May 17, 2013
Brazil has surpassed Canada as the top international source for both visitors and property buyers in Miami. In 2012, Brazilians became the most numerous overseas tourists and the most likely to acquire real estate in Miami. Last year, 690,000 Brazilians visited the city, up 8.8 percent from 2011. They spent an estimated 1.5 billion dollars.
“There is a love affair between Brazilians and Miami, which has helped the economy in both places,” Rolando Aedo, the executive VP of the Greater Miami Office of Tourism and Conventions, stated.
Favorable currency exchange rates and economic growth in Brazil have fueled this trend. More Brazilians have the means to travel internationally than 10 to 20 years ago. Travel is further aided by the multitude of daily flights between Miami and Brazil.
More and more of these visitors are turning into property buyers. Brazilians represented 60 percent of international real estate buyers in Miami last year. 61 percent of Brazilian buyers purchased condos, and 42 percent of those condo buyers purchased the property as a vacation home.
“The impact has been very positive, because it has helped make the real estate industry more dynamic,” Ramos Filho, the consul general of Brazil in Miami, said.
Source: America Economia
