Prices and location have made St. Petersburg and the state of Florida as a whole one of the nation’s most popular places for foreign home buyers.

Within the state, Tampa Bay has jumped into the lead as the favorite destination for international buyers, most of whom want to be near the water and use their property as a second home or rental. Tied with Orlando, our area accounted for 11% of all sales to non-U.S. residents, exceeding even Miami.

Canadians make up 36% of sales and are the largest group of foreign buyers. They are followed by Brits at 8%.

Because financing can be difficult, the National Association of Realtors found that 85% of international buyers pay cash. However, C1Financial, a newly public St. Petersburg-based bank, realized there was a great “potential market in nonresidents who wanted second homes but couldn’t get financing”, according to C1 CEO Trevor Burgess. In the past year, C1 made approximately 30 loans to foreigners, generally requiring 35% down.

The most valuable concentration of foreign-owned single family homes is the half mile stretch of Oceanview Drive on Tierra Verde, while condos and homes in other areas of the city more moderately priced at an average of $300,600.

Top 5 Foreign Buyers (Source National Association of Realtors)

• Canada – Median Price: $260,000
• U.K. – Median Price: $349,000
• Brazil – Median Price: $409,600
• China – Median Price: $355,800
• Venezuela – Median Price: $270,700