I have been interested in RE for a few years, but not where I live (Japan).

I tested some Skype calls to Japan and England with my phone and the sound is great and best of all, its FREE!

I'd say using Japan as a model might be the best approximation for what we have in store, and I don't see the housing market turning around any time in the next few years.

The Hawaii real estate market follows the general economy of the US and Japan, about half of our visitors are from the orient, but tends to be more volatile than the mainland, so picking up something when the market is down will make a huge difference in how you do.  

Don't think so, but I don't think we're far from it.I see unrelated, unpredictable events, such as unrest in the middle east and a huge earthquake in Japan, as having as much or more effect than lending guidelines.

Greetings to everyone - from Graham, here in Tokyo, Japan.

(especially as it relates to Japan and Canada)Being from California, I have seen first hand, when we catch 'cold', Hawaii catches 'pneumonia'!

Not knowing which niche is best for beginner's (I'm stationed in Japan and there aren't too many that I can pursue).

I had an owner go to japan and he was concerned because we had to rent the property for what his mortgage was and after paying me and having an accountant here do his deprecation schedule he actually broke even, plus when the hurricane came threw and blew his roof off I was here to get the roof replaced and he didn't have to worry about anything.Also the quality of the property, location and list price of the house determines the speed in which the property is rented.

I'm up because it's only 8:45PM right now...I'm in Japan!