Beijing developer targets Chinese immigrants with US homes that come with ‘green cards’

Beijing property developer Modern Land is taking a unique approach to going global by selling projects in the US which open the way for Chinese buyers to migrate across the Pacific.

The mid-sized developer, which specialises in green technology residential projects, has a presence in more than 10 cities across mainland China including Beijing, Shanghai and Changsha city in Hunan province, with a total land bank of 4.6 million square metres.

The company has now set its sights on venturing into the US real estate market, in particular projects that could provide an alternative way for Chinese citizens to acquire US permanent residence status.

“Many of our clients in first-tier cities [in China] are upgraders [so] they have very strong immigration demand, while our strategy is to go overseas, so it was quite a natural fit,” said Zhang Peng, Modern Land’s president and executive director.

Specifically, what the developer is offering is the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme. This visa allows foreign investors to obtain green cards and permanent US residency by investing US$500,000 into a US government designated regional centre.

Modern Land has set up a company in the US and has been building houses in the country’s designated regional centres to serve Chinese immigrants who want to obtain the EB-5 visa.

The developer’s first immigrant oriented retirement apartment project in Houston, Texas, called MOMC, launched last year and has attracted more than 200 investors.