Thinking of buying a well-located $1 million luxury flat in London, Paris or Tokyo? Think you’ll get a bargain?Think again:

1. In London, you’ll get 328 square feet.

2. In Paris, you’ll do better with 522 square feet.

3. In Tokyo, you can really spread out with 594 square feet.

These are averages reported by the most recent issue of Forbes magazine. The weakened dollar against the Sterling, Euro and other currencies has contributed much to a real estate situation where, for example, the U.S. dollar purchases 25 percent less in London than it did just five years ago.

But if the tables are turned, premier areas of the United States are relative bargains for many international real estate buyers. We have a client who recently retired in Belgium, then moved to the San Diego suburbs, and purchased a lovely coastal Encinitas pool home (around 3000 sf) for just under $1 million. This jolly client still chuckles when mentioning that his retirement comes in Euros, which helps to create a very comfortable retirement given current U.S. exchange rates. He also loves that he can play tennis year round. For him, the purchase was a bargain.

This is a situation that might be repeated throughout premier real estate markets in the United States. Excluding a few areas, real estate prices in this country have softened in the last couple of years. An international real estate buyer might be able to purchase a prime property at a substantial discount not only because of weakened market conditions, but also because of the increased purchasing power of his or her native currency.

Given this interesting and favorable set of circumstances, we are actively courting international real estate buyers. Prime U.S. real estate has become a relative bargain for these shoppers. It is a market that cannot be ignored.

by Roberta Murphy

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