Resources
Buying or renting on Mexico's Caribbean coast involves rules that rarely exist back home: bank trusts in the restricted zone, a notario público who controls the transfer, ejido land history, and condominium regimes that decide whether you can rent nightly. These three resources cover the ground in order — the long-form guides, the quick answers, and the vocabulary.
Step-by-step explainers on buying, selling, renting and investing across Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum and Cancún.
Short, direct answers to the questions foreign buyers and renters ask most, from fideicomiso basics to closing costs.
Mexican real-estate and legal vocabulary in plain English: escritura, predial, ejido, condominio régimen and more.
Foreigners buy in Cozumel through a bank trust (fideicomiso). Here is the 2026 breakdown of the restricted zone, trust and permit costs, the notario's role, ISAI transfer tax and total closing costs, plus a step-by-step process.
Discover the step-by-step process of renting an apartment in Tulum as a foreigner. Learn about rental contracts, required documents, deposits, common pitfalls, and tips for a smooth rental experience.
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What living in Cozumel is actually like: healthcare, schools, transport, utilities and the practical realities newcomers tend to underestimate.
If you are early in the process, start with the guides. They set out the sequence of a Mexican transaction — offer, promise-to-purchase agreement, trust permit, notario review, signing and registration — and where costs and delays usually appear.
Once you have a specific property in mind, the FAQ answers the operational questions: what closing costs to budget, what predial actually costs each year, what tax the seller pays, and whether the building permits short-term rentals.
Keep the glossary open while you read contracts. Mexican deeds and condominium documents use terms with no exact English equivalent, and misreading one of them — ejido land in particular — is the most expensive mistake a foreign buyer can make.