Five years ago while vacationing in Mexico, my wife and I discovered Michoacan and in particular the picturesque and tranquil Patzcuaro area. We thought this piece of paradise on earth would be a good place to retire. We scheduled a return trip for the end of the year. In anticipation of this trip we turned to the internet to see if there were real estate agencies and available listings so that we could initiate our search for a retirement property. Of the few agencies with websites we came across Mexatua.net, which claimed to specialize in the Morelia-Patzcuaro area and offered their services in English. The website was very easy to navigate and the listings were very clear, with crisp descriptions, photos and prices shown in pesos and in dollars. Of the many attractive listings I became interested in a buildable lot in a suburb of Patzcuaro. I immediately contacted the listing broker, Paquita Madrigal, to inquire about the procedure for purchasing real estate property in Mexico. The process, as explained, seemed a lot simpler than ours in the US. Soon Paquita was joined by the Agency broker-owner, Liliana Gonzalez in their correspondence. Now I had a team working with/for me. Within days the purchase was arranged: They sent me the purchase contract and the power of attorney needed for them to act on my behalf. Everything went smoothly as Paquita and Liliana, experts at their business, took care of everything, legal and otherwise. Upon our arrival in Patzcuaro my wife and I were picked up at our hotel and driven to the property where we met the sellers and surveyed the property. Out of curiosity and for comparison purposes, my wife asked to see other listings that included houses. Liliana (Paquita had been called away on family business) proceeded to show us various other properties, including a cottage on the shores of Lake Patzcuaro that my wife fell in love with. If Liliana could obtain favorable purchase terms with the sellers we were prepared to make an offer. Liliana, did manage to obtain very favorable terms for us and we entered into a purchase agreement for the cottage and we returned to our home in Los Angeles with the ultimate souvenirs: a beautiful wooded lot minutes from downtown Patzcuaro and a lakeside cottage to live in while our dream house on the lot was being built, all thanks to the good work of the Liliana-Paquita team. To anyone considering retiring (or investing) in Mexico, I strongly recommend engaging Liliana as your broker. We found Liliana, a licensed attorney, to be well versed in the law, especially as related to real estate matters. She makes the purchase of real estate by Americans a breeze. Having lived in Marysville, California for many years, Liliana is extremely fluent in English and thinks like an American, so as Americans, my wife and I were very comfortable with her. Thank you, Liliana and Paquita. We look forward to your friendship in our retirement!
Joe and Martha Lazaro
Los Angeles, California
