Karon Sinning and her husband Roy Bennett are looking for a new winter home after spending two winters in a Florida trailer park.Nick Iwanyshyn/The Globe and Mail
Foreign buyers from countries such as the United States and Brazil have long had an outsized presence in Portugal’s real estate market. But Hugo Santos-Ferreira, the chief executive of Corcoran Atlantic, says his Lisbon-based real estate firm is seeing much more interest from a new country: Canada.
“In the last year, Canadians have represented a huge increase in foreign investors looking into Portugal,” Mr. Santos-Ferreira said. The economic conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump is turning Canadian vacationers away from the U.S. market, he said, and sluggish Canadian and U.S. property markets have investors looking for better opportunities.
Property prices in Portugal surged 18 per cent in October from a year ago, according to government data. However, Mr. Santos-Ferreira said homes are still cheap and there’s opportunity for more growth.
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“Portugal is not so expensive, especially in real estate, so you can get a good match between quality and value with real estate,” he said.
A growing number of snowbirds are avoiding U.S. states such as Florida, which has long been the de facto winter home for Canadians who spend the colder months in warmer locations. While the U.S. government’s trade war with Canada has been a factor, others have looked elsewhere because of the exchange rate and rising insurance costs.
And while some Canadians are looking to purchase a new home, many snowbirds who spoke with The Globe and Mail said they were taking their time, exploring new destinations via short trips to Europe, Central America and the Caribbean before jumping into ownership.
Beachgoers in Playa los Muertos in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, in January.JAKE NAUGHTON/The New York Times
A survey of 4,000 travellers in late October by Snowbird Advisor, a publication with an affiliated insurance company, found that the proportion of snowbirds intending to go to non-U.S. destinations nearly doubled between 2024 and 2025.
Twenty-three per cent of respondents said they would go to non-U.S. destinations this year, compared with just 12 per cent last year. The proportion of people planning to winter in the U.S. dropped from 82 per cent to 70 per cent.
For those travelling elsewhere, Costa Rica, Portugal, Spain, Mexico and the Caribbean islands were among the top destinations, the survey found.
“These places have been growing in popularity for several years already, and they’re just expanding that growth right now,” said Stephen Fine, the president and managing editor of Snowbird Advisor, who noted that the majority of snowbirds still head to the U.S. because of its proximity and the fact that many Canadians have settled there.
Ms. Sinning says her first year in Florida was wonderful, but things quickly changed after Donald Trump was elected last year.Nick Iwanyshyn/The Globe and Mail
But many travellers haven’t come to a conclusion about their vacation destinations. More than half of respondents said they would consider returning to the U.S. in the future, and only 6 per cent have actually sold their U.S. properties.
Some vacation homeowners also told The Globe they’re simply waiting to see if the political climate in the U.S. improves or if Florida’s housing market, which was battered by rising insurance rates as a result of recent hurricanes, regains lost ground.
Laurie Fischer, 71, sold his condo in Clearwater, Fla., last year. Condo fees, insurance and maintenance cost him upward of $20,000 a year.
He said the political situation in the U.S. was destroying the sense of community he had enjoyed for decades.
“The U.S. right now is just totally toxic. It’s become very insular, and so we don’t plan on going to the States,” Mr. Fischer said.
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“There’s a real change in attitude down there toward anyone who isn’t a U.S. citizen.”
Mr. Fischer is planning shorter getaways this year and named Portugal and Costa Rica as possible destinations for the future.
Carol Thurlow, a realtor in the Mexican city of Mazatlan who is originally from Ottawa, said she’s seeing a noticeable increase in the number of Canadians looking to Mexico as an alternative to Florida and other U.S. destinations.
She estimates she’s fielded 30 to 40 inquiries from Canadians in the past year – at least 50 per cent more than in 2024 – and has sold about five homes to Canadians in 2025. She points out that those numbers comprise just her business and that her office is also dealing with lots of prospective buyers from Canada.
Tourists enjoy the beach at a resort in Los Cabos in Mexico.ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP/Getty Images
“I’m having a hard time keeping up with the amount of people that are coming to me to purchase,” said Ms. Thurlow, who said people are still nervous because of the economy but are actively exploring new winter homes.
“The cost of living is getting astronomical, and with what’s going on politically, people are just fed up,” she said.
Meanwhile, Canadians such as Karon Sinning and her husband are still looking for a new winter home, having sworn off the U.S. after two winters in a Florida trailer park.
Ms. Sinning said her first year was wonderful, but after Donald Trump was elected last year, things quickly changed.
Ms. Sinning reminisces on a previous trip to Malta. She plans to travel throughout England and the Netherlands with her husband before they head to warmer European destinations.Nick Iwanyshyn/The Globe and Mail
Her trailer park’s manager started talking about the MAGA movement constantly and said he had taken part in the Jan. 6 riot on Capitol Hill. A massive cardboard cut-out of Mr. Trump appeared in the common room. Some residents who were Democrats said management wouldn’t let them renew their leases, and a Canadian mixed-race couple told her that residents were making them feel uncomfortable.
This year, she’s on a scouting trip of sorts. She and her husband plan to travel throughout England and the Netherlands before they head to warmer European destinations such as Malta, Sicily and Spain over the course of nearly four months. She’s also considering Portugal.
Southern Europe and the Mediterranean don’t always offer the same sun and heat as Florida, but the trade-off is worth it for her. She also thinks European travel will be no more expensive than a trip in the U.S.
“We’re definitely not going back to the States,” she said.
