Everything you said is spot on. We have bought property in Puerto Rico twice before (but years ago) and experienced first hand all the misinformation and frustrations you so candidly mentioned. Dealing with contractors is a nightmare (and we speak Spanish!) Worse yet, even buying a brand new home in a new development can turn into a nightmare where no one takes responsibility for repairs or a “punch list”. After you give your money, you are pretty much on your own. No matter what the contracts say, it becomes practically impossible to enforce anything. Definitely buyer beware when buying in Puerto Rico!
I'm from PR, lived there on and off, sold my property in Ponce back in the 80's. Your video brought back lots of memories some good some bad, and almost everything you talk about, I went through . I can remember getting my water and light, my neighbor with roosters, it goes on and on. But I LOVE the Island and wish I had something there.Thanks for all the GOOD information, I believe you covered it ALL........O
Thank you. I have another channel that is more about travel videos and lighter content where I'm putting videos of our adventures. Do a search on RU-vid for How2Beach
I appreciate all your videos on buying homes in Puerto Rico. I am considering investing on a property and have been concerned about all the issues you have mentioned. Having a bi-lingual realestate lawyer is the way to go. I'm Puerto Rican, but have lived in the States all my life. This has been very informative. Thank you again
I know this video is 4 years old, but greatly appreciate the detail information. I a m retired US Navy and looking to fully retire in about 5 years but also looking to buy a nice vacation home in Puerto Rico. Thank you very much about the detail information greatly appreciate. We started looking and you are absolutely noticed that the homes are over price. I look forward to chatting more and learning more from your topics. Thank you.
From personal experience: Lending experience: a total nightmare. From traveling to PR to see a house that the photos did not matched the home. Appraisals are a joke. Realtor and appraisers work together to prepare a fraudulent report, hiding repairs benefitting the owners. Banks will not do home inspections only appraisals. Banks have the right to decline your approved loan at the last minute. "as is" and not getting a lawyer was mayor mistakes on my part. I had to get a 2nd bank to purchase another house.
Yea, It isn't for the faint of heart. But, that is why the prices are low too. I did another video on "what will happen to Real Estate if they become a state". You should check it out and tell me what you think.
If you don't speak Spanish there are areas where you are going to find it hard to communicate. I had many realtors hang up on me, but I eventually found a realtor that was able to arrange for me to view several properties offered by different sellers and realtors. The mortgage company dropped the ball many times and I was unable to close when I flew in to close, so I had to return 2 months later, and mucho documentation is needed and it is wise to not move money around if you plan to go through a local lender or you will have to prove you didn't borrow money for any portion of the down payment. I did have a buyer's agent and I did find a discrepancy in the contract and it had to be redone. A high earnest money deposit is expected and it's usually 5% but it is negotiable. I was only willing to do 2 1/2% which was still thousands! Make a lowball offer because I did and they accepted. My house had been listed for a while at a high asking price that gradually came down from 158K to 135K, according to online listings on Zillow. After looking at the house the owner called from Florida and said that if I would sign papers that day they would accept 127K, but I declined. I later got an appraisal and I had an inspection of the plumbing and electrical done, after starting the process of entering a contract with contingencies and making a lower offer they accepted without countering. There was an incentive for homebuyers 10 years ago and it paid closing costs and broker/realtor fees, and that was a factor that helped with my decision. I looked at condos and homes in gated communities, all with additional fees I was warned about, but I purchased a home in the country on the north shore at the end of a private lane, with conservation land behind me and family owned horse pasture next to me. I have a septic tank so I don't have to pay for sewage or garbage pick up and I have a fenced yard for my dog and a 1700 sq ft - 3 bedroom 2 bath home on one level, with a 4 car garage, 2600' from the Atlantic, and with the New World Statue in view across the pasture. 🇵🇷 I'm out here with the cows, horses, iguanas, parrots and the singing coqui frogs, by the 🏖
Sounds like you learned the same lessons as me. In the end, it is difficult but it is worth it. It sounds like you ended up with a great place. Those are good tips about the mortgage. Thanks.
Your video was extremely helpful. We followed your tips and tricks and we closed on our dream condo in Punta Bandera, Luquillo on Jun 23rd, 2023. Its was incredibly complicated as we also used a VA loan. Glad to assist anyone with questions.
I can relate since I also remodeled my house in PR. I had a great deal of trauma trying to find someone to do my kitchen. I gut the whole thing and then couldn't find anyone to do my cabinets. I didn't want to do a Homedepot kitchen but since I couldn't find anybody I finally got HD cabinets! I regret it 1000 times. After all the hustle with HD I refused to do countertops with them so I took time to find someone. BUT finally I found someone that did OMG such an amazing job with the countertops and he also built an island with epoxy countertops that came out so beautiful. I was so sad I didn't find him before. I also basically did the whole house again including all windows, doors, garage doors, kitchen, bathroom, floors. I spent around 60K. I furnished the house and now am considering putting it up as ABNB. Not sure about that yet. Congratulations and hope all goes well with your house.
Thanks sooo much for this video, we literally just came back from PR and are very interested in buying a duplex that can used as a short-term rental and out vacation home when the kids are out of school. Between this video, nuggets in the comments and the interview you did with the other lady who has a channel about the same experience, I feel armed with the basic steps needed to pursue this goal. Thanks a bunch!
@@dmh4150 I'm not clear what is disgusting to you. If you are not in support of investors coming to PR, then keep scrolling- don't be a troll. The fact that native Puerto Ricans have the same experience as mainlanders is indicative of that fact that the PR needs to get their act together when it comes to conducting real estate transactions with some integrity AND keep proper records of land ownership-which is a persistent problem based on my research. My intention is not to displace my people but at same time, the people that live there must take better care of the beautiful island they are blessed to have. On my visit there, it seemed like folks just throw trash on the street and don't care. Now that is disgusting to me...
By far the best video I have seen from A-Z regarding how to get into the PR real estate market. Thank you for making it. Can you share a little bit about your mindset when you approach a property that you are considering purchasing?
Thank you so much for the compliment. For me, the mindset and the numbers are two different things. As soon as I did a little preliminary market research I made up my mind I wanted to buy a house in PR. Then I had a one-track mind to learn as much as could about the data and the market. By the time I found a property I liked it just about the numbers. My mind was made up. I'm kind of stubborn though. Then I had to try to get neighborhood data and figure out how the numbers looked. Even though I felt like I didn't know everything about the PR market I felt like I knew enough. And with the income I get from my other properties and the price point of the house I was buying I knew I couldn't screw up too bad. And it turns out with the Corona Virus my project is put on hold for who knows how long and maybe I don't get any income this year because tourism is down. But, I'm not stressing out because I always look at the worst case scenario. That involves "what if the property sits empty for a year.
@@TheRetirementality Thank you for the feedback. I've contacted a number of agents in PR over the last few weeks. If I get a call back at all, the response has been "We have to wait. No business can get done right now." Have you found that real estate transactions have come to a screeching halt? I'm not sure if you or your subscribers have found this to be true across the board. The good news is that even if you don't receive much income this year, you have a great place to go.
@@ucla81803 My phone is starting to ring with bargain hunters looking to see if there are any deals out there. Which it is too early for that. I think what we will see is people who were thinking of selling will put their properties on the market at current market prices and see if they get any action. Lots of people are predicting mass foreclosures and tons of inventory and doom and gloom, but I don't think that will be the case.
Wow, I’ve lived in Puerto Rico for 8 years and I know what you mean on how different (freaking nightmare) it is to conduct transactions there. Have you ever gone to their equivalent to a DMV? Another nightmare. I’ve thought about investing at one point but listening to your video really solidifies why I won’t. I’ll take a hard pass. I’ll just vacation when I can and visit family and eat the yummy food. That’s to the extent of it. Your video was super helpful!!
I've been to the BMV in the USVI it is pretty painful too. I have more videos about buying and I'm vlogging about the progress of my remodel is what to see more videos.
