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December 14, 2011

New Bill Proposes Visas for Foreign Homebuyers
A new Senate bill co-sponsored by Charles Schumer and Mike Lee aims to tackle two problems at once by offering a three-year visa to foreign nationals that purchase a home in the US for at least $500,000 and live in the home for at least six months. The Senators said that the biggest hurdle hindering the US housing market is supply and demand, and the program is designed to increase demand by encouraging immigration into the US by law abiding foreigners.

The residency requirement, Schumer and Lee claim, will force foreign investors to pay federal and local property taxes and help ensure the visas go to people who will add to the American economy. The Senators noted that the bill is not a "path to citizenship," but the visas will be able to be renewed every three years as long as the homebuyer remains in the US. Analysts believe there is a large number of wealthy citizens from China, Brazil and other nations that would like to come to the US.

Notably, 20 percent of all residential real estate sales in south Florida, for example went to Brazilian nationals. And many of those foreign nationals end up starting businesses and making homes here. Schumer and Lee claim the bill will boost the housing markets of California, Nevada, and other markets hit particularly hard by the recession.

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