Foreign buyers purchased $45.3 billion worth of residential real estate in the U.S. between April 2025 and March 2026, a 19.1% decrease from the previous 12 months, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) on July 29, 2026. The number of properties purchased by foreigners fell by 14%—from 78,100 to 67,100. This is the second-
lowest figure since 2009, when the NAR began tracking these statistics. The median purchase price was $465,000.
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun attributed the decline in activity to an overall reduction in international tourism and travel to the United States. According to him, even a slight weakening of the dollar, which boosted foreign buyers’ purchasing power, was unable to offset high prices and limited housing supply.
Among foreign buyers who abandoned planned transactions, 33% were unable to find a suitable property, 28% found prices too high, and 19% encountered difficulties related to immigration regulations. High mortgage rates, inflation, trade policy, and geopolitical uncertainty placed additional pressure on demand.
Canadian citizens accounted for 16% of all foreign purchases, acquiring 10,700 properties worth $5.2 billion. Mexico ranked second with a 14% share and 9,400 transactions totaling $5 billion.
Buyers from China dropped from first to third place in terms of the number of purchases, accounting for 11% of foreign demand. However, they retained the lead in total transaction value at $7.6 billion. The average price of a property purchased by Chinese buyers was approximately $1 million.
The top five groups of foreign buyers also included citizens of India, with a 9% share and $3.7 billion in transactions, as well as the United Kingdom—4% and $1.2 billion, respectively.
Florida retained its status as the most popular destination for foreign buyers, accounting for 20% of all transactions. California accounted for 19%, Texas for 12%, and New Jersey and Georgia for 4% each. Foreign buyers continued to focus on the higher-end segment of the market. The median price of the homes they purchased was $465,000, compared to $413,600 for all existing-home transactions in the U.S. About 15% of foreign buyers purchased properties valued at over $1 million. Nearly half of the transactions—48%—were paid for entirely in cash, while among all U.S. homebuyers, this figure stood at 28%. Foreign buyers purchased about half of the properties for vacation use, rental income, or a combination of these purposes.
According to NAR statistics, foreign buyers include both non-residents who permanently reside outside the U.S. and recent immigrants and holders of non-immigrant visas who have been living in the country for more than six months. Non-residents purchased 29,500 properties worth $23.5 billion, while foreign nationals residing in the U.S. purchased 37,600 properties worth $21.8 billion.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) brings together professionals in the residential and commercial real estate markets. The study of international transactions is based on a survey of association members and has been published annually since 2009.
Net migration to Germany fell to 235,000 people in 2025, compared with 663,000 in 2023, according to a study by the German Economic Institute (IW) published on July 28, 2026. Excluding the pandemic period, this is the lowest figure since 2010. Experts at the Experts Club Information and Analytical Center attribute the decline to several factors: a decrease in the number of refugees, the departure of workers from Central and Eastern European countries, a decline in migration from the Western Balkans, and an increase in emigration by German citizens themselves.
The largest net inflow from a single country in 2025 came from Ukrainian citizens, amounting to 89,000 people. A year earlier, the figure was 116,000. Ukrainians have a special status because they are admitted to Germany mainly under the EU’s temporary protection mechanism rather than through the standard asylum procedure. Further developments will depend primarily on the course of the war and the conditions of Ukrainians’ stay in Germany.
By the end of 2025, approximately 1.41 million Ukrainian citizens were listed in Germany’s Central Register of Foreigners. They became the second-largest foreign group after Turkish citizens.
The number of initial asylum applications fell from 329,000 in 2023 to 113,000 in 2025.
The inflow from Syria declined particularly sharply: the number of initial applications fell from 103,000 to 23,000. Over the same period, the number of applicants from Afghanistan decreased from 51,000 to 24,000, while the number from Turkey fell from 61,000 to 12,000.
At the end of 2025, the largest groups of people registered in Germany as being in need of protection remained citizens of Ukraine, at approximately 1.164 million; Syria, at 669,000; and Afghanistan, at 321,000.
