The next challenge was becoming legal in Mexico via residency. Oh, the “bad” real estate agent provided incorrect advice on this; said not to worry about it. Want to bet? In a brief discussion, if you own property in Mexico, you are best to become a permanent resident given the taxation issues in Mexico. Ok, my personal experience is that for whatever reason I was processed as a Temporary Resident while my husband was processed as a Permanent resident. The Mexicans wanted to see a certain asset minimum (which we had), but they still disregarded it in my case. As a Temporary Resident, you have a lot of limits on you that Permanent Residents do not (banking, contracting/employment and so much more). I found being a Temporary Resident limiting and to some degree humiliating and embarrassing since I am a very financially successful person and could not work with the restrictions. I canceled a large project for a business I wanted to develop since I had no ability to sign even a basic contract or do basic banking! I do not want to see you have any problems gaining the correct residency status. My professional network will help you avoid these challenges.

Your relationship with me starts with selecting the appropriate realtor who will be cooperative with the residency issues along with all the other issues involved.

Why is residency so important? Well, non-residents of Mexico will have increased taxes to pay in many cases. The Mexicans will treat you as a non-resident and tax you to the maximum amount possible. The issue of residency becomes even more important if you are intending to rent your property out (Permanent Residency is required to pay your taxes etc).