Buying a House in Tela from the United States: What to Know

A lot of the messages we get about Tela start the same way: “I live in the U.S. and I want to buy a house back home.” It can be done well from far away. It just has to be done in order, because distance is exactly what people selling what isn’t theirs count on.

1. Decide what the house is for

Retirement in a few years, family living there now, or a rental in the meantime? That changes the neighborhood, the size, and how much you should plan for repairs.

2. Search with real references

Look at prices of properties that actually sold, not only asking prices. On our Tela real estate page we keep the sold ones as a reference.

3. Have someone you trust see it

A relative or someone you trust can visit, shoot a video, talk to the neighbors and ask if the street floods. A live video call from inside the house beats twenty photos.

4. Your own lawyer and the title, before any money

Hire a lawyer who works for you to check the title at the Property Institute, the municipal taxes, and that the seller really is the owner. Step by step in our Tela buyer’s guide and in how to check a clean title.

5. Sign without flying in: special power of attorney

You can give a special power of attorney to a relative or your lawyer to sign the deed for you. It’s done at a Honduran consulate in the U.S.; check the current requirements with the consulate and your lawyer before your appointment. Make it say exactly which property and what the person can do, nothing more.

6. How to pay

• Never send money before your lawyer confirms the title.
• Pay by bank transfer to the owner named on the title, never to a third person or in cash.
• Keep every receipt, and make sure the deed states the price paid.

Thinking of a loan? Read loans to buy in Honduras from abroad.

7. Register the deed

Until it’s registered at the Property Institute, the house isn’t fully yours. Ask your lawyer for a copy of the registered deed.

8. After you buy

Someone needs to pay the yearly municipal tax, look after the house and call you if something happens. Set that up before you fly back.

Red flags

• “Send the deposit today, someone else is interested.”
• Papers “in process”, or only a bill of sale.
• The person selling isn’t the one on the title.
• A very cheap beach lot in a disputed area.

See what’s available today in Tela real estate, and if you have doubts about the area, read is it safe to buy in Tela or Trujillo?

General information, not legal advice.