Foreigners snap up record number of US homes

International buyers show the strongest interest than ever in US residential real estate in the year from April 2016 to March 2017. Foreign buyers purchased $153 billion worth of US residential properties in the year, 49 percent higher than the year earlier. This jump coming after the slowdown a year ago is a surprise to everyone when the US dollar is getting stronger and US real estate is more expensive. Apparently, the value of a financial safe-haven is more important than the rising costs for international investors. There were 284,455 US homes purchased by foreign investors, 32 percent higher than the previous year. It's interesting that half of the international sales are concentrated in three states: Florida, California and Texas. Read more at CNBC.