buying for retirement

[fuzzflyer]

We bought a house in the USA(new Mexico) for our retirement, we planned to spend 5/6 moths there each year, does anyone have information on if that is ok, and can we sell it without difficulties?

[fuzzflyer]

Are we the first to ever do this!!!!!

[Bevdeforges]

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

You're hardly the first to do the six-month-splits in the US - but it would be helpful to know where you are from. The big issue with this type of retirement home thing is what sort of visa to get to allow you multiple entries as you go back and forth. There isn't really a visa designed for this, but it can make a big difference if one partner has US citizenship or if one or both of the foreigners have made frequent trips to the US in the past.

As far as selling the house without difficulty - that's more a factor of the housing market (not good just now) than of your nationality or visa status. But legally, there should be no problem.
Cheers,
Bev

[twostep]

Of course you can sell real estate you own. Your problem will be the current buyers' market.
Your plan of spending several months per year in the US depend on your specific visa situation.
Can you give us a bit more information - where are you from, why New Mexico, what kind of house are you looking for? Have you researched fixed costs such as taxes, insurance, upkeep, utilities?

[synthia]

I think they already have the house. Now they want to know if they can use it. I live in Florida and we are loaded with people from, Canada, the UK and Germany who come over for the winter. You can get Marmite and decent (not sugary) orange marmelade in the supermarkets where I live. We even have a German bakery. You are far from the first.

So, if you can normally get a six month visa, you can do that once a year forever, as far as I know. There are some countries with visa waiver programs, and some that get long term visas that allow six months per year in the country. I think India is one, mainly because India gave me one like that, good for ten years.

Check it out, of course, but just from the sheer numbers where I live, you probably will be able to work it out.

[Rachel_Heath]

The trick here is being able to obtain a B2 visa since that's probably your best chance of being able to stay here 6-months at a time.

However the Visa's can be harder to obtain due to the more extensive tests that are carried out. The USCIS wants to be comfortable that you have a permanent residence in your home country and that you're not looking to stay here. Proof of this would include showing that you have very strong connections to your home country and that you are financially independent and have no plans nor desires to become a resident of the USA (illegal or otherwise).

Finally there is never any guarantee that a B2 would be issued or for how long you'd be allowed to stay here and if the officer at the port of entry feels the Visa's been abused he's within his rights to limit or even deny your visit.

Given that there is no 'retirement' visa for the USA, using B2's for snowbird retirees is an option albeit a slightly risky one.

[twostep]

Thank you Cynthia - I did not catch the "bought".

[synthia]

If I had a dollar for every time I've missed something in a post, I wouldn't be rich, but I'd be a lot better off financially.