Aug 9 - Ejido Land and Beach Concessions
Response to our ‘announcement’ of buying property in Mexico has varied, anywhere from excited interest and wanting to know more about it -Â to outright astonishment that we would even consider such a dangerous ‘investment’. . . not only in terms of misconceptions about the people and Mexico itself (. . crime seems to be a common assumption about Mexico. . . yet only certain areas of Mexico, as in all countries, is crime a problem. . and a little research into this will inform the general public as to which areas to avoid, and which ones are safer than most streets in the United States. . . ) and another concern is the often told story of homeowners ‘losing’ their property after buying and moving into their dream homes in Mexico. . . (. .bad news travels fast - - and the bad news here was that these dream homes were built on ‘Ejido’ land. . .)
As for safety concern, and other areas of information on travel to Mexico, there are many sites that address these issues. . . One is peoplesguide.com, where the link I have given here is direct to their page on safety issues. . . Navigate back to the home page and you can access a number of different categories of information that Carl Franz and Lorena Havens, a writer/editor team with over 40 years experience traveling, living and learning things “the hard way” in Mexico and Central America have posted on their site.
But let’s get the to the issue of Ejido land. . . In a nutshell, this is land that has been set aside by the Mexican government, ’strictly’ for use by its native population, similar to the reservations that have been established within our own United States for the native people. . . Unscrupulous investors and sellers have been known to take advantage of the unwitting foreign buyer in extravagant developments on such land. . . Such was the case in
“The most high-profile dispute in recent years -  the eviction of dozens of U.S. citizens from the Punta Banda peninsula south of Ensenada in Baja California in 2000.”
the above being a quote from the Merida Insider, where you will have to join in order to view the discussion forums there and add your own thoughts - if you wish. .
The best rule of thumb is to make contact with a ‘reputable’ agent in your search for property, and follow all the guidelines and regulations that go along with purchasing property in Mexico. .(make sure that the land is ‘legal’ for sale, not ejido land) . . make use of a recommended notario and lawyer, and do a little research yourself on the subject. .Two great sites that offer information. . . .MEXonline.com and caribpro.com. . .
Another issue addressed in ‘problems’ encountered in the purchase of beach front property is that of having the ‘beach front’ that you thought was yours, and that which you ‘thought’ could not be infringed upon. . . is not actually that, and can. . unless you secure this area of open beach between the beach front property you have purchased and the ocean beyond with a ‘beach concession’. . . Quoted from caribpro.com, which gives a much larger in-depth explanation of this, is the following:
