Buying Guide
Buying land on the Oaxaca coast — the honest guide.
Most of what scares foreigners about buying land in Mexico is a lack of plain information. This is the plain version. We're not lawyers — a notario and licensed brokers handle every sale — but this is what you actually need to know before you start.
First, the title
Escritura, acta de posesión, ejido — what's what.
Escritura pública — the full deed, registered with the Public Registry of Property (Registro Público de la Propiedad). This is the gold standard: clean, registered, bankable. If you buy anything else, you should know exactly why and what it will take to get here.
Acta de posesión — a document saying someone is in possession of the land. It has value, but it is not a registered deed. Some coastal lots trade on these for years; converting one to escritura takes paperwork, time, and sometimes money. We'll tell you plainly which is which on every lot we list.
Ejido / comunal land — community-owned land, governed by the assembly of ejidatarios. Foreigners cannot hold direct title to ejido land. It can be legally transferred into private ownership through a process called dominio pleno, but only the community assembly can approve it. Beautiful cheap lots exist here — and so do beautiful expensive mistakes.
Beachfront rules
The fideicomiso, explained.
Mexico's constitution reserves land within 50km of the coast and 100km of the borders: foreigners can't hold it directly. Instead, a Mexican bank holds the title in a fideicomiso (bank trust) for you — you are the beneficiary, you control the property, and the trust is renewable in 50-year increments. It sounds bureaucratic; in practice it's routine, costs a few hundred dollars a year, and is how every foreigner owns beachfront in Mexico.
The process
How a purchase actually goes.
1. Offer. You make an offer on the lot. If accepted, both sides sign a promesa de compraventa — a purchase promise with a deposit, terms, and a completion date.
2. Due diligence. Your broker and notario verify the title, check for liens, encumbrances, or disputes, and confirm the seller actually owns what they say. Never skip this. Never.
3. The notario. In Mexico, notaries are licensed lawyers who prepare the escritura and are legally responsible for the transaction's validity. They're the backbone of the system — a good one is worth every peso.
4. Closing. You sign before the notario, pay the balance through the notario's account, and the escritura is registered. You walk out with the keys — and, in the case of beachfront, the bank trust paperwork.
The costs
What it really costs.
Budget roughly 5–8% on top of the price for the whole closing: notary fees (usually 1–2%), the state acquisition tax (ISAI, roughly 2–5% depending on the state and municipality), registry fees, and the broker's commission (often paid by the seller — agree this in writing). A fideicomiso adds a bank setup fee and an annual maintenance charge. Cheap lots are cheap; surprise costs are not.
Red flags
Walk away from these.
No title documents at all. A seller who won't meet at a notario. "Pay me directly and I'll sort the paperwork." A price that's suspiciously below the area — there is usually a reason, and it's usually in the title. And anything on ejido land sold to you as if it were a clean deed. If a deal needs you to be trusting, it isn't a deal.
Our role
Where we fit.
We curate lots, verify what we can, and introduce you to licensed brokers and notarios we'd use ourselves. We don't hold your money, we don't do closings, and we don't take commission from both sides. The Slow Coast is paid to find you the right land and tell you the truth about it — that's the whole business model.