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The Golden Gate Bridge softened by fog
Palm trees along a Puerto Vallarta beach

Livingacross borders.

Owning in San Francisco and Puerto Vallarta — or moving from one to the other — means two legal systems, two currencies and two very different ways of closing a sale. It helps to see the whole picture before you start.

01Four common paths

Why people wantboth coasts.

  • Los Muertos beach with the hillside town behind
    01

    A second home

    Keep your life in the Bay Area and spend the winter on Banderas Bay. The questions are practical: how often you'll really use it, who looks after it when you don't, and whether renting it in between suits you.

  • A Puerto Vallarta street strung with colorful papel picado
    02

    A move south

    After years in San Francisco, some people sell and move to Vallarta full-time. Sequencing matters — when to sell, where to live in between, and how to move money across the border.

  • Aerial view of Puerto Vallarta's coastline and buildings
    03

    An income property

    Many Vallarta condominiums are bought partly to rent. A building's rules, its management and a unit's real booking history matter more than the brochure's projections.

  • A residential San Francisco street lined with bay-windowed houses
    04

    Coming back

    Owners abroad still need someone on the ground in San Francisco — to keep them informed, look after a rental, or sell when the time is right.

02Side by side

Same decision,different rules.

How buying works in San Francisco and Puerto Vallarta
TopicSan FranciscoPuerto Vallarta
How title is heldSan FranciscoFee simple, in your own name, a trust or an entity.Puerto VallartaForeign buyers in the coastal zone hold through a fideicomiso — a bank trust granted for up to 50 years and renewable.
Who closes the saleSan FranciscoAn escrow and title company manages funds and records the deed.Puerto VallartaA notario público, a state-appointed lawyer, verifies title, withholds taxes and formalizes the deed.
CurrencySan FranciscoU.S. dollars.Puerto VallartaMost listings are quoted in U.S. dollars; deeds, taxes and dues are set in pesos.
Annual property taxSan FranciscoAbout 1% of assessed value under Proposition 13, plus local measures.Puerto VallartaPredial, the municipal property tax — typically modest by U.S. standards.
FinancingSan FranciscoConventional and jumbo mortgages are widely available.Puerto VallartaMost foreign buyers pay cash; cross-border lending exists but is limited.

General information only — not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm specifics with qualified advisors in each country.

The full guide to buying in Puerto Vallarta →

Six questionsto settle first.

None of these needs an answer today. All of them deserve one before you sign anything.

  1. 01

    How many weeks a year will you actually spend there — and what happens to the home the rest of the time?

  2. 02

    Will you hold title through a fideicomiso, and is there an existing trust that can be assigned to you?

  3. 03

    Which currency will you pay in, and how will funds move between countries?

  4. 04

    Do you plan to rent? What do the building's rules and the unit's history really allow?

  5. 05

    Who are your notario, accountant and property administrator in Mexico?

  6. 06

    If you are selling in San Francisco to buy in Mexico, what is the right order of events?

From the journal

Furtherreading.

Plans thatspan two countries?

Tell Lance where you are now and where you’d like to be. He’ll help you work out the order of things.