It all starts with a vacation, then turns into an impulsive need to buy. We’re already seeing more Europeans purchasing New York property, so if San Francisco can get past the extra 5-6 hours spent on a plane for most Europeans, we will certainly begin to see more of them pouring some of their hard earned Euros into our local real estate market.
Canadians? What is your excuse…besides our homeless problem?
Aussies? We have the waves, even if our water is a bit “seppo”. You’re equally half-way around the world from either coast, so you might as well go Californian…it’s a natural fit.
Debate the differences between NYC and SF all you want, but you’ll still find many similarities. Is New York a good barometer of our market? Not so sure, but we are sure that if our market dips this year, it will be slight, and San Francisco real estate as a LONG TERM investment will almost always be a good choice.
A few quotes:
The precipitous fall of the dollar – a decline that picked up steam in 2007 – has turned the United States into a giant bargain basement for much of the world, especially visitors carrying strong European, Canadian and Australian currencies. And they are coming – in droves.
Despite it great distance from Europe, San Francisco International Airport was the sixth-most-popular arrival point in the United States during the first nine months of 2007. Just over 1 million foreign visitors flew into San Francisco, up 9 percent from the comparable period in 2006, close to the 10 percent increase registered for the United States as a whole, according to the Commerce Department’s Office of Travel and Tourism Industries.
“San Francisco is always so popular, but now it’s like you’ve got a great big sale,” said Marc LePage, Canada’s consul-general in San Francisco. “Every time I get on a plane, there are more people on the plane.”
Isn’t it funny how when one thing rattle our nerves, a silver lining comes out of such a dark cloud?
Good thing your editor speaks German, French, and Italian, and is gearing up for a bit of an increase in European clients, as should all agents in San Francisco. Agents, you should at least know the difference between real Football, and the fake stuff if you embark down the path to getting European clients. Go Arsenal!