Insights & Analysis
Articles & Commentary
Original research, market analysis, and legal commentary on cross-border real estate in Latin America and the Caribbean. Published work and forthcoming pieces on title, land registry, and transaction practice across the region.
Coming in the Fall
Featured forthcoming article preview
Navigating Cross-Border Real Estate Transactions in Latin America and The Caribbean: A Practical Guide to Bridging Knowledge Gaps
Cross-border real estate investment throughout Latin America and the Caribbean has expanded significantly over the last three decades. These transactions are governed by legal traditions, land administration systems, recording regimes, governmental approvals, and property-rights concepts that differ substantially from those familiar to most U.S. practitioners.
The upcoming article provides a practical framework for identifying and bridging the knowledge gaps that arise in cross-border real estate transactions. Focusing primarily on Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Anguilla, Aruba, and Sint Maarten as bellwether jurisdictions, it examines the impact of legal tradition, land registration systems, title insurance, perfection of interests, foreign ownership restrictions, offshore entity structures, and transaction costs on real estate acquisitions and financings.
Puerto Rico
The Bahamas
Dominican Republic
Anguilla
Aruba
Sint Maarten
Drawing upon these comparisons, the article provides practical guidance for practitioners on the comparative-law principles and due diligence considerations that should be understood before advising clients, underwriting risk, or committing capital in foreign jurisdictions.
Featured Article
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Real Estate Finance Journal · Winter 2013
Guatemala: Is it Central America's Sleeping Giant?
Edward Hamann, Jennifer Cruise & Jason M. Gordon · Fidelity National Financial
A rigorous examination of Guatemala as the most populous country and largest economy in Central America — and its potential as a destination for U.S. cross-border real estate investment and mortgage market participation. The article analyzes Guatemala's land administration system, property registry reliability (ranked #2 among 32 Latin American countries in 2011 by the World Bank), mortgage lending law, foreclosure procedure, and the CAFTA-DR trade framework that expanded U.S. investment access to the region.
Key findings include Guatemala's fully electronic registry system — backed up daily to repositories in Houston and Spain — biometric fraud prevention systems at the registry, three distinct mortgage security instruments under the Civil Code, and an arbitration framework modeled on UNCITRAL that gives foreign investors flexibility to choose governing law, venue, language, and procedure.
- Guatemala ranked #23 worldwide in ease of registering property (World Bank, 2011)
- Three mortgage security instruments: Hipoteca, Cedula Hipotecaria, and Guaranty Trust
- Civil law foreclosure (Juicio Ejecutivo) completes in 3 to 12 months
- U.S. exports to Guatemala were up 38.6% in 2011 over 2010 under CAFTA-DR
Florida Bar RPPTL Section · Summer 2009
Title Insurance “Bridges the Gap” for Investors in Latin American and Caribbean Real Estate
How title insurance underwriters navigate the comparative legal systems of Latin American and Caribbean jurisdictions — land registries, Civil Law Notary practice, foreign ownership restrictions, and the gap between U.S. expertise and local counsel knowledge.
Published — ActionLine, Vol. XXX No. 4
Cross-Border Practice · Forthcoming
Cross-Border Real Estate Risk Index for Latin America & the Caribbean
A forthcoming comparative framework ranking jurisdictions by title risk, registry reliability, transaction complexity, and investor exposure — a single reference for lenders, investors, and title professionals evaluating market entry across the region.
In Development — Hamann Real Estate Consulting
Market Analysis · Coming Soon
Panama’s Property Registry: A Model for the Region
An analysis of how Panama built one of the most reliable property registry systems in Latin America, the role of foreign ownership frameworks in attracting investment, and what other jurisdictions can learn from its approach to land administration reform.
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New articles are published as research is completed. Contact Ed directly to inquire about specific jurisdictions, collaborate on research, or request a speaking engagement.
