Don’t take recession as a factor to answers this question.For instance in US and Canada you can buy a house then modify the house and sell the house getting profit.Now Besides United States and Canada which countries around the world can you do the same getting a fast profit.?
Because there are countries when is too difficult to sell houses due to the fact people can not afford it.

You can do it in any "free" country. The housing bubble is global, it is not limited to the US and Canada. House prices have dropped globally. If you are european, you have a real advantage in buying because of the premium on the euro and british pound.