One transaction,start to finish.
Every stage guide on this site, read in the order things actually happen. Start at the top if you are new, or jump to the point you are standing on.
Where to start?
If you are not sure which act you are in, open the stage menu and pick the sentence that sounds like your week. It opens the guide written for that exact point.
Buying
Most people arrive here the same way: a trip, a neighbourhood they liked, and a question about whether a foreigner can actually own it. The buying path answers that first, then moves in order — look, verify, agree, close.
Buying overview →- 01ExploringYou are looking, not committing. Nothing is signed and no money has moved. This is the cheapest moment to learn how ownership actually works here, because every later decision is shaped by it.Read →
- 02Found a PropertyOne 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.Read →
- 03Comparing PropertiesYou have two or three candidates. The differences that matter most are usually not the finishes — they are how each one is held, what is registered, and what each will cost you every year after closing.Read →
- 04NegotiatingPrice is being discussed, but nothing binding is signed yet. This is the last stage where terms are still cheap to change, so it is worth being deliberate about more than the number.Read →
- 05Under ContractA purchase agreement is signed and a deposit is usually in place. There are now deadlines. The work is confirming everything the contract assumes is true, while there is still room to act.Read →
- 06ClosingThe notario prepares the final deed, calculates the taxes owed, and everyone signs. After signing, the deed is filed with the Public Registry — that filing is what makes your ownership enforceable.Read →
- 07Already OwnThe purchase is done. What matters now is keeping the ownership clean: taxes current, trust in good standing, beneficiaries correct, and records where someone could actually find them.Read →
By the end of this act you hold a recorded deed or a trust in your name, and you know exactly what you signed.
Selling
Selling runs the same road in reverse. The paperwork a buyer will ask you for is the paperwork you should gather before you list, because the gaps take longer to fix than the sale takes to arrange.
Selling overview →- 01Thinking About SellingNo decision is made yet. This is the best moment to find out what a sale would actually net you, and whether anything in your paperwork would slow it down.Read →
- 02Preparing to ListYou intend to sell. Everything you fix now is invisible to the market; everything you leave will surface during a buyer's review, when you have less leverage.Read →
- 03Already ListedThe property is on the market. The work now is keeping the paperwork ready and understanding the difference between interest and a real offer.Read →
- 04Reviewing an OfferSomeone has made an offer. Price is only one part of it; the conditions, timing, and who carries which cost can matter just as much to what you actually receive.Read →
- 05Under ContractA sale agreement is signed. You now have obligations with dates attached, and the buyer's review will test whatever you left unresolved.Read →
- 06Inherited / Estate PropertyYou are selling something that came to you through an estate. The property usually cannot be sold until the transfer to you is legally completed and recorded — that step, not the sale, is the long pole.Read →
- 07Problem / ComplicationSomething has stalled or gone wrong — a disputed boundary, a lien, a buyer who stopped performing, a document that will not clear. The first job is to establish the facts before anyone takes a position.Read →
A clean file, an honest price and a clear tax position are what make a Baja sale close on schedule.
Building
Building adds a second transaction on top of the first: the land, then the work. The land questions are legal, the construction questions are contractual, and mixing them up is where most trouble starts.
Building overview →- 01Considering LandYou are looking at lots. A lot is only as good as what you are legally allowed to build on it, and what it costs to make it buildable.Read →
- 02Already Own LandThe lot is yours. Before design work starts, it is worth confirming what the site and the rules will actually allow, so the design is not drawn against the wrong constraints.Read →
- 03PlanningDrawings and budgets are taking shape. Decisions made now determine how much room you have later, when changes get expensive.Read →
- 04Choosing ProfessionalsYou are selecting an architect, a builder, and the licensed professional who takes legal responsibility for code compliance. Who you pick shapes almost everything that follows.Read →
- 05Preparing a ContractA construction contract is where risk is assigned. A good one is specific about scope, money, time and what happens when something goes wrong.Read →
- 06Under ConstructionWork is underway. Your job is documentation and pace: confirm each stage before you pay for it, and keep a written record of every change.Read →
- 07Problem Has SurfacedWork has stalled, costs have jumped, quality is disputed, or a permit issue has appeared. Before acting, get the facts and the contract in front of you.Read →
Finished work should end with permits closed, the build registered, and the value on record — not just keys in hand.
Estate / Succession
Ownership is not the finish line. Taxes, trust renewals, rentals, and what happens to the property after you are the quiet work that protects everything the first three acts bought.
Information Hub overview →- 01Reviewing Current BeneficiariesEvery bank trust names beneficiaries and substitute beneficiaries. Many owners have never re-read that page since closing, and names go out of date — through marriage, divorce, death, or a change of mind.Read →
- 02Coordinating Mexican Property With Home-Country PlanMexican property and a US or Canadian estate plan can contradict each other without anyone noticing until it matters. The point of this stage is to make the two say the same thing.Read →
- 03Incapacity PlanningBeneficiary designations handle death. They do nothing if an owner is alive but unable to act — and a Mexican property often needs someone with authority to pay, sign or sell.Read →
- 04Inherited PropertyA property has come to you through an estate. Until the transfer is formally completed and recorded, you generally cannot sell, mortgage or fully control it — even if you are living in it.Read →
- 05Beneficiary ChangeYou know who you want named and you want the paperwork to say so. The change is usually straightforward, but it is the bank's process, on the bank's terms and timetable.Read →
- 06Estate / Probate IssueSomething in a succession is contested, stuck, or unclear — missing documents, disagreeing heirs, a will that conflicts with the trust. This is legal work; the useful first step is a clear picture of the facts.Read →
Owning well means the next person — a buyer, a child, an executor — inherits a file that makes sense.
Not sure where you land?
Bring the situation as it stands — a listing, a contract, a half-finished build, a trust renewal — and we will tell you what normally happens next.