Last year 5,000 vacation homes were sold in Mexican beach towns, according to Softec, a business consulting firm, and the National Association of Realtors. Four thousand of the 5,000 properties sold were new construction, according to Softec.
   The properties were sold in Rocky Point, Puerto Vallarta, Ixtapa, Loreto, Puerto Escondido and Cancun.
   The combined total sales figure came to $1.5 billion, which is fifty per cent above 2004 sales, according to Softec. Non-beach area properties resulted in fewer than one per cent of total sales.
   According to Eugene Towles, a partner with Softec, Mexico has the potential to sell 300,000 homes per year with a combined market value of $150 billion dollars.
   Mexico has the potential to sell one quarter of all world vacation homes, but significant planning must take place first, according to Towles.
   Increased globalization of the banking industry will make buying a vacation home in Mexico simply a matter of dealing with one's home bank, according to Towles.