IW links the decline in Syrian migration primarily to the change in the situation in Syria following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in 2024, as well as to the tightening of German and EU migration policies.
Another important change was the reversal of migration from the new EU member states.
In 2023, Germany recorded a net inflow of approximately 42,000 citizens from these countries. In 2024, 35,000 more people left Germany than arrived, while in 2025 the net outflow reached 45,000 people.
This group includes, in particular, citizens of Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Croatia, and other countries that joined the EU from 2004 onward. Economists explain migrants’ return by the narrowing gap in wages and living standards, growing demand for workers in their own countries, and the overall ageing of the population of Central and Eastern Europe.
At the end of 2025, approximately 904,000 Romanian citizens and 840,000 Polish citizens were registered in Germany. Over the year, the number of Polish citizens declined by approximately 25,000, while the total number of EU citizens fell by 75,000.
In recent years, citizens of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia have been actively recruited into the German labour market, including under special rules for the Western Balkans. However, their net migration has been steadily declining since 2022. In 2025, it amounted to approximately 39,000 people. IW warns that the potential for further recruitment of workers from the Balkans is also limited: the populations of most countries in the region are shrinking, while their own labour markets are facing staff shortages.
Against the backdrop of the overall decline, there are also opposing trends. Net migration of Vietnamese citizens increased from 10,000 people in 2023 to 19,000 in 2025.
At the same time, the number of residence permits issued to citizens of non-European countries for employment purposes increased by 33,000, or 13.6%, between 2023 and 2025. The number of permits related to education also rose by 33,000, or 15.3%. Thus, the inflow of students and skilled workers is currently declining significantly more slowly than humanitarian and intra-European migration.
The net outflow of German citizens increased from 74,000 people in 2023 to 97,000 in 2025. IW notes that negative migration among German citizens occurs regularly. However, growth of approximately 30% over two years may be an alarming signal, especially if qualified specialists are leaving the country.
At the same time, part of the statistics may relate to previously naturalised migrants who return to their countries of origin after obtaining German citizenship. It is difficult to assess the structure of this outflow precisely because the final destination country is not recorded for many of those leaving.
According to the Central Register of Foreigners, approximately 14.07 million foreign nationals were living in Germany at the end of 2025.
The largest groups were:
Approximately 5 million foreigners, or 35%, were citizens of EU member states. Another 4.6 million held the citizenship of other European countries, while approximately 4.5 million represented countries in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and other regions.
If not only foreign citizens but also migrants who obtained German citizenship and their direct descendants are taken into account, Germany had approximately 21.8 million people with an immigration history in 2025, representing 26.3% of the population. The largest groups by country of birth were people from Poland and Turkey, at approximately 1.5 million each; Ukraine, at 1.3 million; and Russia and Syria, at approximately 1 million each.
The decline in migration is occurring simultaneously with the mass retirement of the baby-boomer generation. According to a separate IW forecast, by 2036 the gap between older workers leaving the labour market and young people reaching working age could reach 4.3 million people. Economists consider a return to a mass inflow of workers from Eastern Europe unlikely. Germany will have to recruit specialists and workers with medium and lower levels of formal qualifications more actively from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and other regions.
IW proposes accelerating visa procedures, reducing the tax and social burden on workers, and extending simplified labour migration mechanisms similar to the existing rules for the Western Balkans to new countries. Thus, this is not about the complete cessation of migration but about a change in its structure. Germany is receiving fewer refugees and workers from neighbouring European countries, while the economy’s need for foreign labour continues to grow because of the ageing population.
Schneider Electric, a global leader in energy technology, and AMD today announced a jointly developed and validated reference design for the AMD Helios rack solution, which offers a scalable architecture for faster deployment of high-density AI environments with fewer risks and less complexity. This reference design marks the first outcome of the collaboration between Schneider Electric and AMD and underscores the companies’ shared commitment to simplifying the deployment of AI Factories.