That % of money you pay upfront, in Argentina we call it "el Boleto". It's a pre-contract. You hand in that money to secure that the property will be yours. Then you pay the rest at the closing. We call it "la Escritura" (the Deed) and when you put all the money on the table, papers are signed, everyone gets their copy. And all the questions about the house you had plenty of chances to ask in advance, since the Agent takes the interested buyers to the house many times if they are really interested. If it's inhabitated, you get the chance to talk to the people as much as you want. You know, we latin people like to socialize. 😁
Interesting. I've wanted to come to Argentina for long time to go Fly Fishing. I've heard it is amazing. I used to live in Montana and people told me it's mountains were similar. Now I'm going waste hours looking at real estate there. 😆😂👍
This is so informative and detailed! After 5+ years living in Puerto Rico, I am just now getting serious about looking at buying a home. Thank you for the full breakdown for home buying.
You're welcome. I sent you a message when I was there a couple of weeks ago to see if you wanted to collab and ask me questions about buying or remodeling after I saw your other interview.
Very helpful. I tried some years ago, and it was next to impossible to buy a house. I was treated as an outsider, but it seems things have changed since the 90’s. We will plan to visit P.R. Early next year. Thank you for sharing your experiences. I enjoyed watching! I subscribed and put notifications on.
Thanks for the support. I appreciate it. Good luck in your search. There are some great deals out there, you just have to put in the effort to find them and validate them.
TheRetirementality -We are eager to try this time, so we might be successful this time around. Thank you for sharing your experience. It’s encouraging!
Hi! Real estate agent in PR here ✌Glad it all worked out though. I've seen some horror stories, too, but if you're patient and have vision it's all possible. 🙌
I really appreciate all the in-depth analysis. It has totally discouraged me from buying in PR, specially because Diane Cohn has exactly the same impressions, advice and recommendations.
She just interviewed me the other day on her channel. I had to buy a new webcam afterwards because my camera on my laptop looked so bad. The hard part is finding something and negotiating the contract.
Excellent video. Completely true and sad.. there is no buyers realtor there so finding a lawyer and hopefully a good one to help get all the ducks in a row. Thank you for this information. You have no idea how helpful it is. Coming from a Realtor that has experience.
Thank you for these videos! They have been so helpful! You mentioned joining some Puerto Rico Facebook groups, are there any ones you recommend joining?
Awesome, I'm glad you like them. Puerto Rico expats and Puerto Rico newcomers would be a good start. Be sure to subscribe to the channel if you haven't already and follow the progress of my remodel project.
Hello, we just came from PR and fell In love with it. I love all your videos. Very informative. I’m still confused on what areas i should look at as far as buying a property. Can you suggest any areas that are good for airbnb rentals? Where is your rental located if you don’t mind sharing? Thanks in advance
Be sure you watch some of my videos about trying to do a remodel and not living on the island. I'd try to find something turn key. As far was were to buy I'd just say you need to tour the island and see what you like. If you plan on using it too then you need to find an area you like.
Thank you for sharing your experience. Hopefully, by next year I will be buying a property in Puerto Rico and your information was very helpful. I’m doing my research and gathering information. I’m interested to know who did you use as a property attorney.
I did. I have a series about the house I bought and the remodel process. It's been going on for a year and half and I'm still not done. But, I'm getting close. I'll be back over there in a couple of weeks.
Thank you for the video, it was very informational. I’m purchasing a property in PR and can not find comps in the area, we did the negotiating part like you explained but I would still like to see some hard comps, do you have any recommendations for that? Also do you know anything about getting a survey on the property?
I didn't get a mortgage so I didn't need a survey and there is a concrete wall all the way around my property, so I didn't worry about it. As for comps the only ideas I have are the ones in the video. Try the paid website that clasificados leads you to, or if you are planning on renting out the property use the link in the description to go to AirDNA. That was the most helpful tool for me when I was looking.
