Can Rich Immigrants Solve L.A.’s Housing Crisis?
If the City Wants Affordable Homes, It Needs to Tap Into Funds From Wealthy Foreign Investors
How could Los Angeles pay for more affordable housing?
One answer is money from wealthy immigrants.
To build apartments that are accessible to low-income residents, high-rent cities across the country—from San Francisco to Miami—have been tapping funds from EB-5, a federal government program that offers U.S. green cards to foreigners in exchange for investments in U.S. businesses. Launched in 1990 as a vehicle to create jobs, the program requires each investor to give at least $500,000 to a business that provides 10 full-time jobs to Americans. The investment is “at-risk,” so there’s …
