Why Other Countries LOVE the Foreign Property Buyers BC/Canada HATE

Keeping it Real…

I am a foreign property owner: blog readers know I own a “snowbird” condo in Florida, where I spend most of the winter.

I am not alone.

Over a million Canadian snowbirds migrate to the U.S. each year.

They are not alone.

In my 16-unit garden condo building, there are eight permanent American residents, three Canadian owners, three US snowbirds, one South American and one Australian.

International home buyers spent $56 Billion on homes in the U.S. between April 2024 and March 2025 .. UP 33% from the year before. Foreigners spent $12.6 Billion to buy 19,500 housing units in Florida alone from 2022-2023.

True: some long-time Canadian snowbirds have been selling lately, not just because of Trump’s tariffs/insults/US immigration aggressivity, but also the low Canadian dollar and increasing Travel Health coverage costs. But even those who sell, their units are often sold to other US-state snowbirds.

And unlike the BC NDP government and the federal Liberal government, Florida legislators, city officials, businesses and even most residents welcome the “outsiders”.

So do the governments/businesses/taxpayers of Arizona, California, Hawaii, several other states and the countries of Mexico, Costa Rica, the Caribbean Islands, Spain, Portugal and others.

Why?

The obvious benefit is the hundreds of thousands of jobs (retail, restaurants, bars, entertainment, golf courses etc.) that out-of-state home/condo owners support during the months they visit.

But that’s just part of it.

There’s another little secret why so many governments love out-of-state property owners.

In Florida, for example, permanent home/condo owners qualify for reduced “Homesteader” property tax rates that remain forever based on their original purchase price: “outsiders” pay full taxes that increase as values rise..

So Floridians, unlike British Columbians, realize the huge benefit of having millions of people paying FULL property taxes for the FULL year, while using city/county services for only a few months … or not at all.

That includes schools, transit, social services, health programs/inspections, consumer protection enforcements, police, fire, Courts, environmental improvements, public administration, water/sewers, libraries, arts and culture facilities, public wifi etc. etc. … all HEAVILY paid for by outside investors, SUBSIDIZING to the tune of billions of tax dollars each year Florida government services.

Snowbirds also pay year-round condo fees that cover (subsidize) property maintenance costs, recreation facilities, security services etc. they use for only a few months.

Not to mention the billions in sales taxes they pay on goods services. food, entertainment, tourism when in town … plus all the jobs they provide.

In fact, snowbirds and visitors contribute so much revenue to Florida, there is no state income tax.

Think about that, BC and Canadian taxpayers!!!

Meanwhile in BC, thousands of already-built condo units sit empty (https://www.biv.com/news/real-estate/unsold-condos-piling-up-in-metro-vancouver-says-report-10532962) … and new projects have been postponed or cancelled … because of the federal Liberal government’s foreign-buyers housing ban and NDP Premier David Eby supporting that policy.

” We are not going back to the old model of doing things,” Eby was quoted in The Vancouver Sun two weeks ago. “Under the previous (provincial) government, the idea was if you welcome foreign investment into real estate, everybody’s going to benefit.

“And what we saw was real estate prices became completely detached from what people are actually able to earn in British Columbia, meaning that young people are priced-out of the housing market, and those prices are incredibly sticky.”

Eby did not explain how shutting out foreign buyers, developers not developing, architects not designing, builders not building, elevator suppliers not manufacturing and installing , electricians and plumbers not outfitting, furnishings and appliance wholesalers/retailers not providing … and the apartment stock not expanding will increase supply and bring down BC rental prices.

Or add billions of dollars to municipal bank accounts, from foreign investors who pay FULL municipal and regional property taxes, plus in many cases an Empty Homes Tax premium, to contribute to the costs of the few … or sometimes no … public services they actually use.

Harv Oberfeld

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