Thank you for the video! It is important to provide the difference in what someone might experience in laws , cultural differences, and in the market when investing in a different country. Even though it's different and new challenges, there are also opportunities because those differences. You just have to know how to play the card you dealt! Thanks again for the reality check! Are you still PR ?
The reason the Realtors are difficult, at times, is because they are going to either HOLD or Give the home to a PR native way before someone coming in to buy the home, give nothing to PR and turn it into a BNB. thats why.
@@TanChoudhury We just crossed over the one year mark and the construction isn't finished. I'm flying over in two weeks to finish it myself and get this damn house to start making money.
Congrats on the purchase of a home in Puerto Rico...that is my dream! I would also love to know where you rent a car for $100 a week. We have been there many times and never found a deal like that! Thanks for all the great information!
Thank you! I guess my $100 a week number was not accurate. My wife called me out on that too. I just went back at found my last receipt from when I rented a car. I got a weekly rate of $200 but they give me a 20% discount because I've rented from them a lot, and there are some add ons on top of that. But, I rent from Popular Auto they do a good job.
1st rule of car rental on the island, do not rent at the airport in person or online, take a cab to a Condado or (Hato Rey etc) rental office for $20 and you'll save a bundle on your weekly rates if you're flying into San Juan. Explore all club perks and credit card or AAA discounts, but you do have to arrive during the day to take advantage of the lower rates afforded by the in town offices. If you are planning to stay in Old San Juan or Condado, hold off on renting a car for a few days because you can walk everywhere
Hello, I am in Puerto Rico looking to purchase a house in Cabo Rojo, PR.I was wondering who you happen to use for home inspection and home appraisal and what they charged you about. Thanks, Michael
Is there any rules of thumb regarding making an offer that is lower than the listing amount? For example we bought in Dominica and there they won't negotiate at all. They would rather it sit on the market for years than lowering the price and selling it.
Thank you for this valuable information! I've seen a few of your videos today and they're awesome! I am also looking to by in Puerto Rico very soon. This video has been very detailed and helpful.
Thank you! Your information is very thorough and helpful, thus really does help you to see what's possible and change your mindset... I am justin's starting out and am considering buying a multifamily in San Juan to live in one unit and airbnb the other. Where do you go to figure out what a city's short-term retirement restrictions are?
Thank you. I'm glad you are finding it helpful. Thanks for watching and supporting the channel. The only restrictions that I know of in Puerto Rico are going to be in specific condo buildings or through HOA's even in some neighborhoods. But, it should come up through a title search to be sure. And your Realtor should know while you are in the "looking" process.
So much VALUE in this video! Could you please recommend some financing options like a local credit union or local bank in Puerto Rico? My understanding is that it is best to finance with a lender in Puerto Rico. Also, what are your best tips on remodeling a home if the home is worth buying? Thanks again for the video. Keep them coming!
Thank you. I didn't use a lender so I don't have any recommendations for you. I've heard good and bad things about Banco Popular. I would probably start because they are big and should know what they are doing. As far as remodeling I just asking around A LOT and several people recommended the same person that did a lot of work in my neighborhood. People love to refer good contractors. Thanks for watching.
@@sneakyracerpr Hey Armando! Thanks for chiming in. I always like it when someone tries to add value in the comments. And you are also the 200th Subscriber! Thank You For your Support!
TheRetirementality Thank you! I can relate to the experience of buying property, although I did the “opposite”. Bought in PR first, then moved to TX and bought property. 100% agree with your experience. I added Penfed bc Penfed exists in the states, but also has presence in PR. it is a win win scenario for ppl coming from the states. Hoping to return to PR for my future retirement! Keep up the great work.
@@sneakyracerpr Yea, I've heard their name come up before too. Thanks again for adding your thoughts to the discussion. It will help someone. That is the whole point of this exercise.... building community, to help eachother. Keep in touch!
Why you bought a house in PR if all is negative and everyone is a scammer or liar? Like in the states you don't find scammers or liars? I just hope you can balance your posts for the sake of real good people living in Puerto Rico. Good professionals and bad ones exist in any part of the world. Just because it does not work the way it works in the states it doesn't mean its a scam. BTW, I hope you enjoy this beautiful island. Congrats on your channel.
