Buyers from South America to India are choosing Florida

OML: Out-of-state and international buyers are descending on the area in search of deep discounts as prices continue to crater. They want to get in now and wait out the housing slump because they think the region remains a powerful long-term draw writes  Paul Owers of South Florida's Sun-Sentinal
Flush with cash, buyers from Italy, Germany, England, Spain and other countries are scooping up condos here for at least 30 percent less than the cost of properties in their homelands.


Susan Gomez of Colombia visited South Florida last week and had a real estate agent show her condos in Fort Lauderdale and Miami. The owner of a language translation business said she hopes to buy in a month or so.

"The gossip in South America is that properties in the U.S. are selling for low prices and the market is good here," said Gomez, 50. "They're saying that people who want to buy should buy now."

Amit Bagaria, a real estate executive from Bangalore, India, spent two days this month scouting for deals on behalf of wealthy Asian families. He's eyeing new buildings in Fort Lauderdale and Miami with condos priced from $400,000 to $1.5 million.

"We hear that if you're interested in four or five units, builders are willing to negotiate," Bagaria said. "Good deals are not difficult to find in the market right now."

The rock-bottom prices also are luring buyers from within the United States, particularly the Northeast.