There is a growing trend taking shape in the United States and in other developed countries--people's desire to invest, live, vacation, or even retire outside of their country.

People are starting to relocate on a global scale. One article in the International Herald Tribune stated that, in the past 30 years, the number of Americans living abroad has more than quadrupled. In fact, according to the U.S. State Department, it has risen from 2.3 million to 3.3 million just since 1990.

This movement is expected to increase exponentially. To profit from it, you need to look for real estate markets that will capitalize on the direction the world is starting to move. Overseas retirement real estate is going to be big business in the coming years. As the first of the 76-million, baby-boom generation turns 60 next year, more people are going to look outside of the United States for real estate, second homes, and retirement homes.

Did you know that Baby Boomers make up almost a third of the U.S. population? And they are aging fast. Beginning in 2000, Boomers started turning 50 at the rate of just under 10,000 a day. Already, more than 14 million boomers are 50 and up, and some aren't waiting until 55 to take early retirement. It's a well-educated crowd: nearly 90 percent of boomers graduated from high school, and more than a quarter have at least a bachelor's degree. More than three quarters own homes, and 73 percent have some form of investments.

As Time Magazine recently reported: "Many of the 76 million American Boomers are more likely than their parents to consider retiring to a foreign land, because they have traveled more, have higher hopes for retirement, and tend to be more active and adventuresome."

Think about it this way... more than three million U.S. citizens have already moved abroad, looking for cheap real estate, low taxes, and better qualities of living. This trend will only increase in the years to come.