Buying land and building.

PJ27188 wrote:

I have a girlfriend who's family live and Cali, they have told me there are no restrictions on foreigners (i'm from UK) buying and building on land. Can anyone point me in the right direction on where I can find a suitable plot and whether or not it would be possible to build houses with intent to lease.

Phil, I was a landlord with apartment houses in New England, USA, for years, and now I've been in South America for years.

Sure, I can point you in the right direction, but it's not getting off a plane from the UK and building rental property in Colombia in the first few weeks or months.

Rule #1 for Expats in South America:  Don't buy or build property here for at least your first year living here.

Doesn't matter what your Colombian girlfriend's family said about no restrictions.  Doesn't matter if you were a successful builder or landlord in Norwich, England.  Doesn't matter if you think you can negotiate the property market in any country in the world, language-and-customs barriers notwithstanding...

Rule #1 still holds.

Just too much can go wrong if you violate the rule.   But if you give yourself a year to familiarize -- and get your knowledge and espanol to a point where your negotiating skills are strong -- you'll have a much better idea about whether such property plans might make sense. 

cccmedia, Quito, Ecuador

Yes use the correct head ! There are 30 issues that could be a deal  Breaker  before u decide to buy there !!!! LISTE TO ABOVE WISDOM ,1 f..k..g year is the 1st key! You need 7

It is not true that there are no restrictions.  First you must be a legal alien with residency. Then you must aquire your cedula then you can buy land.  A deed of the land can not be issued to you if you do not have a cedula.  A cedula can not be issued if you are not a legal resident.  Legal reaidency can not be aquired unless you apply and fulfill the immigration requirements.  You will also need to pay in full for the lot or building and lot and bringing all that money will require access to banks and you can not have a bank account without a cedula.  If you are going to attempt making a loan to finance your purchases you will need to have a cedula and a job.  Latin American countries have the same financial rules as any civilized country in the world and if you do not adhere sooner or later you will pay the cosequences ussually by loosing your residency and land and maybe your savings and freedom.

Also to pay for your land you must do the money exchange at the local notary with a  bank issued check.  Do not exchange cash with anyone for a piece of land much less if you are not at the notary processing the deed of the land. Wait to buy until you are there long enough to know the laws and the language fluently.

Also to pay for your land you must do the money exchange at the local notary with a  bank issued check.  Do not exchange cash with anyone for a piece of land much less if you are not at the notary processing the deed of the land. Wait to buy until you are there long enough to know the laws and the language fluently. There are legally appointed notaries around the city and in each town.  A notary is a legaly appointef government representative.  Notaries unlike in the USA are not  individuals that confirm identity they carry much more responsibility and they have an appointed place in governmenr.  Therefore, they will not be dound in banks or lawyers offices or post offices.  Be careful with anyone that claims to be a notary and is not sitted at the local notary working under the supervision of the local government in a government building.

Of course there are guidelines for buying property.  one of them is you must have legal residency. Do not let someone else put their name on your property bill of sale no matter how much they say they love you and you think you love them. You have been warned.
You must have legal residency that privilege comes with a  Cedula.  The rules in Colombia would be the same or very similar to Great Britain and to USA.  The only difference is that in all cases when it is a private sale you must pay in full and in cash or with a bank issued check. That takes place at the local notary where both the seller and the buyer meet to exchange the property's legal title for money.  The Notary prepares the document adds the old title to the new document and your land survey.  You should always survey your land before purchasing it, and before the survey the seller must show you the title and his Cedula to prove he is the legal owner. Do not meet the seller to exchange the title for your money in any place other than the inside of the local notary.  There has been many cases where you show up at some pre arranged place and you if lucky leave alive but without your money.

Thanks for all your help, I was at the time a legal resident of Colombia and have since married and again living in Cali. The government has recently began projects up and down the city aiding 1st time buyers on new constructions which we are looking into instead of buying land and building from scratch. (though it's always nice to be able to build your dream home)

@Medellin_bound "First you must be a legal alien with residency. Then you must aquire your cedula then you can buy land.  A deed of the land can not be issued to you if you do not have a cedula." are you sure about this?

@Medellin_bound it seems there is a new law for foreigners to buy land.
http://www.medellininfo.com/realestate/ … etips.html