Buying a house or a plot of land back home while you live in the United States is common, and it can be done without flying in. It runs on four things, each with its own rule: a power of attorney that expressly allows the purchase (and a mortgage, if there is one), a title check you can order online, a public deed registered at the property registry, and a way to pay. This page covers those, plus what Guatemala’s mortgage-insurance institute (FHA) asks of Guatemalans living abroad. It is the buying side of selling property in Guatemala while living in the USA.
In short: A representative can sign for you, but a general power of attorney needs a special clause to dispose of or mortgage property (Civil Code Art. 1693); the FHA asks emigrants for a mandate whose special clause allows the representative to buy, mortgage and cede in payment. Check the title with an online certificate from the Registro General de la Propiedad (Q50 for up to 10 pages, Q5 per extra page); the “valid abroad” option is not valid inside Guatemala. The purchase goes in a public deed registered at the registry, and the transfer pays 3% stamp tax (resales) or 12% IVA (first sale). Sending the money is legal under Guatemala’s free foreign-exchange law. General information, not legal advice.
Step 1: a power of attorney that can buy
If you are not in Guatemala to sign, a representative (mandatario) signs for you. The Civil Code’s rule:
«ARTÍCULO 1693. El poder general necesita cláusula especial para enajenar, hipotecar, afianzar, transigir, gravar o disponer de cualquier otro modo la propiedad del mandante, y para todos los demás actos en que la ley lo requiera.»
The article does not name buying as such; it does name mortgaging, and it requires the special clause as well «para todos los demás actos en que la ley lo requiera» (for all other acts where the law requires it). For a purchase with an FHA-insured mortgage, the FHA’s emigrant page is specific: a Mandato General Judicial con Representación y Cláusula Especial that allows the representative to comprar, hipotecar y ceder en pago (buy, mortgage and cede in payment), in Spanish or with a sworn translation, with its legalisations (“pases de ley”), plus a photocopy of the representative’s DPI.
Where you sign it changes the steps:
- At a Guatemalan consulate (poder consular): see our poder consular guide.
- Before a US notary: a document made abroad has to be legalised by Guatemala’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the Ley del Organismo Judicial, Art. 37, now carries a note referring to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention; for the current apostille route for US documents, see our apostille page below) and, if not in Spanish, translated under oath by a translator authorised in Guatemala; powers of attorney must then be protocolised before a notary in Guatemala (Art. 38). See apostilles for documents from the US.
Step 2: check the title from the US
The Registro General de la Propiedad (RGP) takes certificate requests online (certificaciones en línea). The form we read on 25 September 2026 lists these certificate types by name: Primera y última inscripción (first and last inscription), Historial completo (complete history), Específica de la finca, Negativa, Duplicados, Aviso de testamento and Asiento de testamento.
What the form states:
- Fee: «de 1 a 10 Hojas: Q50.00; Hoja adicional: Q5.00», citing Civil Code Article 1180 and Acuerdo Gubernativo 325-2005, Article 2, numeral 2.8.
- You need the property’s finca, folio and libro numbers and department, plus your name, NIT, address, phone and email, and where you will pick up the certificate.
- Payment: a presentation code (código de presentación) is generated; the form links to online payment and to Banrural and Banco Industrial online banking.
- “Válida en el extranjero”: the form offers a certificate valid abroad and warns: «Usted está seleccionando la opción ‘Válida en el extranjero’, tome en cuenta que dicha certificación no tendrá validez en el territorio nacional.» (a certificate marked valid abroad will not be valid inside Guatemala). For a purchase in Guatemala, the notary works in Guatemala; ask them which version they need.
If you do not have the finca number, see how to find a property record at the RGP; for the certificate itself, RGP property certification.
Step 3: the deed and the registration
- Public deed. Civil Code Article 1576: contracts that must be inscribed in the registries, whatever their value, must be in a public deed (escritura pública), which a Guatemalan notary authorises.
- Registration. Article 1125 lists what the registry inscribes, starting with the titles that prove ownership of real estate and the titles that transfer it. Registration of a purchase is covered in registering property at the RGP.
- Transfer taxes. The transfer pays either the 3% stamp tax (timbres fiscales), on the second and later sales of a property, or 12% IVA, on its first sale (Decreto 37-92 Arts. 2 and 4; Decreto 27-92 Arts. 3 and 10). The detail is on the selling page.
- Every year after: the property tax IUSI; see IUSI property tax in Guatemala.
