NEW ORLEANS — Tapping into the growing demand for U.S. property by international buyers from Latin America, Asia and other regions means respecting your clients’ customs and culture.

 Done right, one deal can lead to a steady stream of referrals and a new source of business for brokers and agents, said members of a panel, “Develop Your Share of the Growing Hispanic Market” at the National Association of Realtors Convention in New Orleans.

In 1990, after being in real estate for more than 20 years, Colorado broker-developer Howard Leino said he “backed into international real estate without realizing it.”

It’s easier to work with an appraiser to make sure all the relevant information about a house and its market are included in a valuation than to challenge an appraisal after the fact.

But agents and brokers faced with deal-breaking low appraisals can mount a successful challenge — if they understand the valuation process, and know what information to bring to the table.

That was the message for real estate professionals at a panel discussion, “The Low Appraisal: Recourses and Remedies,” at the National Association of Realtors convention in New Orleans.