Buy Real Estate in Cabo with Bitcoin

Buying real estate in Mexico with cryptocurrencies is possible, but it’s still very new and comes with unique challenges. 

Yes, you can buy real estate in Mexico with crypto. It’s been done—Jonathan and his team helped close a property purchase in Mexico City using crypto directly, without converting to pesos or dollars. Legally, it’s treated as an exchange of assets, and the civil code in Mexico supports that.

The challenge is education. Buyers, sellers, notaries, attorneys, banks, and even local governments are still figuring out how this works. The law is clear enough, but the practical knowledge and confidence to execute these transactions aren’t widespread yet. That means deals require specialized professionals who have done it before, and often a lot of conversations with notaries and government offices just to get everyone on board.

For foreigners, a corporation is often the safer structure. If you’re American or Canadian trying to buy beachfront property with crypto, going through a fideicomiso (bank trust) is a problem because the banks’ compliance departments are unlikely to approve it. Setting up a Mexican corporation lets you bypass the bank trustee and complete the deal more smoothly, though it does mean ongoing accounting responsibilities.

There are still missing pieces. The biggest gap right now is the lack of a crypto escrow service in Mexico. Without it, there’s no neutral third party to hold the crypto during the transaction, which adds risk for both sides. There are ongoing talks with fintech companies about creating this service, but for now, it’s a weak link. On top of that, there are unanswered questions about how to handle commissions and agent payments in crypto—whether brokers or agents can (or want to) be paid directly in Bitcoin, and how that would be taxed and regulated.

One practical solution is to structure the purchase so that most of the price is paid in crypto—around 75%—while the remaining 25% is settled in USD or pesos. This approach allows crypto to be recognized as a valid part of the deal while still ensuring there’s enough traditional currency available for essentials like escrow deposits, broker commissions, closing costs, acquisition tax, and capital gains obligations. Since those expenses can’t be paid in crypto, keeping part of the transaction in fiat currency is necessary.

This blended model also creates balance for both sides. The buyer gets to leverage their crypto to acquire property, while the seller receives immediate liquidity in cash to handle taxes and other expenses without being forced to convert crypto themselves. It also prevents the risky scenario of a sale done 100% in Bitcoin, where the seller still needs cash for obligations and may be forced to sell crypto at whatever market value happens to exist on closing day.

So at this point, using crypto to buy property in Mexico really only makes sense if the seller genuinely wants to be paid in crypto. If the seller is just going to immediately convert it to pesos or dollars, it’s usually simpler (and more tax efficient) to just close in cash. Crypto closings aren’t mainstream yet—they’re still complex, they require the right team, and they come with commercial wrinkles (escrow, commissions) that need to be worked out. But they’re possible, and with Bitcoin near all-time highs and younger demographics driving demand, it seems inevitable that we’ll see more of these deals in the years ahead.

For help with buying real estate in Mexico with cryptocurrencies: 

Fletcher Wheaton - fletcher@remexico.com 

Jonatan Espinosa - jen@bajalegalgroup.com 

Buy Real Estate in Mexico with Crypto