Happier Abroad Forum Community

Can foreigners buy homes in the US? I read online it's possible. Would it be a 'good investment' to buy a house in FL & rent it out as a passive income?
I can live pretty comfy in many countries on a US income.

You can buy here but it won't give you residency.

There are always a few places in the US where home prices are low and rents are high. Just not California.

But if you're not a U.S. legal resident, you would have to put 50% down, even if you were going to live in it.

If you're going to rent it out, probably uou would need to pay all cash.

But as long as youre paying all cash, why buy in the US? Why not a free country where you can always get your money out? And that won't tax you to death on rental income?

If you check Kathleen Peddicord's newsletter, her International Living magazine, Simon Black's Sovereign Man, and the QWealth Report, and others like these, you will find places with returns in the range of 8 to 12% annual return on a cash investment, rather than 6% as is typical in most of the U.S.

For example, I think some are recommending Medellin, Colombia right now.

Personally if you are still in Antalya, I would look into Montenegro. And if the nukes start flying, Uruguay will look pretty smart.

Obviously a good property manager is the key.

I bet Momopi has this sussed out already.

I don't want US residency or to live there. My sister lives in FL & it would have been convenient for her to manage the property for me, but if it's a bad investment I won't bother with it. Property there is really affordable right now as well.

Isn't it a good idea to buy property instead of leaving your cash in the bank? You can always liquidate it anytime & earn an income like rent over the years.

The big question is WHERE to buy?

Another avenue that foreigners can use for investment is tax lien investing. Do a search and then research the subject. Who knows? You might end up with an excellent property AND a very good rate of return for your investment.

Foreigners can buy houses in the US and stay up to 6 months at a time.

Hey Jester, I checked Kathleen Peddicord's newsletter, she had some good suggestions. I totally over looked Belize, it's Latin America but they speak english. Portugal looks great too, but I'm so indecisive. I looking for a property I can rent out, Not live in.

I have property in SW Florida and really love it. It was cheap to buy cus I got it after crash. I stay there for a month or two a year during off season and rent it out during high season (Jan-April). After factoring in taxes, association dues, insurance, and other expenses, I more or less break even every year cash wise. Even if I were to rent it out 12 months per year, I would make only a very modest net yield (CAP rate of around 2-4% at best).

I think there may be some opportunities in Florida though where yields are much higher. Say small mobile home parks or even certain single family homes. Condos don't work well for this cus of generally high association dues.

Best yield I've been able to find anywhere is here in Makati. I found some properties which yield over 10% net here and are in decent buildings.

Thanks for the advıce Rock, Asia might be a good option but İ've never been there. From what I've seen online Thailand looks nice.