Baja Property Insider · Buying · Stage Worksheet

You found a property

Last reviewed September 2026 · bajapropertyinsider.com

One property has your attention. Before you make an offer, the goal is to learn what the property actually is on paper — who owns it, how it is held, and whether anything is attached to it.

What usually happens next

1. 01 — Ask the seller or agent for the current deed (escritura) and recent property tax (predial) receipts.

   The escritura is the recorded deed — it names the legal owner, the parcel and how it is held. Predial receipts show the municipal property tax is current. Both are routine requests; a seller who cannot produce them quickly is telling you something. These documents are what every later check is built on.

2. 02 — Confirm how the property is held today: direct title, an existing trust, or a company.

   The answer decides your closing path. Direct title to a Mexican national means a new trust must be created for you. An existing bank trust can sometimes be transferred, which is faster and cheaper. A company-held property raises separate questions about what you are actually buying. The deed says which one applies.

3. 03 — Check the land-use designation and whether the built area matches what is recorded.

   The municipality issues a land-use certificate (uso de suelo) stating what the parcel may be used for. Separately, the registered construction should match what physically exists — additions built without permits are common and become the buyer's problem at closing or resale. Ask the seller, then verify against the record.

4. 04 — Ask what is included — furniture, appliances, water rights, parking, storage.

   Nothing is included unless it is written down. Furniture and appliances are listed in an inventory attached to the contract; parking and storage in condo regimes should be identified in the deed. Verbal assurances about what 'comes with' the property have no standing once the offer is signed.

What to watch for

• A property still in a family estate, where the person selling is not yet the recorded owner.
• Unpermitted additions. What you see may not be what is registered.
• Condo fees, special assessments, or an HOA in financial trouble.

Papers and people

• Who is involved: Seller or listing agent · Notario · Public Registry
• Documents that show up: Escritura (current deed) · Recent predial receipts · Certificado de Libertad de Gravamen (lien check) · Condo rules and fee statement, if applicable

Notes

Gerardo Sánchez Aramburu

Independent Attorney Partner

Some steps on this sheet are judgment calls, not paperwork. When one of them turns out to matter for your transaction, an independent Mexican attorney is the right next reader — someone answerable to you, not to the deal. Gerardo works directly with foreign buyers and owners in Baja California Sur, in private 30-minute consultations.

Book directly: bajapropertyinsider.com/legal-guidance

Sources and last reviewed

Last reviewed September 2026. Laws, rates, and municipal requirements change. Treat this page as a starting point and confirm anything you intend to rely on with your notario or an independent Mexican attorney.

• Article 27, Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos — Foreign nationals cannot hold direct title inside the restricted zone; the bank trust exists because of this article.
• Ley de Inversión Extranjera (1993), Title II, Chapter III — Establishes the fideicomiso route and the 50-year renewable trust term for foreign beneficiaries.
• Ley del Notariado para el Estado de Baja California Sur — Defines what a notario must verify, certify, calculate, and file for a property transfer.
• Fideicomiso reference, ML Realtor — Restricted-zone boundaries, trust term, and beneficiary rights. (https://mlrealtor.com.mx/guides/fideicomiso/)

A finished checklist is a well-prepared file, not a verified transaction. Baja Property Insider — bajapropertyinsider.com