A plan has been proposed by two US senators to offer visas for foreigners buying homes worth $500,000 or more. The proposal would provide a three-year residential visa for foreign owners.
The proposal is similar to an existing Green Card program for foreigners who invest at least $500,000 in an American business that creates at least 10 jobs and the US Chamber of Commerce is supporting the new legislation.
The National Association of Realtors say residential sales to foreigners and recent immigrants totalled $82 billion between April 2010 and March 2011, up from $66 billion and 31 percent of international housing buyers choose Florida.
Prospective buyers would need to spend at least $250,000 on one property that would serve as their primary residence, and could make up the $500,000 requirement with additional rental properties, but the purchases must be in cash, and the owners would have to reside at the primary residences for 180 days out of the year.
The proposal is for a residential visa and and not a work visa, and would not be eligible for government aid programs.
