BajaNomad - Real Estate~How do I know?

Real Estate~How do I know?

castaway$ - 10-21-2012 at 10:26 PM

I have a "friend" that wants me to do some work for him and in return he wants to give me a 3000sq. mtr. lot in Los Playitas just north of Todos Santos. So the question is what do I need from him to insure I can go down and get a fidecomiso? He claims the lot is surveyed and titled.

Katiejay99 - 10-22-2012 at 05:43 AM

I would recommend contacting Felipe Rodriguez Lara in Todos Santos. He is a lawyer who does a lot of Real Estate legal work. He can help you with this. His email is:
rodriguezlara@hotmail.com
Good luck with it, that is a beautiful area.

Mula - 10-22-2012 at 06:17 AM

Watch out for working in Mexico without papers.

The Mexican workers are hungry.

castaway$ - 10-22-2012 at 07:58 AM

The work he wants me to do for him will take place up here in Oregon, I just want to know that he truly owns the land and it can be transferred to me and I can get a fidecomiso.
Katiejay99 thank you for the suggestion.

rhintransit - 10-22-2012 at 08:09 AM

if he owns the land, he should already have a fidecomiso, right? (assuming he's not a Mexican citizen) ask to see that. if not, does he own the land? if he hasn't registered the fide.. then why? he should have some record of buying it. your best bet would be to have someone go to town hall/records/whatever it is down there in Todos Santos and find out who owns the land. I am pretty sure one can do that here in Loreto. I think the lawyer is your best bet.

Skeet/Loreto - 10-22-2012 at 08:12 AM

Castways:
You might want to look into filing for a Corporation to "Own" the Property/ You own the mexican Corp. and the Corp owns the Property

I have used Miguel Izquierdo out of La Paz for many years

Skeet/Loreto.

Mula - 10-22-2012 at 08:24 AM

Remember the cost of a getting a fidecomiso is right up there $$wise.

Osprey - 10-22-2012 at 10:12 AM

Just ask him if he has a deed, an escritura. That's it. No deed, no bank trust, it was never his to barter.

Your deal is fraught with problems. You think he can satisfy you before you do the work? Takes some doing to provide you with a solid paper promise.

Bananas, filets of snapper are for barter. Land, not so much.

mcfez - 10-22-2012 at 10:25 AM

He could be the owner of a leased lot also :-)
Many Americanos will say that they "own" ....when in reality it is not theirs.

Also......is this 40 x 80 lot (I assume) facing a fantastic sunset over the blue waters........or is it facing some tenant's rear garage

Is the lot located on higher ground....or perhaps in that ravine when the water flash floods once or twice each decade

Too many questions. Lawyers will make it impractical to buy. Check the land values in that area BTW....many lots and homes have taken a REAL beating on their values.

Take cash from this guy and then head to Baja .....where you can choose your own safer terms of getting a lot.

[Edited on 10-22-2012 by mcfez]

BFS - 10-22-2012 at 10:40 AM

Hi,
Las Playitas is indeed a beautiful area, but of course it depends on where in Las Playitas. And you should see how green it is right now!
Felipe Lara is a very trustworthy lawyer and he is a very good recommendation.
You can avoid lawyer fees by doing the following:
If your friend will give you a copy of the title (either fideicomiso or escritura) and copies of the ID's of those who appear on title you can solicit a Title Search on the Property (you should do this anyway before applying for a new Fideicomiso). The title search costs approx $450 usd and you can get one here:
Sara Gorosave Velazco
Title Insurance Consulting
Ave. El Pescador esq. Camino Viejo
Apto. 2, Edificio B. Cabañas
Cabo San Lucas, B.C.S, Mexico
23410
Tel and Fax: 011-52-624-14-44942
Cell Phone: 011-52-624-35-53292

The title search will reveal all previous owners, any encumbrances, derechos al tanto, and previous taxes due and any other possible issues. If the report is favorable it will allow you to purchase title insurance as well.

Good luck and hope to meet you as new neighbor soon!

castaway$ - 10-22-2012 at 10:45 AM

He is a duel citizen (according to him), I have been on the lot already and the survey markers are there for that particular lot and many others. The lot is up about a mile from the beach and has unobstructed views in every direction, granted somebody could build in front but the ground slopes away from this lot. There isn't any power but they do have water, however the system isn't developed to any great extent.
The work I am being asked to do is to set up a website so he can market his land, I am a realtor in Oregon and I have a great website and he wants something similar, I have asked him to provide some content about land ownership, water, living costs etc.... so putting together a website will be minimal time and cost from my point of view.
We have been going to Baja for 10+ years so we are pretty familiar with most facets of Baja and we have been discussing buying something but this fell in our laps and we are interested in the proposition even though it's not really the piece we want, it is nice though and should have some value which I beleive is much greater than the value for the time it will take me to develop a website.

805gregg - 10-22-2012 at 06:23 PM

Just get cash, then you can buy your own depreciating Baja real estate.

luv2fish - 10-22-2012 at 06:36 PM

You need to go to the Palacio for that municipality and and they will tell you on the spot if the land has any liens [ EMBARGOS ] or if is free and clear etc. NO NEED to throw away money on { Realtor s } which by the way dont exist in Mexico. Just take your time and ask alot of questions, talk softly and carry a big stick. Also a Notaria Publica can be of more help and are probably more honest. good luck

thebajarunner - 10-22-2012 at 08:58 PM

And if the word "ejido " comes up
Drop everything and flee the scene

Katiejay99 - 10-23-2012 at 07:11 AM

If you have the Clave Catastral, you can u2u me and I will run over to the tax office downtown and let you know what they say. They can give me the name of the owner and the status of the property taxes (paid or not and how much they are annually). I don't mind doing this for you.

I actually have to say that the Ejido of Todos Santos is not a bad Ejido and I have had very positive relations with them.

[Edited on 10-24-2012 by Katiejay99]

tiotomasbcs - 10-23-2012 at 09:44 AM

Good advice, Amigo. I believe BFS and KatieJay have real estate experience here in TS. I own land in Playitas. No Power, no water yet but beautiful. Good, solid titles but every transaction has particulars. Good luck! Tio

rts551 - 10-23-2012 at 01:47 PM

" so putting together a website will be minimal time and cost from my point of view."

sounds like your risk is minimal. Just the kinda thing you should go for!

micah202 - 10-24-2012 at 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by castaway$
He is a duel citizen (according to him), I have been on the lot already and the survey markers are there for that particular lot and many others. The lot is up about a mile from the beach and has unobstructed views in every direction, granted somebody could build in front but the ground slopes away from this lot. There isn't any power but they do have water, however the system isn't developed to any great extent.
The work I am being asked to do is to set up a website so he can market his land, I am a realtor in Oregon and I have a great website and he wants something similar, I have asked him to provide some content about land ownership, water, living costs etc.... so putting together a website will be minimal time and cost from my point of view.
We have been going to Baja for 10+ years so we are pretty familiar with most facets of Baja and we have been discussing buying something but this fell in our laps and we are interested in the proposition even though it's not really the piece we want, it is nice though and should have some value which I believe is much greater than the value for the time it will take me to develop a website.

...hmm,,if setting up a website is little effort to you,,but a big thing to him,,,,,,maybe it's allright to go ahead with little further verification.......if the land's the crap yer can always pull the plug on the website!