Supreme Court Rejects Retroactive Application of Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA)

A provision in the  Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 that stated that the law could be applied retroactively was rejected by the Supreme Court two days ago in their ruling on Vartelas v. Holder, No. 10-1211.  The provision stated that Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) who entered a criminal plea could not be allowed back into the United States after traveling abroad.  This provision was being applied to Legal Permanent Residents who had entered criminal pleas before the law was in effect.  The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 against this practice citing the “deeply rooted presumption” against applying new laws retroactively.

Here is a link to the Supreme Court decision.

Loans to Foreign Investors AVAILABLE in Sarasota

If you are a foreign investor it can be difficult to get a loan in the United States.  It’s difficult enough for U.S. citizens!  The good news is that a local bank with Spanish roots has developed a program aimed at helping foreign investors get loans in the United States.

Banco Sabadell

Sabadell Bank and Trust, with branches in Miami, North Palm Beach, Naples and Sarasota is offering Consumer Purpose Residential Mortgages for foreign investors and/or foreign-owned LLCs.  The product offer for foreign investors is a 15 year fixed rate with a 15 year amortization or 30 year amortization with a fixed rate terms of 3, 5, or 7 years.  Foreign-owned LLCs will receive the same 15 year fixed rate with 15 year amortization or a 25 year amortization with fixed rate terms of 3, 5, or 7 years.

The bank is only providing loans to make new purchases or refinance existing purchases (no cash out).  Loans can be up to 60 percent of the purchase price or appraised value, whichever is less, up to $3 million.  To qualify, the borrower must show 2x the borrowed amount in liquid funds in a U.S. or foreign financial institution.  There may be pre-payment penalties.

To find out more about the loan products contact Daniel E. Vigne, CFP, Executive Vice President

Market Executive, Sabadell Bank & Trust, 783 South Orange Avenue, Suite 100, Sarasota, FL  34236

Phone (941) 364-5080 or email:  Daniel.Vigne@sabadellus.com.

Region in Top 10 for International Home Buyers

The “Sarasota Herald-Tribune” has reported that Sarasota county is No. 4 in the country for foreign home-buyers.   In fact, five of the top ten regions for foreign home buyers are in Florida.  They include, “Lakeland-Winter Haven, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Orlando and Miami-Fort Lauderdale. Tampa-St. Petersburg came in at No. 9.”  In Sarasota County 6.5% of homes are bought by someone from overseas.

Here are some figures:

6.7 percent of buyers were foreign in Sarasota County from May 2011 to January 2012, while 6.1 percent were from another country in Manatee County.

13.1 percent of new homes sold in Sarasota were to foreign buyers while 12.3 percent of existing condominium sales in Manatee changed hands to international buyers.

Most intriguing is this:

The percentage of buyers who pay in cash is even higher than domestic buyers, who in 65 percent of transactions handled by Michael Saunders made their purchase without a loan in 2011, she said.

Most of these foreign buyers come from Canada, with the UK coming in second.  The county is seeing a small increase in the number of home buyers from Asia and Latin America.

Help the Sarasota Ballet Earn an ADDITIONAL $5,000!

From our Friends at the Sarasota Ballet,

Only 8 Hours Remaining In The 36 Hour Challenge!

You can help us earn a $5,000 cash bonus between now and 6 pm…..

Here’s How:

Log onto www.givingpartnerchallenge.org and donate $25.00 to The Sarasota Ballet.  Each unique donor (husbands and wives count as 2 donors), counts towards the $5,000 bonus.

Or, if you have already donated, or do not want to donate at this time, you can still help us win additional cash prizes by doing this:

Log onto www.givingpartnerchallenge.org and click through to www.thegivingpartner.org.  Then click on to The Sarasota Ballet’s Profile Page.   Just clicking onto our Profile will win us extra points and could lead to a cash bonus!

Thank you from all of us for your help with this Challenge!

Foreign-Born Population in Sarasota and Manatee Grew 57% in Last 10 Years

The “Sarasota Herald-Tribune” recently reported that during the last 10 years, the foreign-born population of Sarasota and Manatee counties increased by 57%.

One source mentioned on the article states,

“I’m pretty sure that when Florida comes out of this recession, it’s going to be a very different place,” according to Brad Edmondson, a demographic consultant who has studied Sarasota County. “Basically, the migration streams are changing, and have been changing for a while,” he adds.

