Key takeaways
- Three legally defined items, calculated on the price declared in the escritura:
- The paz y salvo de administración confirms the unit owes the building nothing; unpaid administración follows the apartment, so ask for it dated within days of signing.
- Read for: the seller's name matching their cédula and how they acquired the unit; any open hipoteca (cancelled with the bank at closing, usually what pushes a deal to the 45-day end); embargos, demandas, patrimonio de familia or afectación a vivienda familiar annotations, each needing lifting before the escritura; and whether the unit was created correctly out of the mother title.
- Annual predial runs from 0.3 to 1.2 percent of the cadastral value, usually below market price.
- In Guatapé and El Peñol an apartment starts at about US$87,000 with a typical ask near US$156,000, a country house around US$183,000 typically about US$328,000.
Budget about 2 percent of the purchase price in closing costs, paid by the buyer, plus your lawyer's fee. On an Edificio San Lucas apartment near the Guatapé and El Peñol typical asking price of about US$156,000, the split is notary 0.27 percent, registry 0.67 percent, beneficencia 1 percent. Closing takes 30 to 45 days.
Checklist · Before you sign a promesa
The 12 documents I check on every deal
Tick them off as you collect them. Saved on this device.
Superintendencia de Notariado y Registro, online; valid 30 days
The notaría where it was signed; ask for a certified copy
The municipality's tesorería or hacienda office
The building's or gated community's administración
From the seller; the RUT downloads from the DIAN site
Granted at a notaría, or at a consulate if the seller is abroad
Printed on the predial bill, or from the municipal catastro
In the deed and on the cadastral record
Latest paid bills from EPM or the local operator
Declared before the notary in the deed itself
Drafted by your lawyer or agent; never sign the seller's version unread
Curaduría urbana or the municipal planning office
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Where each document comes from
- Certificado de tradición y libertad: Superintendencia de Notariado y Registro, online; valid 30 days
- Prior deed: The notaría where it was signed; ask for a certified copy
- Property-tax good standing: The municipality's tesorería or hacienda office
- HOA good standing, if applicable: The building's or gated community's administración
- Seller's ID / RUT: From the seller; the RUT downloads from the DIAN site
- Power of attorney, if the seller is represented: Granted at a notaría, or at a consulate if the seller is abroad
- Cadastral appraisal: Printed on the predial bill, or from the municipal catastro
- Survey and boundaries: In the deed and on the cadastral record
- Utilities up to date: Latest paid bills from EPM or the local operator
- Family-home protection certificate: Declared before the notary in the deed itself
- Promesa de compraventa draft: Drafted by your lawyer or agent; never sign the seller's version unread
- Building permit, if applicable: Curaduría urbana or the municipal planning office
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What exactly makes up the 2 percent?
Three legally defined items, calculated on the price declared in the escritura:
- Notary, 0.27 percent. Split by custom, but written into the promesa de compraventa; budget it as yours.
- Registry, 0.67 percent. Paid at the Oficina de Registro de Instrumentos Públicos so the transfer lands on the matrícula inmobiliaria. Until then you hold a signed deed, not ownership.
- Beneficencia (departmental stamp), 1 percent. The largest piece, and the one buyers forget.
Your lawyer is quoted separately. The notary authenticates signatures; reviewing the certificate of tradition and freedom, the reglamento and the administración account is your lawyer's job.
What San Lucas adds that a house purchase does not
The paz y salvo de administración confirms the unit owes the building nothing; unpaid administración follows the apartment, so ask for it dated within days of signing. The reglamento de propiedad horizontal sets whether short-term rental is permitted, whether the parking space and depósito are titled or merely assigned in use, and how the coeficiente drives extraordinary assessments. An assigned parking space does not appear on your matrícula and cannot be sold separately. Check before negotiating. Background is in the full guide.
What the certificate of tradition and freedom has to show
Requested with the registry number. Read for: the seller's name matching their cédula and how they acquired the unit; any open hipoteca (cancelled with the bank at closing, usually what pushes a deal to the 45-day end); embargos, demandas, patrimonio de familia or afectación a vivienda familiar annotations, each needing lifting before the escritura; and whether the unit was created correctly out of the mother title.
The 30 to 45 day timeline, step by step
- First week: offer accepted, certificate pulled, reglamento and paz y salvo requested.
- Next: promesa de compraventa signed with a deposit: price, closing date, notaría and penalty.
- Funds moved. From abroad, the inbound transfer must be registered as foreign investment through the exchange market, which later supports an investment visa or repatriation of proceeds. Start early; it is the most common cause of delay.
- Final stretch: escritura signed at the notaría, beneficencia and notary paid, document to the registry. Your name appears on a fresh certificate a few weeks later.
What you pay after you own it
Annual predial runs from 0.3 to 1.2 percent of the cadastral value, usually below market price. Administración is monthly, set by the assembly. Budget for extraordinary assessments: roof, lift, facade. Capital gains are 15 percent when held two years or more.
Is the price worth it against the alternatives?
In Guatapé and El Peñol an apartment starts at about US$87,000 with a typical ask near US$156,000, a country house around US$183,000 typically about US$328,000. Across Antioquia an apartment starts at about US$93,000 and typically asks about US$196,000. Rentals have run 5 to 9 percent gross a year long-term and 8 to 15 percent short-term; appreciation has historically run 7 to 8 percent a year. History, not a forecast; short-term depends on what the reglamento permits.
How we knowFigures as of October 13, 2026. Prices: active listings we verified ourselves; USD rate: TRM 3,194.44 COP per US$1, valid October 10, 2026 (Banco de la República, via datos.gov.co).
Frequently asked questions
What are the closing costs when buying an apartment in Edificio San Lucas?
About 2 percent: notary 0.27 percent, registry 0.67 percent and beneficencia 1 percent on the declared price, plus your lawyer's fee.
How long does it take to close on an apartment in Guatapé?
30 to 45 days once the deal is agreed.
Who pays the unpaid administración on an apartment in Colombia?
The debt attaches to the unit. Require a paz y salvo dated within days of signing.
What does the certificate of tradition and freedom show?
The registered owner, mortgages, liens and encumbrances, requested with the registry number.
How much tax do I pay when I sell?
Capital gains of 15 percent when held two years or more.
