Texas has enacted legislation, effective September 1, 2025, that imposes sweeping restrictions on the purchase or acquisition of real property by certain foreign individuals, entities, and governments. The law targets individuals and entities from “designated countries,” identified by the U.S. Director of National Intelligence as posing a national security risk, or as designated by the Texas governor. This includes China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, but the list may expand.
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed similar legislation to stop Chinese land and property purchases in her state, noting the bill lacked “clear implementation criteria,” which opened the door for “arbitrary enforcement.”
So far, at least 22 states have enacted a range of laws focusing on this topic, although specific language used by different states varies significantly. In 2024, a total of 9 states enacted foreign land ownership restriction bills, while bills of this type were introduced in 32 states.