The article points out that the influx of immigrants is not due to any single predominant source.

It states that demographers say this represents an economic development opportunity, because unlike other U.S. communities relying on a dominant industry, Southwest Florida has no single feeder country funneling immigrants to jobs. These new residents are largely coming by choice, and creating change with each arrival.

In Sarasota County, the migration from Mexico since 2000 has been 3,708 people, with South America and Europe virtually tied for second at 2,290 and 2,286, respectively.

Some nationalities have seen relatively dramatic increases.  According to the article, the number of Bangladeshis has increased from 7 to 90.

Sarasota County has also seen significant growth in the number of its French-speaking residents.

Based on Census data, the Haiti-born population tripled in the city over the decade and the France-born population more than doubled. There are now 487 Haitians and 221 French living in the city.

Here is a graphic provided by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune that illustrates the new migration patterns.

We Will be on the Radio

Chris Jaensch will be answering questions about U.S. immigration law on Friday, March 30, 2012, from 4 to 5 p.m. on Sarasota Talk Radio, WSRQ 106.9 FM or 1220 AM.

The program is hosted by Sarasota attorney, William E. Robertson, a Shareholder at Kirk Pinkerton, which is one of Sarasota’s oldest law firms.

Please tune in!

Number of German-speaking visitors in Florida increased in 2011

We learned the following from Cristina Kieser, the director of sales and marketing at the “Florida Sun News,” Florida’s leading German-language magazine:

Florida continues to be one of the most popular destinations for German speaking travelers & investors!

In 2011, 341,000 visitors from Germany came to Florida. That’s an increase of 12% from 2010. With a total of 138,000, the number of visitors from Switzerland jumped by 24%. In the same year, 42,000 Austrians have come to Florida, a 3% increase from the year before.

Feel free to contact Cristina if you would like to advertise with her.

Cristina Kieser

Director of Sales & Marketing

West Florida

Florida Sun Magazine, Inc.

1521 Alton Road # 136

Miami Beach,FL33139

Tel.   305.538.4410

Fax   305.538.1138

Web  www.FloridaSunMagazine.com

Become a fan of Florida Sun Magazine on Facebook!

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Sports-Related Investment Opportunity to Help you Receive your EB-5

Qualifying for an EB-5 investor visa is an increasingly popular way to get a Green Card to the United States.  Prospective Green Card holders generally must invest $500,000 (plus fees) in a qualified project in the United States that will result in the creation of 10 jobs.

We are happy to report that there is now a qualified EB-5 investment opportunity in Lakewood Ranch, FL.  EB-5 GoodSports LWR, LLC and GoodSports LWR Sports Campus, LLC are entering into a joint venture to acquire 30 acres of land in Lakewood Ranch in order to build a hotel, sports facility, and waterpark.

Rendition of the GoodSports Fieldhouse

GoodSports LWR Sports Campus, LLC and their related companies are qualified under the EB-5 program, to offer Green Card eligibility to over a hundred qualified immigrant investors, each investing $500,000 plus expenses, with the goal of obtaining Green Card Status for themselves, their spouse and any children up to 21 years of age.

The EB-5 program offers a relatively quick route for immigrants to receive Permanent Residency status in the United States.  Immigrants matched with a qualified project can receive their Green Cards before they immigrate to the U.S.  The investments are required to be equity investments and investors must assume all the same risks as the other owners of the project business, but are not required to manage the day-to-day affairs of their business investment project.

The GoodSports EB-5 project is initially seeking 40 investors for its first phase.  The fund will provide money to an entity that owns and operates a multi-sport complex and adjoining lodging facility.  The project may have appeal to prospective foreign investors already in the Sarasota/Bradenton area, because the community attracts a large number of sports-related visitors each year.   Prospective investors may like the sport-themed nature of the project and the fact that is local.

For more information about the project check out http://www.goodsportsfieldhouse.com/.  For more information on EB-5 visas and other investment opportunities check out www.visaamerica.com.

Readers are advised that this article has been provided for informational purposes only and should not be viewed as investment or immigration advice.  An EB-5 investment is a financial transaction that involves risk and anyone considering such an investment should involve a team of financial and legal advisors.