A growing number of immigrant households are bolstering the U.S. population as foreigners become more interested in America's housing market.

That is according to speakers at the 2017 Realtors Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo, who said immigration is providing a bigger boost to rents and home prices than more expected types of population increases, the National Association of Realtors reports. Cato Institute immigration policy analyst Alex Nowrasteh said an expected 1% population increase produces a corresponding 1% increase in rents, but an unexpected increase from immigration results in a 3.75% price jump. As of 2015, foreign-born residents accounted for 43.4 million of the U.S.' total 321.4 million residents, according to an American Community Survey.

Nowrasteh said immigration added $3.7 trillion to U.S. housing wealth in 2012, and NAR economist Danielle Hale said Chinese buyers are expected to buy more U.S. real estate than investors from any other country in 2017. Immigration and foreign capital are linked, and experts at the forum agreed that both are good for U.S. housing markets and predicted an uptick in both categories over the course of the year.