Where the Foreign-Born Buy

LendingTree® was out Thursday with a new study on cities with the most foreign-born homeowners.

The Census Bureau recently released data that shows the United States has the highest proportion of immigrants since 1910. In data for 2017, the Census Bureau found that 13.7% of the U.S. population was foreign-born.

Here's what it found:

• Cities with larger foreign-born populations and homeowners have higher home prices. Prices for the top 10 cities average $491,750 compared with $167,560 for the bottom 10.
• But the lead city has modest home prices. Miami is top of the list with 26% of homes owned by foreign-born residents but has a median price of just $278,700.
• Immigrants love the coasts. The rest of the top five are also coastal cities, all in California with 17% and higher foreign-born homeownership rates and home prices above $300,000.
• Some bargains are available. In addition to Miami, more affordable cities with high immigrant populations include Houston at No. 6 and Las Vegas at No. 7.
• Cheaper cities are mostly shunned. Immigrants show little interest in bargain hunting in the cities towards the bottom of the list. The percentage of foreign-born homeowners in the bottom five cities is below 3%, despite home prices averaging about $160,000.

Cities with the most foreign-born residents:

#1 Miami
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 26%
Foreign-born population: 41%
Median value: $278,700

#2 San Jose
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 25%
Foreign-born population: 39%
Median value: $957,700

#3 Los Angeles
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 18%
Foreign-born population: 33%
Median value: $617,100

Cities in America with the least foreign-born residents

#48 Cincinnati
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 3%
Foreign-born population: 5%
Median value: $165,500

#49 Louisville, Ky.
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 3%
Foreign-born population: 6%
Median value: $168,600

#50 Pittsburgh
Foreign-born homeownership rate: 2%
Foreign-born population: 4%
Median value: $153,300

"Out of the 50 largest cities in the country, those with a higher share of homes owned by foreign-born residents tend to have higher home prices," said Tendayi Kapfidze, Chief Economist at LendingTree. "This is not to say that immigrants raise home prices — rather, it's likely that immigrants gravitate towards these cities which have higher home prices, as they also have more dynamic economies and thus more employment opportunities."

Kapfidze continued, "The proportion of highly-skilled immigrants is also higher in these cities which puts some upward pressure on home prices as a secondary effect. Thus, homeowners in cities with high foreign-born populations benefit from faster home price appreciation, creating opportunities for them to access this wealth via refinancing or home equity extraction. This added spending can in turn boost the economy or provide capital to fund new businesses."