Step 4: paying from the US
Article 1 of the Ley de Libre Negociación de Divisas (Decreto 94-2000) says the disposal, holding, remittance and transfer of foreign currency are free, so sending the purchase money is legal. How your bank handles a large wire, and the documents it asks for, are set by the bank. For what US rules do and do not cover when a transfer goes wrong, see remittance scams and how to get money back.
Financing: what the FHA asks of Guatemalans abroad
The Instituto de Fomento de Hipotecas Aseguradas (FHA) describes itself as a decentralised state institution whose function is to insure mortgages. Its emigrant page says financial institutions provide the credit, with terms of up to 25 years, and lists extra requirements for Guatemalans living abroad:
| Requirement | What the FHA lists |
|---|---|
| ID from where you live | Photocopy of the residence card or work permit, or the passport of the country whose nationality you adopted; and a consular ID (matrícula consular), driver’s licence or other ID |
| Power of attorney | Mandato General Judicial con Representación y Cláusula Especial allowing the representative to buy, mortgage and cede in payment; Spanish or sworn translation |
| Representative | Full photocopy of the representative’s DPI |
| Income, employees | One of: an income statement (Spanish or sworn translation); original remittance slips or a certification from the remittance company abroad or the receiving one in Guatemala; last year’s annual income-tax return |
| Income, self-employed or business owners | One of: remittance slips or certification; balance sheet and income statement certified by an authorised accountant in your country of residence; proof the business legally exists; last year’s income-tax return in Spanish |
All documents «con sus pases de ley» (with their legalisations). The FHA’s page does not list interest rates or lenders; it says the financial institutions provide the credit. We do not recommend any lender.
Related
- Selling property in Guatemala while living in the USA
- Buying property as a US returnee: if you are moving back
- Hiring a lawyer in Guatemala from the USA: checking that a notary is registered
Sources: Código Civil, Decreto-Ley 106, Arts. 1125, 1576 and 1693 (CENADOJ annotated Civil Code, updated to 8 August 2025, read 23 September 2026); Ley del Organismo Judicial, Arts. 37-38 (CENADOJ, read 23 September 2026); Registro General de la Propiedad, online certificate request form (read 25 September 2026); FHA, Emigrantes page (read 25 September 2026); Decreto 37-92, Decreto 27-92 and Decreto 94-2000 as cited on our selling page (read 24 September 2026). General information, not legal or financial advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I buy a house in Guatemala without travelling there?
Yes, through a representative (mandatario) who signs for you. The Civil Code’s Article 1693 says a general power of attorney needs a special clause to dispose of the principal’s property or to mortgage it, among other listed acts, and for all other acts where the law requires it. Guatemala’s FHA, for Guatemalans abroad buying with an FHA-insured mortgage, asks for a Mandato General Judicial con Representación y Cláusula Especial that allows the representative to buy, mortgage and cede in payment, in Spanish or with a sworn translation.
How do I check the property's title from the US?
The Registro General de la Propiedad takes certificate requests online (certificaciones en línea): first and last inscription, complete history, specific to the property, negative certificate and others. Its form states the fee as Q50.00 for 1 to 10 pages and Q5.00 per additional page, and lets you pay online or through Banrural’s or Banco Industrial’s online banking. If you tick ‘válida en el extranjero’, the form warns that the certificate will not be valid in Guatemala.
What taxes apply when buying property in Guatemala?
The transfer pays either the 3% stamp tax (timbres fiscales), on the second and later sales of a property, or 12% IVA, on its first sale (Decreto 37-92 Arts. 2 and 4; Decreto 27-92 Arts. 3 and 10). The deed goes before a notary and is registered at the property registry. After buying, the owner pays the annual IUSI property tax.
Can I get a mortgage in Guatemala while living in the US?
Guatemala’s FHA (Instituto de Fomento de Hipotecas Aseguradas), a state institution that insures mortgages, has a page for emigrants. It says financial institutions provide the credit, with terms of up to 25 years, and lists extra requirements for Guatemalans abroad: ID from the country where you live, a power of attorney with a special clause to buy and mortgage, the representative’s DPI, and proof of income such as an income statement, original remittance slips or a remittance company’s certification, or the last annual income-tax return, all with their legalisations.
Can I send the money for the purchase from the US?
Guatemala’s foreign-exchange law allows it: Article 1 of the Ley de Libre Negociación de Divisas (Decreto 94-2000) says the disposal, holding, remittance and transfer of foreign currency are free. What documents a bank asks for on a large wire is set by the bank.
