Commercial Real Estate Finance

Posts Tagged ‘VT ski resort’

Traditionally, the U.S. immigration process involves navigating a labyrinthine bureaucracy–red tape, hoops to jump through, etc.  For those without the resources or time for the legal route, there’s always the option of braving the dangerous wilderness of the U.S.-Mexico border. While neither route can be described as “convenient,” these are certainly the most popular methods of entry. But another route of immigration is proving increasingly promising: investing in U.S. business ventures to obtain a green card.

A while back, I discussed some of the details of this investment/immigration strategy. The EB-5 Visa for Immigrant Investors first appeared over 20 years  ago as part of the Immigration Act of 1990. Designed to stimulate economic activity (as the country emerged from the Savings & Loan crisis, etc.), the policy offered the incentive of a green card to foreign investors with either $1,000,000 or $500,000 (depending on the area) in a venture that created at least 10 U.S. jobs. While some have criticized the EB-5 Visa as a way for wealthy investors to circumvent the country’s usual immigration process (a legitimate complaint), the citizenship-for-investment program has seen very few takers because of its cumbersome requirements and inefficient management.

Still, anything that draws foreign capital is worth looking into, for real estate endeavors or anything else, and it looks like EB-5 still has a future. Last fall, Congress approved the continuation of this program (in a shameful act of bipartisan effectiveness). Recent policy changes are making the green-card-for-capital strategy more viable, particularly, I think, for private investors in U.S. real estate.  Read the rest of this entry »