“Is that legal?” My friend asked…
…”not sure, but I’m not surprised,” I said.
Referring to charging someone $5000 for something they could do on their own for $25…
You see, Ecuador is the Wild West of real estate investing… it’s fun, but it has it’s risks.
My friend was telling me how he just watched a title insurance company from the US charge an American property buyer here in Ecuador $5000 to do something they could have done on their own for $25.
Most locals simply get a Certificate from the Property Registrar’s Office “Certificado del Registrador de Propiedad” in the town where the property is located to ensure the Title “Escritura” is clean and really owned by the person selling before purchasing.
That’s it.
In most cases, nothing else is needed, and besides, that’s all the title company from the US did.
They got the certificate from the property registrar.
Title insurance is a VERY American thing, and totally not common in Ecuador. And in my opinion, not necessary if you do diligence.
That foreign buyer was uninformed… now you’re not.
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