THE housing and the mortgage industry in the United States are a sorry mess this week. But the United States is not the world and everywhere else across the Atlantic and across the Pacific from Greenland to Australia and even in Africa; the real estate industry is alive and booming.

In Spain and in Portugal alone, developments are continuing even though it’s the end of summer already. In fact, people from the rest of Western and Northern Europe are now seeing their sights on winter holiday destinations such as the Alps in Europe while their counterparts from North America are now heading to such places as Lake Tahoe somewhere in the Nevada and California area. In places such as Lake Tahoe, beautiful lakeside cabins and manors are up for sale and despite their steep prices, many North Americans still love to buy them and turn them into retreat homes. Some opt to lease these properties to other vacationers in the area.

As everybody knows, Lake Tahoe is home to all winter sports such as skiing plus an array of supplemental sports like hiking, lake cruising and others. On the other hand, properties in such resorts as Palma de Mallorca right in the middle of the Mediterranean are being prepped this early to accommodate the surge of tourists for the next summer.

In other urban seaside resorts in Spain and Portugal such as Valencia, properties along the route of the 2008 Formula One Spanish Grand Prix are beginning to rise in value. Even in obscure cities like Cagayan de Oro in the Philippines, property developers are continuing to invest. There are two high-end subdivisions currently on the rise in the area owned by Fil-Spanish investors Zobel de Ayala and Brown. Elsewhere in the world particularly in India, UBS Global Asset Management has set its eyes on a $1 billion real estate investment in the mini-continent. It has tied up with Mumbai’s very own K Raheja Corporation for the purpose. Many real estate properties in India are not for individual ownership though. India has since become the information technology hub of the Far East and technological companies such as Microsoft and GE have joined the bandwagon in outsourcing their jobs in India because of its cheap labor. That brings good news to all stakeholders – the Fortune 500 companies, India’s own economy and the people themselves, including the unsung real estate agents who rake in good fortunes for closing deals especially involving multinational clients.

As the real estate industry in the world is continuing to develop, being a real estate agent itself is evolving. There are now universities and colleges across the planet offering complete four-academic year programs in real estate marketing leading to a bachelor’s degree. One of the most pioneering one is located in Australia, particularly the Real Estate Institute in Queensland. In fact, this college is solely dedicated for the real estate industry. It not only offers a bachelor’s degree in real estate marketing but also certificates for three-week refresher courses for existing real estate professionals.