Mexicans are being urged to reclaim a piece of Texas by buying foreclosed properties

Texas real estate agents have headed into Mexico to drum up interest in buying cut-price land and property in foreclosure-hit Texas. Thanks to a rising Mexican peso and an economy growing faster than that of the US, Mexico is now seen as a potential source of rich investors.

A 'Texas for Sale' sign and cowgirl-clad models greeted visitors to a recent property fair in Monterrey, Mexico. Hundreds of Mexicans looked over lists of potential investment opportunities.

Foreclosures in Texas have risen by 29 per cent in a year with one in every 274 households now going through the process. Meanwhile, the peso has risen by 5.9 per cent against the dollar since the beginning of the year.

The United States annexed Texas in 1845 after Texans gained independence from Mexico nine years earlier following the Battle of the Alamo. A three-year war between the two countries resulted in Mexico losing about half its territory - including what is now Arizona, Nevada and California - to the United States.