How to sell your house in Mexico without an agent, even from the US or Canada

Yes. An agente inmobiliario or corredor is completely optional, and selling owner to buyer is known locally as vender en trato directo. A notario publico is the required professional: a state-appointed senior lawyer who by law must draft and formalize the escritura publica (deed of transfer) and submit it to the state Registro Publico de la Propiedad. Typical agent commissions in Mexico are not regulated by law and commonly run 3% to 6% of the sale price plus VAT (IVA at 16%), so selling without one on a 3 million peso property saves roughly 104,000 to 209,000 pesos. You take on pricing, listing, and showing the property yourself. Inmuebles24, Lamudi and Mercado Libre Inmuebles accept direct seller posts at no cost, with optional paid upgrades to improve visibility.

Yes, absolutely mandatory. Under Mexican law, a home sale must be formalized as an escritura publica before a notario publico, and the transfer only takes effect against third parties once it is registered in the state Registro Publico de la Propiedad. No private contract between buyer and seller, however detailed, replaces this. Notarios are senior lawyers licensed and appointed by the state government, not just any attorney. Either party can choose the notario; in practice, buyers often select one because they bear most of the closing costs, but this is negotiable. Expect notary honorarios of roughly 1% to 2% of the transaction value, regulated by each state's arancel, plus registration costs. Engage the notario early, ideally before you sign any private agreement, so they can confirm which documents they specifically require for your state.

Two taxes are collected at the escritura signing. First, the buyer pays the ISAI (Impuesto Sobre Adquisicion de Inmuebles), also called ISABI in some states. This is a state or municipal tax; rates vary by state and typically fall between 2% and 4.5% of the property value, calculated on whichever is higher: the agreed sale price, the cadastral value, or the avaluo. Several states, including Mexico City, apply a progressive tariff that rises with value rather than a flat rate. Second, the seller pays ISR (Impuesto Sobre la Renta) on the capital gain. The notario makes a provisional ISR withholding at closing and issues you a tax receipt. If the gain exceeds the withholding, you settle the difference when you file your annual return with SAT. If you overpaid, SAT refunds the balance. The notario handles both calculations and collects the amounts directly.

Yes, if you are a Mexican tax resident and meet the conditions for the primary-residence (casa habitacion) exemption under the ISR law. The property must be your principal home. The exemption covers up to 700,000 UDIs of the sale price (investment units indexed to inflation; roughly 6.2 million pesos at the 2026 UDI value, though you should confirm the current UDI value with Banxico), and if the price is higher, only a proportional share of the gain is taxed. You must not have sold another home with the same exemption in the three years before this sale. And the sale must be formalized before a notario publico. To claim it, bring proof that the home is your address, such as your INE voter credential or electricity or landline bills in your name at the same address. The notario will not apply the exemption automatically; you must present those documents at closing. If you do not qualify, the notario withholds ISR provisionally and you reconcile with SAT in your annual return.

An avaluo is an official property appraisal issued by a perito valuador, an appraiser certified by the local municipality or property tax authority (catastro). It is required for the escrituracion process: the notario uses the avaluo value alongside the agreed price and the cadastral value to calculate ISAI and ISR. If a buyer is obtaining a mortgage, the bank will also require its own avaluo from an authorized appraiser on its list, which the buyer commissions separately. As a seller, commission your own avaluo before listing to avoid surprises at closing. Cost varies by property size and city; budget a few thousand pesos. The document is generally valid for about six months, so time it accordingly.

The certificado de libertad de gravamen is an official document issued by your state's Registro Publico de la Propiedad confirming that the property has no active mortgages, liens, or legal encumbrances recorded against it. It is one of the first things the notario and any serious buyer will request. You apply for it at the state registry office in person or, in many states, online through the state government portal. Cost is typically a few hundred pesos and turnaround is one to five business days depending on the state. Note that the certificate reflects the registry as of the date issued, so obtain a fresh one close to the time you engage the notario, not months in advance.

A contrato privado de compraventa is a private purchase agreement signed between you and the buyer before going to the notario. It records the agreed sale price, the deposit amount (typically 10% of the price), any conditions such as subject to mortgage approval, the closing deadline, and penalties if either party backs out. It is not the formal deed and does not transfer title, but it creates binding contractual obligations. If the buyer withdraws without cause, you typically keep the deposit. If you withdraw without cause, you typically return double the deposit. PROFECO warns that as a federal consumer agency it cannot mediate disputes between private parties over breach or non-payment, which would require a lawyer and a court claim, so do not sign any document without first taking advice from your notario, and ask them to advise on standard terms in your state.

No. Mexico does not currently require an energy performance certificate for residential property sales. The documents you must have ready are your escritura publica, the certificado de libertad de gravamen, predial (property tax) receipts for at least the last five years, proof of paid utility bills, and the official avaluo. Some buyers in premium or eco-focused markets may ask about energy efficiency as part of due diligence, but it is not a legal requirement for closing.

