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Posted on Wed, 01/18/2012 - 01:49 PM by
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Back in the mid-1970’s, Patels from Africa and Asia began to emigrate to the United States where any immigrant willing to invest $40,000 in a business could apply for permanent residence, the first step to citizenship. There were limited opportunities for such investments. At the time, distressed roadside motels could be acquired outright for $40,000 because of the oil embargo and the resultant nationwide shortage of gasoline. Since 1990, the EB-5 Visa for Immigrant Investors has been available for foreign nationals to obtain a green card when they invest $1 million (or at least $500,000 in targeted employment areas) which create or preserve at least 10 jobs for U.S. workers. As the JMBM Global Hospitality Group wrote in their Hotel Law blog (10/31/11): “Chinese investment in hotels, restaurants and other commercial real estate is becoming an important potential capital source for development, acquisition and renovation.”< EB-5 investors can come from anywhere in the world outside the United States and can include legal immigrants in the U.S. under a temporary visa. However, more than 70% of all EB-5 investors come from mainland China. This program can be enormously beneficial to investors since there is no limit on the size of the EB-5 investment as long as deal-aggregation and documentation are submitted and as long as at least 10 jobs are created for every EB-5 individual investor. If you are interested in this financing possibility, I suggest that you contact the Chinese Investment Group in JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group (Jim Butler at jbutler@jmbm.com or 1-301-201-3526). MORE NEWS FROM BLUEMAUMAUTaxes and the DeficitNormally, this column is supposed to cover the tax changes over the prior year and how they impact the hospitality industry. Last year, we commented about how 2010 was an interesting year but little in the tax field had passed. 2010 was all about health care reform, the change in control of the House and the rise of the tea party. It was a very political and partisan year. If anything, 2011 was worse. Never has so little been accomplished by so many. Brinkmanship was the key word for 2011. It will be known more for what did not occur rather than what did. It is not unusual for partisan politics to take center stage in an election year. While 2011 was not, the race for the Presidency and control of the House and Senate began before all the winners from 2010 were known. National Press Writes about Restaurant FranchisingOn May 18th, the national press, both The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, wrote about restaurant franchising. Some additional notes are warranted. Mediation: Good, Bad or It Depends?Mediation is often touted as the greatest thing since sliced bread for faster, fairer, and cheaper dispute resolution. Is it? Going International? Don’t Forget One Important ThingFranchisors that are considering exporting their franchise concept to other countries are advised to prepare by following a checklist of key items. However, there is one area that is often overlooked or shortchanged in the process. Going Green Costs Franchisees Much GreenBeing forced to buy imaginary products is just one of the nonsensical results of government policy affecting franchisors and franchisees. RELATED SMALL BUSINESS NEWSMobile Franchises: Do You Like Cars? Hot Franchise Topic: Getting a LoanIt seems like the entire franchise industry is focused on funding, and with good reason; franchise loans are still a bit challenging to secure. Good News, U.S. Hotel Profit RecoveryAccording to the new PKF Trends survey, the U.S. lodging industry produced a 12.7% profit growth in 2011. 80.5% of participating hotels enjoyed an increase in total revenue while 72.3% achieved growth in profits. The recently released 2012 edition of Trends presents data from a sample of nearly 7000 financial statements of United States hotels. For the Trends report, hotel profits are defined as net operating income (NOI) before deductions for capital reserves, rent, interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. Federal Court Invalidates "Quickie" Union Election Rule, For NowOn May 14, 2012, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia set aside a controversial final rule of the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB") that was designed to make it easier and faster for unions to hold organizing elections. Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, et al. v. NLRB, Case No. 11-02262 (D.D.C. May 14, 2012). Business groups are hailing the decision, but the celebration may be short lived. Because the ruling was essentially decided on a procedural point, the NLRB may seek to resurrect the rule, which creates a very short window for union elections, and leaves employers with little time to react to an organized union campaign. Field Representatives Coach Franchisees to Victory
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