PHOENIX -- A weak dollar and the subprime mortgage meltdown is helping Canadians capitalize on the U.S. housing slump in sunbelt states like Arizona, realtors said.

The exchange rate is the best it's been in more than 30 years and with housing prices sinking in the U.S., Canadians are cashing in on deals in places like Phoenix.

"I had clients in from Calgary," said Rick Morielli of Can-Ix Realty. "I showed them property that sold here for $165,000. They said that that property back home would be $600,000."

Single family homes and condominiums in the Phoenix area currently languish on the market for longer than three months before getting sold. Compared to two years ago, that's three times the wait for homes and four times the wait for condos, according to the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service.

Real estate agents in the Valley, especially those with Canadian ties, like Morielli, are targeting potential buyers in Canada while the U.S. housing market and the dollar continue to erode.

"Canadians have an opportunity to buy property they never would before," said Morielli, who is from Alberta but now lives in Laveen. "I think the biggest factor is the rise of the Canadian dollar."

The housing market in Phoenix is ripe for the picking. The median price of a Valley home is $240,000, compared with $259,000 for the same month a year ago, according to real estate experts at Arizona State University.

Morielli said about half of his clients are planning to move here from Canada after they buy. Investors make up the other half who see the houses as a business opportunity, he said.

There's plenty of properties to choose from. A total of 1,344 homes were swallowed up by foreclosures in metropolitan Phoenix last month, and the number of unsold homes on the market in Phoenix stands well over 54,000.

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