Foreign Home Buying in the U.S. Has Fallen Sharply — What Could It Mean for Orange County Real Estate?

The U.S. housing market has changed considerably since the buying frenzy of several years ago. Higher home prices, affordability challenges and changing economic conditions have all affected demand.

Another trend worth watching—particularly here in California—is the significant decline in home purchases by international buyers.

According to data from the National Association of Realtors, foreign buyers purchased approximately 67,100 U.S. homes during the 12-month period ending in March 2026. That's down roughly 76% from the 2017 peak, when foreign buyers purchased approximately 284,500 homes.

While international buyers represent only a portion of the overall U.S. housing market, their impact isn't evenly distributed. Foreign investment tends to be concentrated in certain states and metropolitan areas, which makes this trend more significant for markets such as California.

California Remains a Major Destination for International Buyers

Approximately 19% of foreign-buyer purchases occurred in California, second only to Florida at 20%. Texas ranked third at 12%.

That means roughly half of all foreign purchases were concentrated in just these three states.

For California homeowners and real estate professionals, the numbers are particularly interesting because international buyers have historically been attracted to some of the state's higher-priced markets.

Chinese Buyers: Fewer Purchases, But Higher Prices

Buyers from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan purchased approximately 7,400 U.S. homes during the period covered by the report.

That's an approximately 82% decline from the 2017 peak of 40,600 purchases.

However, these buyers continued to purchase comparatively expensive properties, spending an average of approximately $1.03 million per home. Their total purchases amounted to approximately $7.6 billion, making this group the largest source of foreign-buyer spending measured in dollar terms.

This is especially relevant to California because purchases from this group have historically been concentrated in some of the state's higher-priced housing markets.

Foreign-Buyer Activity Has Declined Across Several Countries

The decline isn't limited to Chinese buyers.

Canadian buyers purchased approximately 10,700 homes, making them the largest group by number of transactions, but that's about 84% below their 2010 peak.

Buyers from Mexico purchased approximately 9,400 homes, compared with more than 30,000 at their peak.

Indian buyers purchased approximately 6,000 homes, down from a peak of approximately 17,300.

Buyers from the United Kingdom purchased approximately 2,700 homes, representing an approximately 90% decline from their 2010 peak.

Taken together, the numbers point to a substantial long-term reduction in international participation in the U.S. residential real estate market.

What Could This Mean for Orange County Real Estate?

For the average U.S. housing market, declining foreign purchases may not have a dramatic effect. But real estate is local, and the impact can be greater in communities that have historically attracted international buyers.

That's potentially relevant in Orange County, particularly within higher-priced and luxury markets.

International buyers can also behave differently from typical domestic buyers. Some purchase second homes or investment properties, and cash purchases have historically represented a significant portion of international transactions. As a result, a decline in this segment can remove a particular type of buyer from the competitive landscape.

For sellers, this doesn't necessarily mean prices are headed lower. Home values are ultimately determined by the balance between local demand, available inventory, mortgage rates, employment, household formation and the number of motivated sellers and buyers in a particular neighborhood.

But it does mean sellers should pay attention to where today's buyers are actually coming from rather than relying on demand patterns from five or ten years ago.

The Bigger Picture

The most striking part of the data may be the magnitude of the change.

Foreign buyers purchased approximately 284,500 U.S. homes at the 2017 peak compared with just 67,100 in the latest 12-month period.

That's a reduction of more than 200,000 annual transactions.

For California, which continues to receive a disproportionately large share of international real estate investment, the decline is another factor worth considering when evaluating today's housing market.

It doesn't tell us where home prices are going next. But it does reinforce an important point: the pool of buyers supporting today's market looks different from the one that helped drive demand during the previous housing cycle.

For Orange County homeowners considering selling, understanding those shifts—and what's happening specifically within your neighborhood and price range—is increasingly important when determining pricing and marketing strategy.

Source: National Association of Realtors international residential real estate data. Statistics reflect the 12-month period ending March 2026.