Who has purchased land or property overseas? (broker, purchasing)

[tangerinepuddle]

I am an american, interested in purchasing property or land overseas - areas of interest include central america, australia, perhaps southeast asia (thailand), Fiji, basically anywhere tropical.

Who has experience doing this and what steps should I take (besides lots of research and visits to the places) - is a broker necessary? What about a lawyer? What countries to stay away from?

Thanks!

[jtur88]

One thing I discovered in South America, when I made a few casual inquiries while passing through, that rural land costs more per acre there than in the United States. I didn't explore it deeply enough to be able to say anything definitively, but land values that I heard about seemed extremely high.