The National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT) applauded the introduction in the U.S. House of Representatives of the Real Estate Investment and Jobs Act of 2015, which would reform elements of the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act (FIRPTA).
“We greatly appreciate the leadership shown by Representatives Brady and Crowley, as well as the bill’s co-sponsors, in introducing and supporting this vitally important legislation,” said NAREIT President and CEO Steven A. Wechsler.
“The provisions of this bill will help level the playing field in the global competition for capital, enabling the United States to attract more cross-border investment that will create jobs in the real estate and construction industries, upgrade U.S. commercial real estate and infrastructure, and expand state and local tax bases through increased economic activity.”
FIRPTA was enacted in 1980 to discourage cross-border equity investment in U.S. real estate by taxing non-U.S. investors’ gains on the sale of real property, including real estate and infrastructure assets.
The Real Estate Investment and Jobs Act of 2015 would exempt non-U.S. pension funds from the FIRPTA tax penalty. It also would increase the FIRPTA exemption for portfolio investors in a publicly traded U.S. REIT from five to 10 percent ownership of the company’s stock.
