The American Dream (of homeownership) & Illegal Immigration

Yes, there most definitely is a connection between the two!

The United States is one of the only 233 countries in the world that I know of that allows a non-citizen to own real estate!  For example, while a Mexican or Indonesian national or citizen (with legal presence here in the U.S.) can buy and own real property in the United States; an American or U.S. Citizen cannot own or buy real property in fee simple or own it as a freehold estate (absolute ownership) in Mexico nor Indonesia. I venture to say that an American citizen cannot own real property anywhere else in the world for that matter either. 

The point is; is that if nearly every country in the world has very strict immigration AND real property ownership laws or requirements, then why in the world (pun intended) does the Unites States allow nearly any foreigner to purchase and own real property here or chase the proverbial "pursuit of the American Dream" ?!  Doesn't this in fact spur or encourage more mass legal AND illegal immigration ?  Sure it does.  There is a direct and proximate corollary between MASS immigration to the United States and home ownership or that pursuit of the American dream - which is in essence or equates to, OWNING a piece of America or U.S. soil.

My mother is from Mexico and resides in the United States as a legal permanent resident.  She owns a house outright (with no mortgage) and in essence owns a piece of the United States; albeit a relatively small parcel but a piece of U.S. soil nonetheless.  Could I as an American Citizen (born here in the U.S.) own a property in Mexico or own a piece of Mexican soil ?  Hell no !! Not in the true sense of "ownership" in fee simple absolute as we know it here; without having to use some sort of trustee, intermediary, or nominee - which of course would further convolute the purchase, acquisition or true "ownership" of the property.

I might be able to acquire some sort of right of use or leasehold estate for a certain number of years in another country, but not true and absolute ownership or the "full bundle of sticks" of complete ownership of the property where I could pass it on to my heirs, etc. and not be encumbered by or with a trustee or nominee to further complicate things . And in other countries, the government can just claim "eminent domain" over a foreign owner's property with little to no recourse by the foreign homeowner; unlike here in the States.

It's such an ironic and warped twist that Mexico claims the United States has "xenophobia" (the fear of foreigners) but in reality Mexico's xenophobia is far worse. 

In the United States, only two posts — the presidency and vice presidency — are reserved for the native born.  In Mexico, non-natives are banned from those and thousands of other jobs, even if they are legal, naturalized citizens.  Foreign-born Mexicans can't hold seats in either house of the congress. They're also banned from state legislatures, the Supreme Court and all governorships. Many states ban foreign-born Mexicans from spots on town councils. And Mexico's Constitution reserves almost all federal posts, and any position in the military and merchant marine, for "native-born Mexicans."  Recently the Mexican government has gone even further. Since at least 2003, it has encouraged cities to ban non-natives from such local jobs as firefighters, police and judges.

America needs to WAKE UP and realize that cries of racism and xenophobia are nothing but lies that even the name-callers don't believe.  It's too late now and the horse (actually the entire herd) is already out of the barn or stable, but imagine what this country could have been like if we took a much stronger stand on MASS legal AND illegal immigration and property ownership rights here in the United States.  Am I a racist or a "minuteman" type with xenophobias of my own?  Absolutely not!  I come from a bi-cultural family and my wife is from Indonesia.  There is not a more culturally aware and appreciative person than myself; however, America is no longer a frontier nation and MASS immigration (both legal AND illegal) must stop!! 

As twisted as this may sound, one way of achieving that objective would be to pass laws or enact an Amendment to the United States Constitution which banned or prohibited home ownership from anyone who was not a citizen of the United States. I would even take it a step further and say that the "citizen" must be a natural born citizen of the United States. This would prevent someone (yes even like my mother) who resides here in the U.S. as a permanent resident or with other eligible immigration status from owning a property.  If they want to do that, then they need to become a NATURALIZED citizens of the United States, giving up their original nationality, or wait for the next generation of children who are born here in the U.S. and are natural citizens to own property.  Stop allowing people to have "the best of both worlds" - one foot in, and one foot out.  Would other countries allow American citizens to do this ??  Permanent resident status yes, but own real estate or truly and absolutely own a piece or parcel of another country too? Probably NOT!