Royal LePage survey finds 54% of Canadian owners plan to sell US homes within a year
A majority of Canadians who own residential property in the United States are preparing to sell, with many pointing to politics as the driving force.
According to a Royal LePage survey conducted by Burson, 54 percent of Canadians who currently own US property say they plan to sell within the next year, and among them, 62 percent cite the current political administration as the main reason.
Another 33 percent are motivated by personal or financial considerations, while 5 percent point to increasingly extreme weather conditions such as hurricanes, flooding, and forest fires.
Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage, said the polarizing political climate in the US is prompting many Canadians to reconsider their investments.
He noted that Canadians have long been the most important foreign investors in US residential real estate, adding that if they withdraw, places like Florida, Arizona, and California could lose millions in annual economic activity and thousands of seasonal residents.
Recent sellers echoed these concerns.
As per the survey, 44 percent of those who sold in the last year attributed their decision to the political administration, 27 percent to personal reasons, and 22 percent to extreme weather.
Soper added that for some Canadians, the upkeep and distance of a US property has become more burden than benefit, with shifting border rules adding further uncertainty.
The trend aligns with broader data.
The National Association of REALTORS reported that Canadians have consistently been among the top two foreign investors in US real estate over the past two decades, although transaction volumes have been lower in the last five years.
US real estate professionals also reported that Canadians made up the largest group of international sellers in the past year.
Cross-border travel and spending are also shifting. Statistics Canada reported that Canadian residents made 6.1 million trips to the US in the first quarter of 2025, a 10.8 percent decline compared to the same period a year earlier.
Spending during those trips fell 7.9 percent year over year, totalling $5.7bn.
Many Canadians plan to redirect their proceeds back into domestic housing.
According to the survey, 32 percent of those who have recently sold or are planning to sell within the next year intend to reinvest in Canadian real estate.
Soper said this reflects a broader ‘Buy Canadian’ mindset, where individuals are increasingly choosing to support local businesses and communities, including through real estate.
The survey further showed that most Canadians who held property in the US owned vacation homes (62 percent), followed by investment or rental properties (18 percent) and primary residences (16 percent).
At the same time, American interest in Canadian housing is rising.
Royal LePage reported that US web traffic to royallepage.ca surged during key political events.
For example, in June 2025, following US Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles, web sessions from the US jumped 116 percent year over year.
Another spike occurred after the 2024 US presidential election, with traffic up 70 percent year over year during election week.
A similar surge followed the first 2024 presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
Soper said these surges show a growing trend of Americans viewing Canadian real estate as a safe and stable alternative, even if residency rules make relocation complex.
