Immigrants [illegal aliens] latch on to tax ID numbers - Undocumented workers [illegal aliens] able to obtain home loans
Atlanta Journal - While Georgia's undocumented Hispanic workers [illegal aliens] can't get a Social Security card or a driver's license, many are finding a way to finance a home using a federal tax identification number.
The groundwork for the trend was laid in 1996, when the U.S. Treasury created Individual Tax Identification Numbers to collect taxes from workers in the United States who don't qualify for Social Security numbers.
Now, local realtors, bankers and mortgage brokers say hundreds of homes have been financed in metro Atlanta for people with federal tax ID numbers. And they expect that number to continue to rise even though interest rates on such loans are often 3 to 4 percentage points higher than average home loans.
"The last two years have seen a big increase in this type of loan," said Johnny Gonzalez, a real estate agent with Private Realty Group, with offices in Buford and Gainesville. "About 25 percent of my clients are using it, and it's growing more and more. People are asking why they should rent when they can own a house."
The next few years will see more and more immigrants [illegal aliens]doing exactly that, said Ismael Cordero, chief operating officer of the Latin American Association. It takes about a decade for immigrants [illegal aliens] to buy a house in their host country....
For immigrants [illegal aliens], the first step is obtaining the tax ID number. Through the end of last year, the IRS had issued about 7 million numbers, all of which begin with 9. Undocumented residents[illegal aliens]have used the numbers to pay taxes and, in some states, as a means of identification to open a bank account, apply for health insurance or obtain a driver's license....
Since February, Banco de Nuestra Comunidad --- which has nine branches in the metro area --- has made 125 tax ID mortgage loans, valued at $16 million....
United Americas Bank president Jorge Forment is seeing the same rate of success. His bank has made 350 tax ID loans totaling $46 million to Hispanic customers since 1999....
Banco de Nuestra Comunidad asks those applying for the tax ID mortgages to document two years of work history and payment history, plus one year of rent history....
The growing trend of undocumented residents [illegal aliens] buying houses alarms Marietta resident D.A. King, whose American Resistance Foundation favors stricter immigration policies. He sees the practice as a troubling, unintended use for Individual Tax Identification Numbers.
King has filed complaints with various federal agencies, including the Comptroller of the Currency and the IRS, and with elected officials in Washington. He is protesting the fact that Atlanta banks are giving mortgages to undocumented residents.
"It's my contention that people are profiteering from the presence of illegal aliens in this country, and I regard illegal immigration as organized crime," King says....
Read the complete article.