How to fix the RE Market 2011 style

[SD Transplant]

Our politicians never fail to deliver smart ways to fix the RE market 🙂

Linky: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203752604576641421449460968.html

The reeling housing market has come to this: To shore it up, two Senators are preparing to introduce a bipartisan bill Thursday that would give residence visas to foreigners who spend at least $500,000 to buy houses in the U.S.

The provision is part of a larger package of immigration measures, co-authored by Sens. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.) and Mike Lee (R., Utah), designed to spur more foreign investment in the U.S.

Supporters of the bill, co-authored by Sen. Charles Schumer, say it would help make up for American buyers who are holding back.
Foreigners have accounted for a growing share of home purchases in South Florida, Southern California, Arizona and other hard-hit markets. Chinese and Canadian buyers, among others, are taking advantage not only of big declines in U.S. home prices and reduced competition from Americans but also of favorable foreign exchange rates.

[SD Transplant]

now, the American dream costs go from $500K & up

[outtamojo]

Welcome to America drug kingpins and banana republic dictators!

[scaredyclassic]

Nah, the article says high level Chinese execs are making abovelist cash offers.

Give us your tired your poor no scratch that your half million cash

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=walterwhite]Nah, the article says high level Chinese execs are making abovelist cash offers.

Give us your tired your poor no scratch that your half million cash[/quote]

Not a bad hustle if you ask me.

[briansd1]

[quote=urbanrealtor]

Not a bad hustle if you ask me.[/quote]

I agree.

Plenty of foreign buyers will buy just so their kids have a place to live when they go to school.

This program has no limits… so if successful it will create whole new kinds of anti-immigration sentiments.

We live in a globalized world. Better get used to it.

[sd_matt]

Anything but let the prices fall to affordable levels.

[scaredyclassic]

It’s kind of mean in the sense of well we offshored jobs got some foreigners rich and now they’re moving in to your house.

On the other hand, it’s nice to get the money back.

[Coronita]

[quote=walterwhite]It’s kind of mean in the sense of well we offshored jobs got some foreigners rich and now they’re moving in to your house.

On the other hand, it’s nice to get the money back.[/quote]

I don’t see a problem…What’s wrong with offshoring our jobs….. so that you can than go to walmart to buy goods/services from overseas for cheap… which makes people overseas rich… so they can afford to many many homes here… so that they can then pay to send their kids to our best universities while simultaneously then being a landlord by renting out their vacation homes back to people here, who inevitably now work for a company that has been acquired by a larger company from overseas, since they can do it for a lot less than a company here???

I don’t see any problem whatsoever with this, besides the fact that it’s the ultimately bending over in just about every aspect of one’s life….

The new America…Shafting people, one day at a time…

[urbanrealtor]

So…like….one shaft at a time?

[briansd1]

In all honesty there is already a way to get a US work visa if you have money.

Right now, you can invest $500,000 or $1,000,000, create 10 jobs and get a visa for your family.

Just invest in a hotel with some partners. Hotels create plenty of jobs — not the best jobs but jobs, nevertheless.

http://www.bauerlaw.net/page.asp?page_id=434

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/md-casino-developer-courts-wealthy-chinese-by-offering-green-card-in-exchange-for-500000-investment/2011/09/19/gIQAyAgjgK_story_2.html
As of Sept. 12, the United States had issued more than 3,700 EB-5 visas during the current fiscal year, which runs through the end of the month. That is up from 744 five years ago — but still well shy of the 10,000 annually authorized by Congress.

This is actually a great deal for foreign students under 21 who want to attend a public university and take advantage of in-state tuition.

The investment creates a return and university education is a bargain.

[70Degrees]

Why all the negativity about this? It seems like a great deal for the US – watch people clamor all of themselves to pay $500k for the privilege of having their WORLDWIDE income taxed by the US, regardless of where they live.

So I dont think you’ll see people getting green cards when they buy their kids houses for school unless they are intending to move here themselves… And someone that is buying a house for their kids to go to school would probably be bringing substantial financial assets into the country as well as a business, or they’ll have a foreign business they keep.

In either case they will be paying more us tax next year than they do now (none!) and in the case of the foreign business they’ll be paying tax on it too. Aside from tax, The financial assets they bring into the country go straight to the local economy.

What am i missing?

[briansd1]

I think that this new plan is to give foreign homebuyers extended tourist visa for as long as they own the house — not work visas or permanent residency.

This will avoid the buyers having to file income tax returns on their foreign earnings.
http://www.npr.org/2011/10/21/141584620/a-bid-to-bring-foreign-buyers-to-the-housing-market

I think it’ll be a net positive to the economy, although I don’t believe that people will clamor to buy.

Right now, rich people who want permanent residency can do so through other ways (mostly family sponsorship) that don’t require $500,000 cash outlay.

I believe that this will simplify things for Canadian and Mexican buyers who will benefit the most.

Time will tell…

[bearishgurl]

[quote=briansd1]I think that this new plan is to give foreign homebuyers extended tourist visa for as long as they own the house — not work visas or permanent residency.

This will avoid the buyers having to file income tax returns on their foreign earnings.[/quote]

…Walter Molony, a spokesman for the Realtors group, says buyers come from all over the world; their top places of origin are Canada, China, Mexico, the U.K. and India, he says.

Molony says U.S. homes are attractive because they’re relatively inexpensive, especially in high foreclosure states like Florida and Arizona. There are also few legal obstacles to transferring titles.

Visas can pose problems for some would-be buyers, Molony says, so it’s possible that the house-for-visa trade would make a difference for some. But how many buyers will take the U.S. up on this deal, if it comes to pass, is not knowable, he says.

I’m all for it!! Bring it on! But just remember that these foreigners may only occupy 6+ months per year. The rest of the time, one would surmise they have security lights and a gardener and “poolman.” Isn’t that how this has worked in the past … with Mexican citizens? So, why do we, as homeowners CARE about this?

If this bill is passed and ultimately causes more distressed properties to be sold quickly, it’s a win-win situation for everyone. Remember that, even if a property is sold “cheap,” those “sold comps” disappear after six months (in “appraisal-speak”) and will eventually get us out of the quagmire we are in and lift ALL BOATS :=]

[davelj]

This is very similar to a suggestion I’ve bantered about with friends over the last year, except that I put in a lower limit (I was thinking $250K). Regardless of the details and mechanics, I think it’s a very good idea to make it easier to get wealthy foreigners US visas, and to tie this in some way to real estate purchases. We already have a program with two separate investment levels for foreigners who want to start a business in the US. This is really just an extension of the same idea.

[Author]

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