"Ripped Off"
From Editor of Yucatan Today:
We recently received a posting on this website from a reader who was (justifiably) upset about being cheated by a local realtor here. We feel the information will be useful to our readers. However, without knowing all of the legal ins and outs, and as this case is currently in litigation, we feel it is not in our readers' interests to publish the name of the realtor. Here is a summary of the story sent to us by Adam Harrington, an American living in New Jersey. His is a cautionary tale which should be taken as good advice when doing real estate transactions anywhere.
"[A Mérida realtor] personally ripped me off for over 1 million dollars... not pesos... 1 million US dollars. Real quick.... I was interested in purchasing property for future development in the Yucatán. I found a piece of property for 2.8 million dollars through [this realtor]. I went down to Mérida to sign a contract, and I put down a deposit for half of the amount. I had a team of lawyers working on the property to make sure that the title was 100% clean and that this would be a smooth transaction. At the very last minute, something came up with the property; the title lineage was in question, and the deal fell through. The title of this property was going to be tied up in litigation for years, and I did not want to move forward with a transaction like that. Anyone familiar with "ejido" and/or Mayan lands knows what I am talking about. After the deal fell through, [the realtor] informed me that he had spent my deposit (1.4 million dollars) on purchasing properties for himself and that it would take him years to get it back to me. I am now in the process of getting this money back through criminal prosecution, which no doubt will take a very long time, as does everything in Mexico. If anyone does not believe me or would like to hear more, please feel free to e-mail me at acorn9@hotmail.com "
Read our article on Buying Property in the Yucatán Peninsula
I'm really sorry to hear
I am sorry to hear what had
real estate agents in the yucatan
Honesty and reliability
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Real Estate Yucatan
something smells wrong about this story
We have handled a few multi-million dollar deals. Most multi-million dollar Buyers are astute and savvy. A million dollar deposit is A LOT of money and how it is handled is always important to all parties. Usually it is escrowed by the title company. A purchase this large almost always includes or SHOULD INCLUDE Title Insurance! What gives? At the very least, you would think the buyer would confirm the real estate agents escrow or earnest money account! Would you just give a million dollars to a real estate agent as a deposit without first checking to make sure it was safe? Giving a real estate agent a deposit of any amount of money for them to hold in their personal account is amazingly ignorant. What if that agent is hit by a bus and killed or drops dead from a heart attack or the last person they ripped off takes a contract out on them!?! Then the deposit goes into the estate and to the deceased agents family. What! You just hope they are decent, honest, law abiding people and either see the deal through or return the money? Please! This story doesn't hold water. Something isn't being said straight here.
REAL ESTATE YUCATAN
REAL ESTATE YUCATAN
If it is personal experience with realtors you want, then I will put in my 2 cents. My real estate agent was JORGE MAZUN . I dealt ONLY with him. He is TERRIFIC in my book. He always returned my calls (He has a US number he can be reached at as well as in Merida.) He always kept me informed and constantly reassured me when I felt nervous about making such an investment. He e-mailed or called every time in a timely fashion.
He even went so far as to research the water bills, electricity, federal zone just to make sure they were all current (which they were not). I would have had to pay a big bill before I could transfer into my name. He required the seller to pay it before closing. The seller stated that when he bought the property, no one did that for him & he wished Jorge had been in his corner at the time. Now HE had to pay before we closed. He was very nice about it & commended Jorge on his thoroughness.
That is not the only thing he did for me. He welcomed me into his home for dinner and other times & his wife was extremely gracious and helpful...even taking me shopping at Wally World to get some essentials. He took me around all day one day, shopping for a car, helping me purchase it, and took me to get my car insurance. He helped me get a cell phone, helped to put up my satellite dish (while being eaten alive by mosquitoes in the evening after his work day had ended) and let me use his home phone to call the states.
He has continued to stay in touch, helping me with many other things just too numerous to mention. I now have more than a real estate agent; I have a wonderful friend for life...his wife, Marlene too. This guy is young, and full of boundless energy and enthusiasm, as well as being a man of great character & integrity. I wish I knew an agent like that in the states!!!
The attorney/Notario he used for my paperwork was great too. His name was Alvaro Baquiero Jr. I later discovered this is the same great attorney recommended by the Working Gringo at Yucatan Living.
By the way, Jorge is fluent in English as he lived & sold real estate in California. Mr. Baquiero also speaks English.
If you decide to contact Jorge
Jorge Mazun: george_yucatan@yahoo.com
Jorge Mazun
Mobile :( 999) 9492526
Office: (999) 9419587
US: (661) 3107916
US or Canada toll free (888)256-1767
REAL ESTATE YUCATAN
If it is personal experience with realtors you want, then I will put in my 2 cents. My real estate agent was JORGE MAZUN . I dealt ONLY with him. He is TERRIFIC in my book. He always returned my calls (He has a US number he can be reached at as well as in Merida.) He always kept me informed and constantly reassured me when I felt nervous about making such an investment. He e-mailed or called every time in a timely fashion.
He even went so far as to research the water bills, electricity, federal zone just to make sure they were all current (which they were not). I would have had to pay a big bill before I could transfer into my name. He required the seller to pay it before closing. The seller stated that when he bought the property, no one did that for him & he wished Jorge had been in his corner at the time. Now HE had to pay before we closed. He was very nice about it & commended Jorge on his thoroughness.
That is not the only thing he did for me. He welcomed me into his home for dinner and other times & his wife was extremely gracious and helpful...even taking me shopping at Wally World to get some essentials. He took me around all day one day, shopping for a car, helping me purchase it, and took me to get my car insurance. He helped me get a cell phone, helped to put up my satellite dish (while being eaten alive by mosquitoes in the evening after his work day had ended) and let me use his home phone to call the states.
He has continued to stay in touch, helping me with many other things just too numerous to mention. I now have more than a real estate agent; I have a wonderful friend for life...his wife, Marlene too. This guy is young, and full of boundless energy and enthusiasm, as well as being a man of great character & integrity. I wish I knew an agent like that in the states!!!
If you decide to contact Jorge; info@mayanrealty.net
US or Canada toll free (888)256-1767
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