A house in Tulum —
a Quebec initiative

At “A House In Tulum”, we commit ourselves to get our clients their dream property. We accomplish this by walking them through the 8 steps of the process defined on our website to ensure a smooth transaction. At the end of the day, we commit on a price, a plan and features for your house and a delay of realization. And this is all written in plain English in a contract that you will sign as well as us! We of course welcome questions of all kinds and commit ourselves to keep our customers informed every step of the way.

The short answer is YES! Of course, there are legal steps to follow when buying property in Mexico as a foreigner, but this is part of our role and responsibility to guide you through this, every step on the way. You’ll soon discover that the process is simple and easy to understand. In short, foreigners can own property through a bank trust referred to as a Fideicomiso that is set up when you buy real estate in Mexico.

Any foreigner (or Mexican National) can use a Mexican Bank Trust – also known as a Fideicomiso – to own real estate in Mexico. A Fideicomiso is basically the equivalent of a beneficiary trust that’s created through a Mexican bank for the sole purpose of allowing foreigners to purchase real estate in Mexico, including property for sale in the Restricted Zones that lie within 100 kilometers of all borders and within 50 kilometers of all coastlines. Here’s more about how a Mexican Bank Trust, or Fideicomiso, functions:

• To buy property in Mexico as a foreigner, the buyer asks a Mexican bank of his/her choosing to act as trustee on his/her behalf.
• The bank obtains a permit from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to acquire the chosen property in a Trust.
• The standard Trust term is 50 years, but it can easily be automatically renewed for another 50-year period, and ownership can also be transferred at any time.
• During the Trust term, you have the right to transfer the title of your property to any other party, including a member of your family!
• The Mexican Bank Trust acts as the legal owner of the property, which is held for the exclusive use of the buyer/beneficiary, who enjoys all the benefits a typical direct owner has, including the possibility to lease or transfer his/her property rights to a third party, or to a pre-appointed heir.
• The Mexican Bank Trust ensures precise fulfillment of the trust terms according to Mexican law, and assumes full technical, legal and administrative supervision duties in order to protect the interests of the buyer.
• Fideicomisos are not held by the Mexican Bank Trust (trustee) as an asset of the bank.
• Today, many Mexican Nationals are also choosing to purchase real estate in Mexico using a Bank trust, simply because it clearly states who they wish to become their beneficiaries in the event of death. In this way, the Mexican Bank Trust also serves as a last will and testament for the purchased property!

Foreigners often worry about their land being expropriated by the Mexican government, so it’s also important to stress that under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that binds Mexico, the US and Canada, the Mexican government may NOT (directly or indirectly) expropriate property, except for special circumstances that involve a clear public purpose. Although exceedingly rare, this is basically the same as “Expropriation” in Canada. If it ever does become necessary to expropriate a land in Mexico, the law demands that swift and fair market compensation must be paid, together with accrued interest.

In Mexico, the financing options are very simple: you have to bring the money. Some limited loans exist but are tough to get and very expensive (you are looking at a minimum 10% rate) so we recommend you finance your dream with an Equity and Personal credit lines coming from the country you have interests in. Of course, we will be more than happy to share with you the tips and tricks of our others European, Canadian and American happy customers.

In 2 to 3 months, we are able to make you sign for the lot, do the paperwork with you (Fideocomiso, Build Permit…). Another 8 months to build the house. Add one month to be sure and you are in! So, in less than 11 months from the lot to the house delivered. You already have the lot? In 8 months, you are in!