Canadians To Arizona: The New Great Migration Is Canadians To Arizona!

Hey Arizonans! Embrace the “Canadians to Arizona” wave, eh? Lol!

If you’ve noticed the widespread sightings of red Maple Leafs lately, it’s not your imagination. Or if you for some strange reason have been feeling the urge to burst out into song to a verse of “Oh Canada” you are not going crazy. Canadians are buying property in the USA in record numbers particularly in Arizona and in fact have accounted for almost 20% of all foreign sales recorded in Maricopa county.

This “Canadians to Arizona wave” of migration if you will is also responsible for replacing Californians as the number 1 source of buyers for Arizona investment properties, second homes, et al!

Many factors make Arizona real estate very attractive to our Northern friends… Do we here in Arizona have great weather? Yes we do! Do we in the US have historically low interest rates at the moment? Absolutely! But there is also a huge factor that is part of the equation that makes investing in Arizona real estate so enticing to Canadians and has been pulling them to the table in droves and that is the rate of exchange between Canadian and US dollars.

Yep, the favorable exchange rate seems to be fueling the “Canadians to Arizona wave” along with the low priced real estate currently available. Its the perfect storm for the Canadian real estate investor and the Canadian second home buyer.

And just what is the average rate of exchange between the Canadian and US dollars? While the figure does shift slightly from day to day, the current exchange is around $1.04 in favor of the Canadian loonie. (You can see the current currency exchange rates here: http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/market/exchangerates.aspx) This is an amazing difference from the rates only a few years earlier. This means that the many affordable homes in the Phoenix, Arizona real estate markets are even better bargains than before.

For the US dollar/Canadian dollar pair, “drivers are moving in wildly different directions,” said Camilla Sutton, chief currency strategist at Scotia Capital in Toronto. That is likely to leave the greenback pinned between C$0.9850 and C$0.9980, its 100-day moving average in the near-term, she said.

Personally, you and I both know that Canada is a huge oil supplier… and while oil prices are strong and the US continues to devalue its currency, I see a strong loonie for some time. But, I digress…

For many years, buyers looking for a second home, retirement property, or real estate investment in Arizona real estate markets were simply “out of luck” due to the horrible rates of exchange but that is now no longer the case. Today, the “Canadians to Arizona wave” is poised and ready to take advantage of historic buying opportunities in States like Arizona. Couple the exchange rate of the loonie with the status of the US economy and really… exchange rates hardly seem to matter.

Considering that prices on Arizona real estate for sale are still far below peak values, homes worth half a million dollars are entering the markets at two-thirds their former prices. This is not because they were over-priced to begin with; it is simply a matter of it being a “buyer’s market” all over the world, but particularly in areas like Scottsdale and Phoenix.

It might take a bit of history to understand this shift, but the underlying reasons are extremely simple. Canadians buying property in the USA and in Arizona in particular must realize the population of this entire metropolitan area has expanded significantly in only around twenty to thirty years. Vast tracks of agricultural lands have been converted into golf courses, beautiful subdivisions, and the facilities necessary to support the booming electronics and computer industries. After all, Intel and Motorola each have several different corporate and production facilities in the region. Now areas that had populations of less than 30k in the 1950s currently stand at 200k or more!

Let’s not forget the surge of interest in this area from those entering their retirement years. Many of these properties are also ideally suited for Canadian investors too. As baby boomers retire as they do here and across Canada seek warmer weather, the Southwestern part of the US, particularly Arizona has become a Mecca for retirees. So as we can see a perfect storm has been gathering for our “Canadians to Arizona” friends to take advantage of the optimum conditions that make it almost a “no brainer” to purchase Arizona real estate.

Now, we know the reasons for the wide availability of excellent Arizona homes at somewhat low pricing, but we haven’t yet considered how to make bargain pricing even more appealing. What about the Arizona foreclosure markets? Just like any part of the country, this area has its home and business owners who did not weather the financial meltdown, and as a result, even more bargains can be had from these sources in our Arizona real estate market.

Because of this, a savvy “Canadians to Arizona” wave rider looking to purchase Real Estate in the USA, could easily get their hands on a fine property at a substantially reduced price. Of course, the best approach to this sort of project is to partner with a knowledgeable Arizona Realtor who knows the area and the great properties becoming available.