Holbox & Isla Mujeres

Holbox and Isla Mujeres share one trait: they are island markets where land value depends as much on the environmental rules around a parcel as on its title. Holbox belongs to the Lázaro Cárdenas municipality and lies within the Yum Balam Flora and Fauna Protection Area. Isla Mujeres is a municipality with two faces: the island across the bay from Cancún, and its mainland zone, Costa Mujeres, where larger hotel and residential developments are concentrated. IBG Legal has no office on either island; both are served from the firm’s headquarters in Cancún.

Holbox: land, protected area, and regularization

In Holbox the starting point is the protected area. The National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) manages Yum Balam, and its management program and zoning determine which works and uses are possible in each polygon; for any new construction, environmental impact authorization before SEMARNAT is part of the file, not an afterthought. On top of that, part of the island’s land is of ejido origin, with possession arrangements and assignments of rights that are not the same as registered ownership. Before paying for a lot in Holbox, confirm its agrarian status, its record at the Public Registry of Property and Commerce of Quintana Roo, its position within the protected-area zoning, and the federal maritime zone status if it fronts the beach. Municipal filings go to the Lázaro Cárdenas municipal government.

Isla Mujeres and Costa Mujeres

On the island, houses and small condominiums dominate, with a waterfront subject to federal maritime zone (ZOFEMAT) concessions and, on the western shore, the neighboring national park that protects the west coast of Isla Mujeres, Punta Cancún, and Punta Nizuc. Costa Mujeres looks more like Cancún: pre-sale condominiums, hotel projects, and development land, with licenses and land use before the Isla Mujeres municipal government and federal or state environmental authorizations depending on the project. In both areas, foreign buyers acquire through a fideicomiso (bank trust) authorized by the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, because both lie within the restricted zone.

Matters we handle

Title, agrarian, and environmental-zoning due diligence; restricted-zone fideicomisos; federal-zone concessions; environmental impact authorizations and defense in PROFEPA inspection proceedings; review of pre-sale promissory agreements in Costa Mujeres; and litigation over possession disputes or developer defaults before the Quintana Roo courts and the federal courts seated in Cancún. Complimentary initial fit assessment, subject to scope review.