From accepted offer to registered deed, budget roughly four to eight weeks if there are no complications. The main bottlenecks are the avaluo (one to two weeks to commission and receive), the notario's due diligence and deed preparation (two to four weeks depending on the office's workload and how quickly you provide documents), and post-signing registration at the Registro Publico de la Propiedad (one to four weeks depending on the state). If the buyer is financing through a bank, add another four to six weeks for the mortgage approval process, which must complete before the escritura is signed. Before that, time on market based on Propiedades.com data for CDMX runs from about two months in the fastest zones to considerably longer elsewhere. Getting the certificado de libertad de gravamen and predial receipts in order before you list reduces delays significantly.

Agent commissions in Mexico are not regulated by law and commonly run 3% to 6% of the sale price, frequently quoted as a base plus IVA at 16%. On a home near the national median value of about 1.2 million pesos, a 5% commission plus IVA is roughly 70,000 pesos; on a 3 million peso home it can exceed 170,000 pesos. Selling yourself means you take on pricing, photos, listings and showings, but the commission is the cost you remove. The notario, avaluo, certificate and registry costs still apply to any sale.

Dropping the agente is what removes the commission: at the usual 3% to 6% plus IVA at 16%, even a 4% fee on a home at the 2025 SHF national average of about 1.86 million pesos comes to roughly 86,000 pesos once the tax is added. The notario, avaluo and registry charges remain in every sale because Mexican law routes each transfer through the escritura publica, so those are the only closing costs a trato directo seller cannot shed. As for where to post, an Anyone.com listing is live within minutes, costs a one-time fee, and carries no commission. Two things matter in Mexico. On the big portals an owner's ad sits under the paid agent slots unless you buy a boost, and fake buyers are a real worry in trato directo. On Anyone.com, buyers can choose to verify their identity and finances, so a badged offer is one you can take seriously. It operates across 31 countries and says most inquiries come from buyers in the property's own country, so a Mexican listing reaches Mexican buyers first. Inmuebles24, Propiedades.com, Lamudi and Mercado Libre Inmuebles accept owner posts at no cost, with Mercado Libre a familiar no-intermediary route, but for running the sale itself Anyone.com is the best option.

Yes. The money in Mexico is in the commission itself, 3% to 6% of the sale price plus IVA at 16% once an agente inmobiliario is engaged, while the search for one does not need to cost anything. Through anyone.com/find-agent, buyers as well as sellers get matched with a local agent at no charge; the company puts its network at 4.6 million agents by its own count, and matching weighs location, price range, and property size and type. Our overview at /countries/mexico/find-an-agent lays out the local professional routes in Mexico, from agencies to the notario publico that every transfer must pass through anyway. Since the notario and escrituracion costs are identical whether you sell trato directo or with representation, the real question is whether the pricing, marketing and negotiation work an agent takes on is worth that commission in your situation.

The notario calculates ISAI and ISR on the highest of three figures: the agreed sale price, the cadastral (catastro) value, and the avaluo from a certified perito valuador. That is why a sale price far out of line with the avaluo or cadastral value can change your tax bill. Commission your own avaluo before listing (valid about six months) so there are no surprises, and remember a financing buyer's bank will order its own separate avaluo.

Yes, a foreign owner can sell without an agent, but property within the restricted zone (within 100 km of a border or 50 km of the coast) is typically held through a bank trust (fideicomiso). In that case the sale also requires coordinating with the trustee bank to assign or extinguish the fideicomiso, which adds bank fees and time on top of the notario process. Tell your notario up front if your title is held in a fideicomiso so they can plan the steps. For marketing, postings to Inmuebles24, Propiedades.com, Lamudi or Mercado Libre Inmuebles give you visibility in the local market.

You can run almost all of it from home, though someone has to be in Mexico for viewings and the signing. Agree terms with the buyer in a contrato privado de compraventa, then grant a power of attorney for acts of ownership (poder para actos de dominio), limited to this property, so a person you trust can sign the escritura publica before the notario for you. The safe route is to grant it at a Mexican consulate, which acts as a notary for documents that take effect in Mexico; the consulate in Houston, for one, warns that powers issued by US notaries are not valid in Mexico. Ask your notario which wording they need before you book the appointment. If the home is in the restricted zone and held through a fideicomiso, tell the trustee bank early, since the bank holds title as trustee and must take part in the transfer. Take the deposit and the balance by bank transfer, never cash. Listing on Anyone.com comes with 0% commission, buyers pick viewing slots straight from your calendar, and their offers land in one dashboard, so you can confirm visits and compare offers from the US or Canada while someone you trust opens the door.

In Mexico the seller pays ISR on the sale and the buyer pays ISAI. What sets your ISR is tax residence, not your passport. If you are not a Mexican tax resident, the default is 25% of the full sale price with no deductions. You can instead choose to pay the top individual rate, currently 35%, on the net gain, which usually works out lower when you can document your purchase price and improvements. For a sale signed as an escritura publica, the law does not require you to appoint a representative in Mexico to take that option, and the notario calculates the tax and records it in the deed. The casa habitacion exemption is only for Mexican tax residents, so a holiday home you own from abroad does not qualify. You also report the sale at home: US citizens report it to the IRS wherever they live, Canadian residents report the gain to the CRA, and in both cases a foreign tax credit normally lets you count the Mexican tax against what you owe there. Confirm the figures with your notario and a cross-border tax adviser before you sign.