I wasn't trying to come off negative at all. I love Puerto Rico. I was just telling what my experience was like. Sorry if you thought it was negative. I'm actually looking for another house in Puerto Rico. So I don't know how got that I have a negative connotation of PR.
@@TheRetirementality Sorry, about this! PR is a beautiful island full of good hearted people. There is a minority of scammers too, like in the USA and every country in the world, so you have to warn them. Probably, Gil O Berrios did not watch the whole video and jumped to conclusions.
Might you have a recommendation for RE attorney? You mentioned one in the video and seem to be happy with her. Here in PR visiting from Atlanta now and looking at properties.
I saw that listing too. There is another one of those on Classificados for 2 houses on one property in Pinones, PR with the same verbiage. But this add had a 100 year lease that the owner would maintain. It felt like a scam so I passed. We are in the process of buying a home here in PR can you suggest a property attorney who speaks English?
Another excellent video! I had talked to you a couple of times in the recent past. We we moved to Puerto Rico November 3rd and we are in Palmas Del Mar. We are looking to purchase. Let me know if you know of anything available over here! :-)
Any recommendations on what bank to use for 100% loan for a lot in Puerto Rico? I have a down payment but can't come up with the reminder untill I retire in 2 years. I would love to buy something now and pay it slowly but banks in PR only offer 30% loans to buy land.
Yea, no banks are going to give you 100% land loan. It's too easy for people to walk away from it and stop paying with no skin in the game. They don't want to be in the land owning business. Banks used to do 100% loans on houses because people needed a place to live and they figured people would pay those mortgages. But after 2008 that was pretty much the end of the 100% loans.
Hi first of all, thank you for video and very informative. I'm thinking of moving to PR, but you said at the end about tax break. I'm a stock/crypto trader, and would like more info or if you can guide me where I can get the info. Thanks 😊
@@TheRetirementality BTW am from PR and its true. Its hard to find a place where to find all what is available. Some of the best deals are the ones that never get to a realtor. Sell by owner. A realtor never heard of those deals, (but neither me if I am not from that area_
I live in St. Thomas and I did ship a car to that island. I think it was worth it on St. Thomas. If I was moving to Puerto Rico I think I would just buy a car there. It is a lot bigger than STT with a lot more options. I've been looking online for a car to keep in Puerto Rico and I've seen some pretty good deal.s
In Corozal barrio Cibuco, Soon I will be putting up my Home for sale 3/3, 1579 sqft, 900 meters land, swimming pool 12x24, two car garage w/ garage doors, 5K Solar system , ac living room , master room and guest, 25x30 cement terrace and 10x20 kitchen terrace, backyard fenced in and many extras , appraised at 196,000.
Most of the island is in an opportunity. Some quick googleing should get you a map pretty easy. The advatages of opprotunity zones come in tax benefits when you sell the property.
They went to their attorney’s house to close yall 😂😂😂 that’s why I love Puerto Rico. However buying land seems much different. It’s even harder to get info to see what’s fair and for lending. Seems like most people recommend cash. You didn’t mention if it was a requirement to have a local bank in PR. When I was boots on ground there they told us we needed an address to get a bank and a bank was needed even though we have money in our US mainland banks. Any info there? I’d love to see a video on how to buy land. I know I need an attorney either way. I’m hoping to get a terms contract for land so I can homestead there.
Not only did we go to her house, it was at 7:00 pm on a Saturday. I didn't get a loan, but you do need a PR bank or mortgage broker. I think buying land would be the same as buying a house. All of the title work, and everything would work the same.
