WASHINGTON – Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) introduced the Building Housing for the American Dream Act to leverage the EB-5 investor visa program to address the nation’s housing shortage.  

READ MORE: Senator Seeks to Tap Foreign Visa Program to Ease Housing Costs (Bloomberg)  

The EB-5 visa program allows immigrants to obtain a green card by investing at least $1.05 million in commercial projects that create at least ten U.S. jobs. Senator Gallego’s bill would amend the EB-5 statute to encourage more of that investment to flow directly into housing  construction. The bill lowers the minimum investment threshold to $800,000 for EB-5 applicants who invest in projects that create, preserve, or rehabilitate housing and provides expedited processing for applications tied specifically to affordable housing. 

“Arizona families are getting crushed by rising housing costs, and we need every tool possible to build more homes and lower prices,” said Senator Gallego. “By steering more EB-5 investment towards housing, we can boost the housing supply, bring down costs, and create good jobs for American workers. Bold solutions like this will help get more Arizona families into homes they can afford.” 

The Building Housing for the American Dream Act is supported by Real Estate Roundtable, National Association of Home Builders, American Immigrant Investor Alliance, EB-5 Rural Alliance, EB-5 Investor Coalition, the National Apartment Association, National Association of Realtors, and Leading Builders of America.

“The Building Housing for the American Dream Act is a meaningful step toward unlocking new housing opportunities at a time when communities across the country urgently need it. By responsibly reducing the EB-5 investment threshold and expediting application processing for developments tied to project-based federal assistance, this legislation gives builders, nonprofits, and local partners the tools they need to bring projects online faster and at lower cost. These targeted reforms will help spur new construction, preserve existing affordable units, create jobs, and expand the pathway to stable, attainable housing,” said Kevin Brown, President of the National Association of Realtors. 

“There are many complex layers to the challenges we see in the U.S. housing market, and finding solutions to those challenges will take a lot of new, innovative ideas. We appreciate the work that Senator Gallego is doing in this legislation to look for new opportunities to support the supply of affordable homes, which is critical to strong American communities,” said Ken Gear, CEO of Leading Builders of America.

“Creative policy solutions must be on the table to increase the housing supplies we need to address the national affordability crisis,” said Jeffrey D. DeBoer, President and CEO of The Real Estate Roundtable. “Senator Gallego’s Building Housing for the American Dream Act hits the mark. It recognizes that housing should be treated as infrastructure. It will attract overseas investment capital through the EB-5 visa program, helping to build more homes in markets across the country where there are serious housing shortages. It will accomplish these goals at no cost to taxpayers, and create jobs for American workers. This is a smart bill that should be included in long-term EB-5 reauthorization. We thank Senator Gallego for his leadership.”

“The American Immigrant Investor Alliance (AIIA) applauds this legislation. It is a genuine innovation to create desperately needed affordable housing, is a great use of the EB-5 investment program, and doesn’t harm existing job creating projects or immigrant investors. The bill leverages EB-5 foreign investment to fill the persistent capital gaps in affordable housing development that already use Section 202, LIHTC, CDBG, and HOME funding. We thank Sen. Gallego for his work on creative solutions to solve the nation’s housing affordability problem,” said Ishaan Khanna, President of the American Immigrant Investor Alliance.

Read the full bill HERE.

12/4/25