International Buyers Contribute $800M to Austin-Area Economy

Austin Board of REALTORS® releases inaugural Central Texas International Homebuyers Report 

AUSTIN, TX – International homebuyers contributed $800 million to the Austin-area economy from April 2019 to March 2020, according to the Central Texas International Homebuyers Report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR).

The inaugural report, based on a survey of Central Texas REALTORS® conducted with the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), offers critical insight into international real estate activity. It comes at a time when the region has increasingly become an attractive destination for businesses, workforce talent, university students, and people from across the world looking for new opportunities and a high quality of life.

“The Central Texas region has become a magnet for homebuyers and real estate investors from around the globe,” Romeo Manzanilla, 2020 ABoR president, said. “With one in five Austinites being foreign born, the Austin Board of REALTORS® is excited to now deliver market statistics on this important and growing segment of our housing market.”

The $800 million in sales dollar volume from foreign buyers represented 5% of all residential sales dollar volume in the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) from April 2019–March 2020. This is slightly higher compared to the national foreign buyer share of 4%. The median home price among foreign buyers was $381,030, which is significantly higher than the median sales price of foreign buyers nationally ($314,500) and the Austin-Round Rock median price of during the survey period ($326,500).

According to the report, the majority of foreign-born Central Texas buyers originated from Mexico (31%), India (9%), China (7%), Australia (4%) and Canada (3%). International buyers were most likely to purchase property for a primary residence (62%) and in a suburban market (61%). The report also found that 35% of foreign buyers in Central Texas paid all-cash, compared to 39% nationally.

The report also tracked the interest of Austin-area residents in purchasing properties abroad. Among the Central Texas REALTORS® surveyed, over half (52%) reported working with a U.S.-based client to search for real estate properties abroad, compared to only 11% nationally.

“Austinites are technically savvy, upwardly mobile and keenly aware of the importance of our global standing,” added Manzanilla. “Central Texas REALTORS® have a long history of being local housing market experts and agents are increasingly expanding their expertise to international markets to serve homebuyers and sellers here and around the world.”

“The Central Texas International Homebuyers Report is an important baseline for our evolving market and a valuable tool for businesses interested in building relationships with economic development partners abroad,” Bill Boyd, 2020 Chair of the ABoR Global Advisory Group, said. “This new data also helps connect foreign buyers to a REALTOR® who can lead and facilitate a successful domestic transaction.”

ABoR Global is among the fastest-growing global real estate programs in the country, delivering award-winning programming, education and tools that position REALTORS® to better serve international buyers, sellers and investors. To read more about the Central Texas International Homebuyers Report or ABoR Global, visit ABoR.com/Global.


The Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR) is a nonprofit organization that has been serving the needs of Central Texas REALTORS® and homebuyers, sellers, and renters for nearly a century. Through professional development, grassroots advocacy, and community, we give our 14,000+ members the power they need to ensure people have homes. Our multiple listing services (MLS) connects both agents and consumers with the most accurate and robust real estate marketplace in the region. For more information, contact the ABoR public relations team at abor@echristianpr.com . For the latest local housing market listings, visit AustinHomeSearch.com.