You might be a condo expert in Spokane, but if someone wants Farm and Ranch property you could refer that out.....if you have a customer who wants to buy in Tokyo....refer that out to a local Japanese agent.....have a customer who wants to buy a vineyard in Argentina....refer that out to a local vineyard specialist.....

My wife is Japanese.

Thirty years from now you may see the world dominated by Indian, Japanese, Chinese or some other nation's autumobiles and the US reduced to a lesser, and poorer status as we continue to try to maintain our rich lifestyle on outdated technology, or pay other nations for things we SHOULD HAVE been developing ourselves!

Because the Japanese government's lending rate is so incredibly low.

I am not comfortable owning something that, because of something that happened over night in the Japanese or European markets, is worth 25% less today then yesterday.

Also partially since I'm into anime/manga I'm currently learning Japanese.

And no offence to Steve, may he RIP, but the Japanese have been working on this for quite some time ;)http://money.cnn.com/2004/04/06/technology/personaltech/japanese_future.rb/index.htm

I took a BS from Oglethorpe University in Business and Computer science, minored in Japanese Language and Culture, and concentrated in Economics.

For instance, in the Japanese Bubble in the early 1980's, prices droped sharply for a year or two until the government steped in to stabalize them.

That, in turn, helps to support our economy.Those of us who are old enough may recall the hysteria caused by a huge wave of Japanese investment.