We are fond of saying in real estate that "all markets are local".  Well they are, but not so much as they used to be.  I recall a day about 10 years ago when I woke up to the globalization of our local real estate market when I took calls in a single day from Sweden and Brazil, each from a past client who had been working abroad and were repatriating back to Minnesota.  Since then, I have set up my cell phone for international calling and keep connected via the internet while traveling.  I've sold homes while traversing the Panama Canal and from Caribbean islands.  I've worked with clients from Vietnam, Cambodia, Germany, Canada, Mexico and Guatemala.  RE/MAX has offices around the world and I've connected clients to real estate agents in Ireland and Israel.  Today, I saw another marker for the globalization of our local market.  The US Census has reported that over 130,000 people have immigrated to Minnesota from around the world between 2000 and 2009.  Here's a link to an interactive map to show you where Minnesota's immigrants are coming from: http://www.minnpost.com/severnsguntzel/immigrantjourney/  I was born, raised and educated in Minnesota, so the scope of the globalization of our "local" real estate market continues to excite and impress me.