When you decide to buy property on Roatan, carefully examine your options and your reasons for buying. If you’re buying property for your new home, evaluate location and proximity to the things you want or need. Is there easy access to the property or are you going to have to build a road to it? Check on the availability of water, electricity, cable TV, and Internet. These are all considerations that could ultimately affect your building costs and monthly living expenses.
Steps to purchasing property in Honduras -- (full details from Investment & Relocation Guide, click here)
1. Real Estate agent creates a simple sales agreement, and after review you sign and initial it.
2. You have seven to ten working days to get a 10% earnest money deposit wired to your real estate agent’s escrow account. If purchasing title insurance, wire the title insurance application to title company.
3. Receive survey and title usually within the first 10 days after you sign the sales agreement. At this time attorney submits documents and if buying as a Corporation submits names of adminstrators.
4. During the time you are waiting for the closing, your real estate agent assists the attorneys in getting the plot, survey, paid tax receipts, title documents, etc. for the closing and title insurance to proceed.
5. Before closing wire the final funds (at least a week before), including the attorney fees. Real estate agents and attorneys are both present for the closing.
6. Closing. You, or your Realtor with power of attorney, sign the documents, the seller signs them and you get the OK from the attorney that you now own the property. Then the seller gets his proceeds and the attorney is paid as well. You also get copies of all documents before you leave.
7. Receive title, documents, shares. With 4 months. Title insurance a few months later.
8. Pay property taxes once a year or even pay them a few years in advance. Depending on the location of your property, these are paid in the municipal offices of Oak Ridge or Coxen Hole. The cost is approximately 1,000 Lempiras ($53).