La Paz, BCS, Mexico - As usual, the midyear meeting of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), held earlier this month in Washington D.C., had a truly international flavor. The Global Networking Reception presented an opportunity for Realtors from around the Globe to renew acquaintances with old friends and make new ones.

Dr. Lawrence Yun, NAR's Chief Economist, shared the podium with La Vaughn Henry from the Federal Reserve Bank at a very popular session, "Residential Economic Issues & Trends."

The Global Business & Alliances Committee takes place with a back drop of international flags from over 60 countries affiliated with NAR. A new twist this year was added this year. A panel representing three of the largest franchises in the U.S. discussed international real estate business issues.

There were two dinner parties attended by AMPI (MEXICO) leaders. John Glaab and Linda Neil and a small group of association leaders from Latin America were entertained by the President of the Miami Association of Realtors.

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) hosted the AMPI delegation. Attending wee AMPI President Guillermo Salgado, V.P. Martha Ramirez, Advisory Board Member and head of AMPI's International Commission, Linda Neil, Past President Sergio Gomez and John Glaab, Founding Member of AMPI Los Cabos. CREA leaders expressed a wish to repeat the evening at the NAR Conference in San Francisco, come November.

Embassy visits occur at midyear meetings. A few embassies are vested by small groups of CIPS Designees. John Glaab and Linda Neil were selected to visit the Mexican Embassy. Actually this took place at Mexico's NAFTA office.

At the CIPS Designee breakfast 120 Realtors received pins and certificates bringing the number of Designees worldwide to nearly 4,000. In addition to a large number from the U.S.A., new Designees came from such far flung places as India, Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, the Philippines (they had 42 last year) and Canada.

Many of those who traveled to Washington will meet again, at NAR's annual Conference & Expo. The Conference will take place in San Francisco, come November.

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John Glaab is Vice President, International Marketing, at The Settlement Company.
He is a Certified International Property Specialist and a founding member of AMPI Los Cabos. John recently received the National Association of Realtors new award, International Member of the Year. For further information, contact John at John.Glaab(at)settlement-co.com.