Yes. I want to say that plainly first, because it is the question behind most first calls. Foreigners have been able to own property in the Bay Islands for a long time, and the families I grew up with have sold to Canadians and Americans for as long as I can remember. The title is registered at the property registry in your name, the same way a Honduran's would be.
There are rules. In your own name, the law allows one residential property, on a lot up to a size cap, in a zone meant for housing or tourism. Most homes and condos on the island fit inside that cap without any trouble. If you want a bigger piece of land, or you want to own more than one property, the usual route is a Honduran corporation that holds the title, with you as its administrator. Your lawyer sets it up and keeps it in good standing each year.
People sometimes hear the word corporation and feel that something is being hidden from them. Nothing is. It is an ordinary legal tool here, and it has a few practical sides. A corporation can own larger or multiple parcels. When you sell, the buyer may take over the corporation instead of transferring the title, which some lawyers say costs less. And for inheritance, naming new administrators can be simpler than probate across two countries. It also has a cost to set up and a cost to maintain, and it adds paperwork every year. Your lawyer and your accountant weigh those for your case.
There is a second thing I always say: the question is not only whether you can hold title, but whether the title you are being offered is clean. A property can sit in a foreigner's name perfectly well and still carry a boundary dispute, an unpaid tax, or a seller who is not quite the owner. That is why the next question on this list is about your own lawyer.
One more point for couples. How two people hold a property together, and what happens when one of them passes, is a matter for your lawyer and for an accountant who understands both Honduras and the country you pay tax in. Decide that on the day you buy, not later.
What people usually do
- Most buyers of one home or condo hold it in their own name, because it is simpler.
- Buyers of larger land, or of a second property, go through a corporation set up by their lawyer.
- Couples ask their lawyer how to hold the property so that the survivor is protected, before signing.
- Nobody wires a deposit before their own lawyer has looked at the title.