Mexico but not many others eye SD homes

When it comes to international homebuying, San Diego is largely ignored, except by our neighbor to the south.

A new study by the National Association of Realtors ranks San Diego 10th out of the 12 most searched cities for homes by prospective international buyers.

That pales in comparison to Los Angeles, Miami and Las Vegas. On a scale of 0 to 12, in which 12 is most interested and zero is not interested at all, America’s Finest City registered a 1.8 in the study, which included prospective buyers from South America, Asia and Europe. Los Angeles, Miami and Las Vegas were the top three, with L.A. at 11.8.

The National Association of Realtors reports that there were $92.2 billion in international home sales from April 2013 to March 2014, a 35 percent increase over the same time period last year. The median price for an international home sale was $268,284, versus $199,575 for existing home sales. In all, international home sales made up 7 percent of total $1.2 trillion in U.S. sales.

About half of the international buyers were purchasing for investments, vacations, or temporary visits to the U.S. The other half searching were immigrants of less than two years or temporary visa holders living in the U.S. for more than six months for work, education, or other reasons.

The report is based on searches for properties on realtor.com. Here’s how San Diego stacked up among searchers from different countries, with 0 being no interest and 12 being a lot of interest:

Canada: San Diego didn’t register. Las Vegas was the top, followed by Detroit and Los Angeles.

China: San Diego barely registered, at less than 0.5 and lowest of 14 on the index. Los Angeles was nearly 12, while San Francisco and Irvine came in a distant second and third, hovering around 5.

India: San Diego didn’t register. Los Angeles led the pack at just more than 10, double the next highest city, which was Las Vegas.

Mexico: San Diego was the top choice, at about a full 12. San Antonio and Laredo, Texas, were both between 7 and 8. Los Angeles did not register.

United Kingdom: San Diego didn’t register. Los Angeles was at the top again at a near full 12.

Brazil: San Diego barely registered, at less than 0.25, lowest of nine cities on their index. Miami, Orlando and Los Angeles rounded out the top three.

Australia: San Diego didn’t register. Los Angeles was nearly a full 12, with New York at about nine and Detroit scoring just over six. three.

Ireland: San Diego didn’t register. Los Angeles scored an 11 out of 12, with New York, Orlando and Washington, D.C. each at about six. Staterville, N.C. barely registered out of 13 cities.

Russia: San Diego didn’t register. Los Angeles was nearly a full 12, followed by Orlando at nine and Houston at about six.