The new reference design is the first of its kind, developed to support high-density AI workloads on the Helios rack-mounted solution. The platform is powered by AMD Instinct™ MI455X GPUs, 6th-generation AMD EPYC™ processors, AMD Pensando™ Vulcano NICs, and the open ROCm™ software ecosystem. AMD Helios is designed to deliver breakthrough AI performance through advanced computing capabilities, high interconnect bandwidth, increased memory capacity, and system-level integration. This enables customers to run larger and more complex AI workloads faster, while optimizing power consumption and efficiency.
Since AI workloads place unprecedented demands on data center infrastructure, reference designs provide data center architects and operators with tested and scalable solutions capable of handling new levels of power density, cooling requirements, and operational complexity. By simulating the operation of physical data center infrastructure, these pre-validated architectural solutions shorten the design phase by determining the optimal configuration of power, cooling, and IT infrastructure to create a reliable, scalable, and AI-ready data center. The AMD Helios reference design covers four technical areas: facility power, facility cooling, IT space, and lifecycle management software.
“Today, organizations need comprehensive, AI-ready reference designs that enable them to move more quickly from the planning stage to deployment with fewer risks,” said Manish Kumar, Executive Vice President of Schneider Electric’s Secure Power & Data Centers division. “In collaboration with AMD, we have created an engineering-validated reference design that combines cutting-edge AI computing platforms, power technologies, and practical data center solutions, helping customers deploy scalable, high-density AI environments with greater confidence, efficiency, and speed.”
“AI infrastructure is rapidly evolving into full-fledged AI Factories, which requires that computing, networking, power, and cooling be designed as a single system from the very beginning,” said Forrest Norrod, executive vice president and general manager of AMD’s Data Center Solutions business group. “AMD Helios is an open rack-based architecture designed to deliver the performance, efficiency, and flexibility required for next-generation AI workloads. Together with Schneider Electric, we’ve developed a validated reference design that provides customers with a practical foundation to accelerate the deployment of high-density AI infrastructure, reduce integration risks, and scale more confidently and efficiently.”
Reference Design Accelerates AMD Helios Deployment
This new collaboration combines AMD’s AI platform innovations with Schneider Electric’s expertise in power, cooling, and digital infrastructure, creating a more integrated approach to deploying both new AI Factories and high-density retrofit infrastructures. The reference design supports:
The reference design has already been validated in accordance with ANSI standards for deployment in the United States. Future plans include expanding this architecture to support IEC standards for projects worldwide.
About Schneider Electric
Schneider Electric is a global leader in energy technologies that improves efficiency and promotes sustainable development through the electrification, automation, and digitalization of industry, business, and residential spaces. The company’s technologies enable buildings, data centers, factories, infrastructure, and power grids to function as open, interconnected ecosystems, enhancing productivity, resilience, and environmental sustainability.
The company’s portfolio includes smart devices, software-defined architectures, artificial intelligence-based systems, digital services, and professional consulting services. With 160,000 employees and 1 million partners in over 100 countries, Schneider Electric consistently ranks among the world’s most sustainable companies. Learn more at https://www.se.com/ua/uk/
A prolonged heat wave is expected in Ukraine in early August, which could significantly increase the strain on both people’s health and the country’s power grid.
According to the Ministry of Energy, rising temperatures as early as next week could increase electricity consumption by approximately 1 GW. The ministry is preparing to boost domestic power generation and electricity imports, has adjusted maintenance schedules at power plants, and is considering implementing power restrictions for industry and businesses. Consumers are asked to use electricity sparingly during peak hours from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
According to the latest forecast, the most intense heat is expected from August 1 through August 5. In Uzhhorod, temperatures may reach 36–38 degrees; in Lviv, 34–36 degrees; in Vinnytsia, around 36 degrees; and in Kyiv, up to 35 degrees.
In Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv, temperatures are forecast to be mostly 32–34 degrees during the first half of the week. In Odesa and the surrounding region, temperatures will rise gradually and may reach 32–34 degrees by August 4–5. Forecasts may still be adjusted, especially given the possibility of localized thunderstorms.
How to Prepare Your Home
Before the hottest days begin, it is recommended to check that your air conditioner, refrigerator, ventilation system, and chargers are working properly. You should charge portable chargers, flashlights, and other backup power sources in advance, as localized emergency power outages are possible when the load on the grid increases.
During the day, it’s best to keep windows, curtains, and blinds closed, especially on the sunny side. It is more effective to ventilate rooms at night and early in the morning, when the outside air is cooler. The WHO recommends, whenever possible, keeping the temperature in living spaces below 32 degrees during the day and 24 degrees at night, especially if there are elderly people, young children, or people with chronic illnesses in the home.
Air conditioning should be used with windows and doors closed, without creating too great a difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures. During the hottest hours of the day, it is best to stay in the coolest room; if air conditioning is not available, spend two to three hours in a shopping center, library, government building, or other accessible air-conditioned facility.
Residents of private homes are advised to fill containers with non-potable water in advance, check pumps and irrigation systems, but avoid stockpiling excessive amounts of drinking water. It is sufficient to have a reserve in case of short-term outages.
How to Reduce the Load on the Power Grid
The main peak in electricity consumption is expected between 4:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. During this time, it is advisable not to run the air conditioner, washing machine, water heater, electric stove, dishwasher, and other high-power appliances simultaneously. It is better to postpone laundry, water heating, and charging electronic devices until the morning, daytime, or night.
You can turn on the air conditioner in advance, before the evening peak, and then maintain a moderate temperature.
Closed curtains, exterior blinds, and early-morning ventilation help reduce the heating of the room and shorten the operating time of cooling equipment.
Open the refrigerator less frequently and avoid placing hot food inside. In the event of a possible power outage, a closed refrigerator will maintain a safe temperature for longer.
How to Protect Your Health
The Ukrainian Ministry of Health recommends avoiding direct sunlight and strenuous physical activity during the hottest hours of the day—approximately from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. It is best to schedule walks, workouts, construction work, and gardening for early morning or evening.
You should drink water regularly in small amounts, without waiting until you feel very thirsty. It’s best to choose water and beverages without sugar or caffeine, and to limit your intake of alcohol, large amounts of coffee, energy drinks, and fatty or heavy foods. People with heart or kidney conditions who have restricted fluid intake should follow their doctor’s recommendations.
When outdoors, it is recommended to wear light-colored, loose-fitting clothing made of natural fabrics, a hat, and sunglasses, and to protect exposed skin with SPF sunscreen. Keep in mind that in direct sunlight, the perceived temperature can be 10–15 degrees higher than in the shade.
Special attention should be given to the elderly, infants, pregnant women, and people with cardiovascular, respiratory, or kidney diseases, as well as diabetes. The WHO notes that heat can worsen the course of chronic diseases and increase the risk of heat exhaustion and heatstroke.
Relatives and neighbors are advised to check on elderly people living alone every day to ensure they have water, medication, a means of communication, and access to a cool room. Children and pets must not be left in a locked car, even for a few minutes.
How to Prepare Medications and Food
Medications must be stored according to the instructions. Medications that require refrigerated storage should be placed in the refrigerator in advance, or a cooler bag and ice packs should be prepared in case of a power outage. Do not adjust medication dosages on your own during a heat wave.
It’s best to buy perishable foods in small quantities. Meat, fish, dairy products, ready-to-eat meals, and cream-filled pastries require special attention. It’s not recommended to buy food at informal markets or to eat food that has been left unrefrigerated for a long time.
It’s best to prepare meals in the morning or evening to avoid further heating your apartment and increasing energy consumption during the evening peak hours.
When Urgent Help Is Needed
The first signs of heat exhaustion may include weakness, headache, dizziness, nausea, extreme thirst, rapid heartbeat, and muscle cramps.
