Panama Real Estate Title & Escrow Services
Title Searches
Our attorneys provide our clients with a complete service for real estate title searches. Real estate title searches in Panama are completed by carefully researching the various governmental and private institutions to ensure that there are no claims, liens or encumbrances that could hinder the title transfer process.
The main areas that are researched are the following;
- Public Registry of Panama – Here the attorneys check to ensure that the property is registered to the name of the seller, or the seller’s entity (corporation, foundation, or trust) and that there are no pending liens or encumbrances on the property. A copy of the public deed and all amendments to the public deed are extracted from the Public Registry, which are then researched and confirmed to be valid and authentic.
- Ministry of Economy & Finance – Here the attorneys check to ensure that the property has all property taxes paid up to date.
- Utility Companies – The attorneys check with the various utility companies to ensure that the property has all water utilities, electrical utilities, etc. paid up to date so that there are no future claims from the utility companies.
- Agricultural Reform Department – In the event that the property is not titled property, rather it is what is referred to as “Possession Rights” property (Propiedad de Derecho Possessorio), the attorneys research and confirm the Possession Rights Certification at the Agricultural Reform Department (the department that regulates government lands in rural areas that are granted ownership rights to those citizens or entities who have proven use of the land through a Possession Rights Certification).
Title Insurance
We act as agents for several international insurance companies, who offer property title insurance policies and title guarantees in Panama.
Title policy costs are as follows (all figures are in US Dollars):
| Transaction Amount |
Insurance Policy Cost |
Title Search Cost |
| $0-$80,000 |
$800 |
$750 |
| $80,000-$500,000 |
1% of the policy amount |
$750 |
| $500,000-$2,000,000 |
.7% of the policy amount |
$750 |
| $200,000 |
Negotiable |
$750 |
In addition to the title policy costs, there is a title search cost of $750.
The title insurance company requires that a licensed lawyer must complete a proper title search in accordance with the requirements of the insurance company, and provide the results of the title search to the insurance company prior to the insurance policy being issued. Our firm will duly provide this service.
Escrow Services
We offer escrow services to buyers and sellers of real property in Panama (or any other asset or service outside of Panama), and to handle the receipts and payments for these transactions.
In the case of a real estate transaction in Panama, we would receive the full payment from the buyer, and at the closing, we would disburse payment to the seller, disburse payment to the broker (for realtor commissions, if any), disburse payment to the construction company (for property development, if any), disburse payment to the attorney (for legal work such as title search, buy/sell contract, title transfer, etc.), and disburse payment to any other party directly involved in the transaction that must be paid as part of the buy/sell agreement.
The primary purpose of an escrow service is to;
- Provide the seller with the assurance that the buyer has the funds to pay for the transaction, since we can confirm that the funds have been paid into the escrow account.
- Provide the buyer with the assurance that the property has had a proper title search completed, a proper buy/sell contract has been executed, and the legalities of the transaction have been met to protect the buyer’s interests.
- Provide the buyer with the assurance that the various parties involved in the transaction will be paid according to the buy/sell contract, so to avoid any after purchase claims.
Escrow Fees
| ESCROW TRANSACTION AMOUNT |
FEE |
$10,000 to $50,000.00 |
1% |
$50,000.01 to $100,000.00 |
0.75% |
$100,000.01 to $250,000.00 |
0.5% |
$250,000 or more |
0.375% |
Property Purchase Transaction Steps
1. Contact Us: Once you agree to purchase a property, you or your broker should contact us and provide the complete information of the transaction.
2. Confirmation: We will contact all the parties involved (seller, broker, law firm, etc.) in the transaction, to confirm the complete information (purchase price, payment form, broker’s commission if any, legal services fees, etc.).
3. Balance and Wire Instructions: We will send an updated balance, reviewed by our accountants, including all details of the complete breakdown of payments for your transaction. At this time, you will be provided with the wire and check deposit instructions.
4. Closing and Payments: Once the client authorizes our firm, in coordination with the attorney handling the buy / sell contract for the transaction, we will arrange for the closing (payment to the Seller and signature on the contract). We will also make the final payments and disbursements to all the parties involved (law firm, broker’s commission if any, etc.) to complete the transaction.
5. Invoice: We will provide the client a detailed invoice of the services provided, and a complete breakdown of the fees.
6. Payment Receipts: We will provide the client all the payment receipts and transaction documentation.
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