Canada and Japan lead in sales of isle homes to foreign buyers

The top foreign buyers of Hawaii properties in 2013 were from Canada, Japan and China (including Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan).

Canada and Japan were the top two markets for Hawaii property with $244.6 million and $189.5 million in sales, according to Title Guaranty Escrow Services, Inc. Chinese buyers (China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan) ranked third with $52 million. Total foreign sales were $547.2 million.

On Oahu, the top foreign buyers were Japanese, who accounted for 62 percent of the total $253.8 million spent on real estate in 2013. In second place were Chinese buyers with 18 percent followed by Canadian buyers with 7 percent.

"For a variety of reasons such as favorable exchange rates and affordable home prices, international buyers are increasingly looking to the United States when it comes to real estate investments," said Mike James, president of Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties, which released the Hawaii foreign sales numbers on Wednesday.

Coldwell said in the past year, it has doubled the number of real estate agents who speak Chinese. It now has 32 agents who speak Japanese, 16 who speak Chinese and 15 who are fluent in Korean.

"It is not surprising that Asian buyers are looking to purchase a second or vacation home in Hawaii, particularly on the island of Oahu," said Patti Nakagawa of Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties. "Hawaii is desirable to Asian buyers because our culture is much more similar to that of their homelands compared to other U.S. cities. Since Hawaii’s population is predominantly Asian, there is a comfort level in being around people who speak the same language and enjoy food that reminds them of home."

Nationwide, residents of Asia have become the fastest-growing segment of offshore buyers for U.S. homes, according to the National Association of Realtors.

"While Canada was the top source of international clients in terms of transactions volume, China represented the largest sales dollar volume due to higher average-price properties purchased by Chinese buyers," Coldwell said in a news release. "Total international sales from Chinese buyers nearly doubled in a year, increasing to $22 billion during the 12-month period ending March 2014, up from $12.8 billion in the prior period. Buyers in China represented 22 percent of the $92 billion spent by international buyers."