Confusion, loss of consciousness, a very high body temperature, and hot skin may indicate heatstroke. In this case, you must immediately call emergency medical services, move the person to the shade or a cool room, remove any excess clothing, and begin gently cooling them with damp towels or cool water.
Prolonged heat poses no less of a danger than individual temperature records. Therefore, it is best to prepare your home, medications, a water supply, and energy-saving measures before the start of the hottest period, August 1–5.
The Veterans Cluster of Ukraine, in collaboration with the “Architecture of Resilience” Veterans Institute at Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture, continues to support veterans, active-duty military personnel, and their family members as part of the 2026 admissions campaign.
The application period for master’s programs begins on August 7. By that time, applicants must create an online account, register for any applicable benefits, complete a foreign language interview, and pass subject-specific entrance exams.
Program participants can receive tuition-free education in over 50 fields of study and more than 100 academic programs. Funding is available through state compensation programs, grants, scholarships, and employer support programs.
The program also provides opportunities for retraining, professional development, earning a second higher education degree, and admission to master’s or doctoral programs. Veterans are offered full-time, part-time, online, and distance learning options, allowing them to combine their education with work, medical treatment, rehabilitation, or military service.
Throughout their studies, participants can receive psychological support, get involved in projects to rebuild Ukraine, and interact with employers. Program partners include Axor, Barks, and other businesses.
The network of partner universities includes KNUBA, the National University of Physical Education and Sports of Ukraine, the Western Ukrainian National University, the Yuriy Kondratyuk Poltava Polytechnic National University, Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine, Drohobych State Pedagogical University, Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Ivan Pul’uj Ternopil National Technical University, and the University of Educational Management.
The National University of Physical Education and Sports of Ukraine operates a training and rehabilitation center for veterans.
One of the program’s students is veteran Vadym Honcharenko, who is studying at KNUBA to become a coach in adaptive sports. According to him, his choice of major was influenced by his own experience with rehabilitation through sports.
“I want to show people who, due to injuries or disabilities, think that an active life is over for them that this is not the case. A lot depends on us,” Goncharenko noted.
He also advises prospective students to focus on their own needs and choose a major that will be practically useful after graduation.
The Veterans’ Cluster emphasizes that there is not much time left to make a decision, but applicants can still prepare their documents and complete the necessary procedures before the application period begins.
Detailed information is available on the website Veterano.info.
Contact information for consultations:
+38 073 94 96 179
+38 050 22 35 182
+38 067 49 81 098
Artem Goncharenko, Director of the Veterans Institute: +38 073 177 72 73.
Antonina Savchenko, Coordinator of Higher Education and Admissions Programs: +380 63 245 34 05.
admissions, EDUCATION, GONCHARENKO, KNUBA, master’s program, UNIVERSITY, ветеран
According to Interfax-Ukraine, the National Bank of Ukraine has completed a significant portion of its negotiations and discussions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and will soon adopt and announce a new, substantial package of foreign exchange liberalization measures. As NBU Governor Andriy Pyshnyy stated during a press briefing on Thursday, the upcoming liberalization measures will apply to both individuals and businesses.
“We have completed a significant portion of the negotiations and discussions with our colleagues at the International Monetary Fund. Accordingly, a significant package of foreign exchange liberalization measures will be announced, affecting individuals, including businesses. The National Bank has always prioritized the interests of Ukrainian businesses regarding foreign exchange liberalization,” the regulator’s head noted.
Pyshnyy emphasized that stimulatory foreign exchange liberalization has remained one of the National Bank’s key priorities since 2023. According to him, the regulator supports measures that have a positive effect and stimulate the country’s economic recovery and development.
As previously reported, in the materials for the first review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, published on its website, the IMF notes that currency liberalization should depend on the fulfillment of key preconditions—including deeper foreign exchange markets, well-anchored inflation expectations, and sustained financial stability—while ensuring that these are balanced with economic needs.
