As a licensed real estate agent living in Tulum, I often get asked this question: should I buy an available home or a presale? The answer depends largely on the buyer’s individual circumstances, including their readiness to buy, risk tolerance, flexibility, and budget.
Understanding the Options
The Tulum real estate market currently offers a wide range of available homes and presales. Which option is better for you?
Available Homes: Benefits and Drawbacks
Benefits:
– Certainty: Ideal for buyers who prefer minimal risk and want to see, touch, and feel the property before buying. There’s no uncertainty about the final look or feel of the property.
– Immediate Ownership: You can move in or rent out the property immediately after the purchase.
– Negotiation Potential: Sellers of available homes are often regular people, and their higher motivations for selling (compared to developers’ motivations) can lead to better deals compared to new properties.
Drawbacks:
– Limited Customization: You can’t choose finishes, add a bedroom, or make changes to the property before purchase. But you can always make upgrades once the property is yours.
– Immediate Payment: You need to have the full resources available at the moment of purchase, as there are no payment plans.
Presales: Benefits and Drawbacks
Benefits:
– Flexibility: Buyers with a higher risk tolerance, flexible on delivery time, and who prefer not to invest all resources upfront may find presales appealing.
– Customization: There’s the possibility to request modifications before the property is built.
– Payment Plans: Presales often offer flexible payment options, spreading out the financial commitment over time. Payment options don’t mean financing, as you will be paying for the property before delivery.
Drawbacks:
– Higher Risk: Presales carry more risk since the property is not yet built. There can be delays, differences in construction quality, or, in rare cases, fraud where the developer fails to deliver.
– Uncertain Returns: Previously, presales often offered significant equity gains from signing to completion. However, this is now rare due to market changes.
My Expertise
Given the complexity and risks associated with presales, I invest considerable time vetting projects before recommending them to my clients. I only offer presales from developers with proven experience in Tulum. Despite the risks, some clients prefer presales for the potential benefits. I also invest a large amount of time analyzing the available homes in the market to always be updated on new inventory or price reductions.
Conclusion
Available homes offer a more predictable and less risky investment, but require immediate payment and offer limited customization. Presales provide flexibility in payment and customization but come with higher risks.
According to your needs and comfort with risk, which option should you choose? Contact me, to discuss your specific situation and find the best property for you.
And what about building, instead of buying a presale or an available home? Well, this is another super interesting option that deserves a dedicated post to talk about it. Visit my post where I talk about building in Tulum.