Bargaining and closing on our casa

Back in Virginia, Lowell and I gave more thought to buying the cute little casa in Telchac Puerto.  Imagine walking less than two minutes to the beach!  Lowell's always been the beach person, while I like the mountains and trees.  We haven't been around the beach much since our stay in Hawaii, 1988-1991.  Seattle, trees and mountains.  Virginia, 15 years of trees and mountains.  Time for Lowell to get his dream house.

So, we started the bargaining process with Jorge, our realtor.  This went back and forth for awhile until we agreed on a price that was $20K less than they were asking, with a few stipulations.  We wanted the pool to be freshly painted a lighter color blue, the roof to have a fresh coat of sealing paint, and the inside of the palapas to be varnished.  The outside of the house needs paint on the side that, for some reason, was never painted, but I enjoy chores like that so we didn't ask for it to be done.  We also wanted the front door frame to be replaced from the wooden one it was to metal.

To buy property within 60 KM of the beach in Mexico one must get a fideicomiso.  This is like a trust, in which the bank owns the property, but you have all rights to it as far as remodeling, renting it out, etc.  The trust lasts for 50 years and can be renewed.  So we had to get a lawyer to write it up, which included a new survey. 

We made our plans to go back to Merida over the 4th of July week to close on the house.  We met with Jorge, who took us back out to Telchac to make sure everything we'd asked for was completed.  I asked him to find a ladder so I could see if the roof seal coat had been applied.  Guess what?  It wasn't the white coating I'd expected, so Jorge called the selling realtor, and the next day we drove back to find painters on the roof applying the proper product.  Hey, you should get what you specified in the buying agreement, right?

Next we went to the lawyer's office to complete the paperwork.  In Mexico, you sign a book with your contract notations in it, but we did receive a copy of the fideicomiso, both in English and Spanish.  The house was ours!  (in trust, anyway).  We had thought we would camp out for the rest of the week there, but it was SO HOT and humid, the mosquitos were abundant, and we had no air conditioning.  So, Jorge offered us a house to stay in, right on the beach in the neighboring town of Chelem.  Fully furnished, with air conditioning!  It is owned by a Canadian couple who come over the Christmas holiday, and the home is for sale. Here is a picture of sunset at Chelem, and the deck of the house we stayed at.

This is Jorge, his wife Marlene, and their two boys, Isaac and Jacob.  The older one speaks pretty fluent English, and the young one is very shy!

There are many lagoons where flamingos like to stay in this area.  Here is a picture of a BUNCH of flamingos!

 While driving around, we happened upon this cemetery in a small town.  Lots of little houses and candles.

So, now we own a little casa in Telchac, but won't be returning until mid-November.