Foreign home sales hot thanks to weak U.S. dollar

Central Florida -- April 6, 2004 -- Florida has a real estate sale going on but only for foreign buyers. Thanks to a weakening dollar, out-of-the-country investors' can buy bigger and better second homes in the Sunshine State.

Anil Deshpande, president and chief executive officer of Park Square Homes in western Central Florida, has even cut back on advertising as a way to control demand from foreign buyers.

In Central Florida, much of the demand comes from buyers seeking a second home and investment property near Walt Disney World. And while demand has remained positive historically, a Florida home can now be bought at a bargain-basement price thanks to the weak U.S. dollar. Many foreign buyers, believing it's only a matter of time before the dollar again strengthens against European currency, are rushing to buy real estate before the dollar turns around.

Things could get even more hectic over the new few weeks, according to Suresh K. Gupta, Park Square executive vice president. She says that many citizens of Great Britain take two- or three-week vacations over Easter, and many choose a warm climate such as Central Florida. She says that a large number of those visitors will have a second-home purchase on their minds this year.

Source: The Orlando Sentinel, Fla., Jack Snyder, April 5, 2004