By: Mari Pintkowski

Sink or Swim.
Thanksgiving was traditionally the holiday celebration that we hosted for all our old time friends in Vail, Colorado. There was much shopping, cleaning, decorating and food preparation for the big day.As the turkey was slowly thawing, the jaguars came out to prowl. Our Mexican dream was resurfacing quicker than we had hoped, and the timing was not fantastic. Victor called and said we needed to get down there quickly, as the owner had someone else seriously interested in the property.

We put the festivity preparation on hold, and sat down to review the photos and our notes from past trips concerning the property in Mexico. Since we had just refinanced the house, we had the money, and after all, THIS was our dream. Lou booked a seat on an early morning flight the day after Thanksgiving. The holiday celebration resumed. We felt we now had even more to be thankful for!

Lou flew south, not knowing what would be awaiting his arrival. He rented a car, and headed out just as the sun was beginning to set. As he rounded a curve, a little over the speed limit, he could not mistake the rooftop flashers he spied in his rear-view mirror. The fast talking policeman informed Lou that he should be traveling in the right lane, which is designated for slower traffic. He wiped the sweat from his brow and drove on towards Tulum.

The lights of Tulum brought relief to this weary traveler, and Lou checked into a small hotel at the crossroads leading toward the beach. At first light the next morning, Lou headed to the property in time to see the red sun appear on the horizon. With each step he took along the sandy shore, his feelings of the dream exploding in his head became more vivid. He experienced a new feeling of confidence that we were making the right decision in purchasing this piece of property. It was time to go and find Victor and let the day unfold.

A short, dark, middle-aged man wearing a Nike hat and a disheveled Hawaiian shirt emerged from a tiny casita at the back of the restaurant. His enthusiasm and welcoming nature immediately put Lou at ease. Victor made it clear that he wanted the sale of the property to work both for us and for himself. Their discussion kept refocusing on the fact that the unsigned and unreleased title for Julio’s property should not be such a big issue.

“Lou, most land owners in Mexico wait years to get their title and this is no exception.”

This appeared to be another situation that involved waiting, a key factor in doing business in Mexico. We, like the jaguar, had to practice this SKILL as we waited for our prey to move into the right position before we could pounce.

The day was progressing at an invigorating pace. That afternoon, with Victor as the interpreter, Lou met with Julio and his notary in Playa to discuss the sales agreement and money transfer. Lou, indoctrinated in the American way of conducting business, thought that he should be represented by his own notary. Instead he was informed by Julio’s notary that in Mexico, a notary represents the government, not the client. We realized that Mexican notaries have more authority than U.S. notaries or even attorneys. They are appointed by the Governor, and must have a law degree along with three years experience in a notary’s office. Lawyers work for a notary, and do the leg work, which is then verified and signed by a notary. Many real estate transactions are handled in Mexico by notaries and their abogados (lawyers).

Julio’s notary presented a new idea. He suggested that we set up a Mexican corporation in order to secure the property. Were we on the verge of a breakthrough? Why hadn’t the other notary mentioned forming a corporation as a way to buy Julio’s land? He explained that when the title was signed and released we could then set up a fideicomiso. A Mexican partner was no longer required for a corporation, so this did not present a problem. His quote of $750 was much less than the cost of setting up the fideicomiso.

The closing was set for the next day. Things seemed to have fallen in place rather quickly, and we were circling in on our prey like jaguars in the jungle. We talked together on the phone and agreed to take the leap, even though we knew we could loose our investment if all was not on the up and up.

We were starting to get a pretty clear glimpse of the nuances of buying land in Mexico. Julio requested that we indicate on the contract that the selling price was different than what we were actually paying for it. It seemed to us that he was trying to cut his tax liability. The notary assured us that it was common practice to lower the price in the sales contract. He said if we ever sold the property, he could make the tax benefits work in our favor as well. In fact, any time we wanted the price changed on the documents, he would do this for us. This was described as the “Mexican Way.”

Lou decided not to do any celebrating until he returned to the states and we were together once again. In the meantime he had work to begin.

The previous excerpt is an abbreviated chapter from Mari’s book, Embarking on the Mariposa Trail that chronicles the adventure she and her husband lived when they began their journey to reinvent their lives in Mexico. They are now happily residing at their B&B, La Selva Mariposa, near Tulum. www.laselvamariposa.com

Stay tuned for the next installment, or purchase the book at a local bookstore or www.amazon.com.

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