In the Philippines foriegners can't own property...

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Bosh
I don't know about owning property, but its a very big pain in the ass for a foreigner to get a business liscense in Korea, same for a lot of Korean companies to give foreigners work visas, they have to prove that no Korean can fill the job or somesuch (except with us English teachers, we're a separate visa category).

Korea is a very odd case. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that foreigners ccan't own property there (or at least have to jump through an inordinate number of hoops).

[Drake Tungsten]

Any in particular?

An aquaintance of mine wanted to open an Italian restaurant here, but couldn't get a business license as a foreigner. He would've had to register the business under his Japanese wife's name, but decided not to in the end.

As for the use of the word "some" in my previous post, I was just trying to leave myself some wriggle room. I don't enough about the issue to state definitively that foreigners can't own any businesses in Japan; I just know it is very difficult based on anecdotal evidence.

[KrazyHorse]

Is he a permanent resident?

[DanS]

You want I should be serious about this?

OK. Well there's a good thesis that 4/5 of the world is being held back by hinderances to ownership of resources by its own people, let alone foreigners. This could be anything from onerous red tape to outright theft sanctioned by the government. It seems to me that this stuff is the much bigger question than that of foreign ownership.

[Drake Tungsten]

Is he a permanent resident?

I'm not sure. I think he was in the process of becoming one and would have to have become one in order to stay in the country.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by DanS
You want I should be serious about this?

OK. Well there's a good thesis that 4/5 of the world is being held back by hinderances to ownership of resources by its own people, let alone foreigners.

I don't know about the rest of the world. Only talking about the places of which I have some (though not necessarily a good) idea...

[KrazyHorse]

Anyhow, my original issue was with the overly dramatic statement by whoha...

I know you were kidding dude, just using you to restate my objection...

I found it especially strange, given that 90+% of the people who post here are in aread which do allow ownership of property by foreigners. It's not like this is a trait peculiar to the US which the non-Americans here find overly permissive or something...

[:) Smiley]

Originally posted by Lancer
So in China the government owns everything? Sounds very communist! I thought they were becoming capitalist...

"In the other nations, can foreign corporations own land?"

A good question. Otherwise why would anyone build a factory they can't own?

Well in China at least instead of buying land, people buy 99-year leases from the government, perhaps with the expectation that the government will allow land ownership sometime before the 99 years are up.

[Whoha]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
You don't think that the existence of Western Europe is notable?

There is something on the order of 2.5 trillion in foreign owned property in the US.

[Dinner]

Originally posted by MichaeltheGreat
I think it's a good idea for the Phillipines - the downside is that there's a limit to what some owners can make, but the upside is you limit the opportunities for cash rich foreign speculators to come in, buy all the desirable property and distort the market for everyone else, if not create a bubble that screws the market (and the locals) for years.

But that won't help me buy my discount vacation home in Cabo!

[Lancer]

, Yes, 99 year leases are a good long time. I wonder if its the same as Hong Kongs old lease for a reason?

[Dinner]

I think thereis a law which limits the periods of the lease to less then a century. Thus 99 years it is.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Whoha


There is something on the order of 2.5 trillion in foreign owned property in the US.

It's not the rest of the world's fault that the US can't learn to live within its means.

[Sikander]

Originally posted by Lancer

This is interesting. A friend of Dolores's already has duel citizenship....

Duel citizenship, that's an interesting idea. For desperate would be immigrants, pair 'em off and have them fight to the death in the Octagon on national TV. Winner gets a green card, loser is buried at sea.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Lancer
why would anyone build a factory they can't own?

To make money, why else?