Hottest foreign second home markets for 2007

Here's where Americans will be turning to this year for second homes abroad.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
January 20 2007: 9:53 AM EST

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Americans have never taken much to living abroad, at least not to the same degree the British have. Some 5.5 million Brits, about 10 percent of that nation's total population, now live as expatriates, with 200,000 more every year.
The massive Brit presence in the heart of Tuscany's wine region has given it the nickname Chianti-shire.
Languedoc, France, with its walled, medieval cities, is an up-and-coming vacation home destination.
For Americans, though, most other countries were too far away to tempt us. Some Yanks did buy second homes in Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, but the majority were content to shop within the nation's borders.
That's changing.
Today foreign lands are drawing more Americans than ever. According to State Department estimates, some 6.6 million Americans live abroad, a larger number than the Brits claim, but, at 2.2 percent, still a smaller percentage of the U.S.'s total 300 million population.
There are many reasons for the big build up. More Americans work for multi-national companies, which often take them for long stints overseas. And foreign vacation travel is booming as well. This means a lot more exposure to other countries and cultures.

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