U.S. Real Estate Firm Finds Vibrant Housing Market -- in Iraq

Sometimes you've got to go a long way to find true opportunity. Good thing Americans are known for their resourcefulness.

Two college students in Minnesota think they have finally found a housing market with growth potential. Their Forex Realty Consultants links expatriate Iraqi property owners in the U.S. with buyers in Iraq.

It just goes to show that there are always housing deals to be made -- they just might not be right under your nose, or even on the same continent.

The two 23-year-olds, Ishraf Ahmad and Derrick Turner of St. Paul, aren't getting rich off their idea yet. But they have mapped out a business plan that gets them and Baghdad-based partner Ali al-Robaie 3 percent to 7 percent commission on each Iraqi property they sell. (Smaller and rural properties are charged a higher commission.)

So far they have sold a handful of residential and business properties that have taken anywhere from five months to nine months to move. In December they made a $400,000 sale but currently have an $8.6 million listing that was once owned by an ambassador.