and the United Kingdom filled out the top five list. India also had a notable jump in money spent -- 48% growth.