Thankyou for the information! It is very helpful as right now in 2020, costs are very low for houses in PR. But in all the things you said, you did not mention property taxes? Here in the USA we pay a yearly tax or taxes for the property, and if we do not have some kind of income, and miss a tax payment, the city or town will just steal you house from you and sell it to pay those taxes. So you really do not OWN your house in the states, you are renting it or renting the LAND it sits on, yearly. When I was a child, in PR my parents did not have to pay a yearly property tax and people in the family just lived in the houses all their life even if they did not have a job or income. So IS there property taxes for houses in PR NOW? And if so, is it for those who LIVE in the house? Or only for those who rent the house out(investment properties)? You bought your house for $135, 000. In the USA you would have to pay property taxes yearly on that house, and the taxes would decrease or increase yearly by a percentage depending on the assessments that year for that neighborhood or town or city. Also in the USA you pay: Property tax,school tax,municipal or per capita tax, and city tax. I live in Western PA, a commonwealth like Puerto Rico. We pay ALOT of taxes here. I expect it is the same everywhere in the Mainland USA. As such, what is the property taxes and other taxes you have to pay in PR for your house yearly? Or is it MONTHLY there? I found several houses of interest for cheap in my home town of Fajardo, but I need to know what I am up against before I buy. My income is fixed so it is also limited. Is it better to just stay in PA and pay $700-$1500 in yearly taxes for my $10,000 brick duplex, or should I move to PR and buy a $25,000 cement house and maybe pay LESS yearly in taxes? Do you actually OWN your house or do you just rent the land like in the USA?
I think the property taxes work pretty much the same as in the Mainland. I don't remember exactly what the taxes were but I think they are about 1% of the value. If you don't pay them I'm not sure what happens but I'd guess it is pretty much the same as what would happen in the mainland. The tax website is CRIMPR.net you do some research there.
@@TheRetirementality Thankyou! That is the info I needed! Shame, before 1991, if you bought a house in PR and lived in it or gave it to family to live in it, you did NOT have to pay property taxes(exemption). Now you do.. sucks. But it is not as high as in the mainland at least!
If you want to send me an email I can give you the contact info for my attorney. As far as the cost involved I think it will depend on the price of the property you buy, if you are getting financing, and some other factors. Jeff@FindABeachHouse.com
If possible, don’t rent directly from the airport. If you get in early take a cab to a rental in condado. 700 seems pretty high but the tourists can get cars on demand for fairly reasonable prices by the resorts.
@@thomasreedy4751 dont trust any other rental company but the top 3. They will scam you. Car rentals in puerto rico are not cheap with any company unless its off season and even then its min $400 a week with no insurance. Never rent a car with out full coverage in puerto rico. Cars are stolen all the time in the san juan area and avoid a headache pay extra for the full coverage.
I heard . but I got scared. lol In Puerto Rico you can count on consistently being inconsistent. Great video and informative lol People will just ghost and never contact you back. I know I live here. If you do not mind poor service the other things outweigh the poor service,
They are all so different. It all about personal preference. Some people want to be in a city, some in the mountains, some on a beach, and some in the country. Depends on what you like. It's best to spend some time in different areas and see what you like.
That sucks with the laws and representations of the buyer and listing agent. They decided to make Puerto Rico part of the USA, therefore this should change as well in real estate.
Where did u rent a car for $100 a wk in PR? The last time i was there the car was 200+ and additional $300 in taxes, for a total of about $500. And don't forget about the tolls - they will charge you tolls even if u dont pass thru any of them. And for the record - It wasn't the rental company... So u had to hire someone just to go to the utility office to turn on the power/water? That Sounds like living in a 3rd world country... Not even when i worked in Costa Rica - things were like what u describe. and supposedly they want to become a state.
Hey, I guess I didn't have my facts right on the rental car. My wife said it costs more too, so I just went and found my last receipt. I pay a weekly rate of $195 and they give me a 20% discount because I rent there a lot. Then there were some add ons on top of that. I rented for 10 days and they charged $29 per day over the week. My total bill was $300. But, I use Popular Auto, they do a good job. The main reason we paid the guy to do the utilities is that we flew in on Saturday to sign the paperwork and we flew back out on Monday because my wife couldn't take days off work. If I had more time there I probably wouldn't have done that because I'm too cheap. But it might be asking around in the area you buy something to see if it's worth it.