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- U.S. Embassies Abroad Help Investors
- Trade Mission to Mexico
- What (Not) to Wear?
- Profiting from Diversity: What Brokers Should Know
- U.S./Canada Border Property Owners Soon to Need Passports to Enter U.S.
- Global Free Market Systems: The Good News and the Bad
- Get Weekly International News from NAR
- A Market View from Inside the Embassy
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Thirteen percent of all houses purchased last year were vacation properties, according to NAR research. A trend, not revealed in these statistics but well-known by resort specialists, is that a growing number of Americans are buying abroad. Foreign real estate is relatively inexpensive compared to similar properties on the Atlantic seaboard or in a top Colorado ski resort. Another factor is taxes. Often there aren't any. Buying abroad, however, requires extra due diligence. In addition to the assistance of a professional trained in cross-border business, clients can tap into the resources of U.S. embassies abroad. Embassy personnel often can provide detailed information on foreign ownership rights and limitations and on local industry norms that foreign buyers are well-advised to understand. Embassyworld.com offers an easy-to-use directory of U.S. embassies around the world.
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Firms involved in construction and the development and operations management of resorts, hotels, marinas, and golf courses should consider joining a trade mission to Mexico being organized by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, September 6 - 9. The trade mission will coincide with the annual conference of FONATUR, Mexico's Tourism Infrastructure Agency, which presents an ideal opportunity to meet key industry players, network and learn about major projects. The participation fee is $2,000 per company and the application deadline is July 22. Sign up to learn more or submit a participation interest form. If Mexico's not your market focus, or you want to explore other industry niches, search the Commerce Dept. Trade Event list for all upcoming trade activities.
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Doing business internationally means paying attention to ethnic dress customs and norms. This can be particularly important for women, for whom business dress can vary dramatically. Whether traveling abroad, or anticipating meetings with foriegn clients in the local market, check out, JourneyWoman.com a guide for dress around the globe. Clothing tips for business and social occasions are provided by site visitors who have traveled and learned first-hand appropriate local dress customs. And remember, if you're traveling abroad to do business, expect social invitations. In most cultures, it's common for professionals to want to get to know you before discussing business.
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Real estate firms are recognizing the need to maintain a diverse staff of agents in order to effectively serve the increasing diverse population in the United States. To maintain a cutting edge position in the marketplace, brokers and firm consultants must stay on top of diversity issues such as recruitment, team building, and customer service. One resource is Culturally Correct, an online business resource that focuses on the relationship between diversity and profitability. Read the current featured article: "The Diversity Megatrend: What CEOs and Top Executives Need to Know."
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A loophole in U.S. security efforts is the ability of Canadians and Americans to enter the U.S. without passports. Over one million individuals enter the U.S. daily. Those claiming citizenship of these two countries have traditionally moved across the borders by showing a drivers license or birth certificate with no photograph. To tighten security, Congress has required that all such entering Canadians and Americans be required to present passports for admission by January 1, 2008. REALTORS® working along the U.S. northern border may wish to follow the progress of the three-phase Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, recently announced by the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State. Sign up for a free newsletter on immigrant and visa issues, offered by E&M, a legal firm specializing in immigration.
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As more countries adopt free markets, they open their doors to U.S. products and services. But, this also presents a challenge for U.S. industries as these countries begin to aggressively compete. "Losing the Competitive Advantage?," a report from AeA finds that other countries, including but not limited to China and India, are catching up with the U.S. in critical areas, having restructured their economies to benefit from the free market system they once resisted. They are increasing the skill sets of their workforce, investing in R&D, and adopting advanced technologies--all to spur economic growth--all at time when the U.S. has reduced federal R&D funding, U.S. higher education is not graduating sufficient numbers of trained individuals to support the growth of the U.S. high-tech industry, and has raised the bureaucratic barriers for high-skilled immigration. Read more about this issue, or download the AeA report.
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If you like what you're reading in this monthly newsletter, sign up to receive a weekly news item from NAR on topics related to International (along with a variety of other industry topics). This is a free service to NAR members. Sign up and select topics of interest at REALTOR.org. You must first be registered at REALTOR.org to receive this service.
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During NAR's Midyear Meeting in Washington, D.C. each year, a small number of CIPS designees get to visit a foreign embassy and meet with embassy personnel from the commercial/trade and economic sectors. In 2005, visits were arranged with the embassies of France, Spain, Venezuela and Vietnam. Meetings notes, along with presentations from the embassy staff (if provided), are available online, and include economic and market information useful for REALTORS® looking to do business related to these markets. Past embassy visits have resulted in direct business for participants.
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Report compiled by NAR International Operations, narglobe@realtors.org.
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