Building in Colombia from abroad
Many of our clients do not live where the project is. They are Colombians in the United States, Spain, Canada, Chile or Europe who are building a house to come back to or for their family, foreigners moving to the Coffee Region, and owners who live in Bogotá, Medellín or Cali. We are a construction company based in Armenia, Quindío (Colombia), and this page explains how we work with someone who is far away.
The story we hear most often always starts the same way: the money is sent to a relative or a foreman, the work moves more slowly and costs more than planned, and you find out on your next trip. Everything that follows is designed to stop that from happening.
How it works, step by step
- First conversation. In writing, on WhatsApp or by email, or on a call in English that we book in advance so that our English-speaking consultant can be there. We work on Colombian time (UTC−5).
- Plot visit. We go to the property and you follow along by video call, or a relative goes on your behalf. Within Quindío it is free of charge.
- Written budget. With unit price analysis, quantities, specifications and a schedule. We take you through it on a video call, item by item.
- Contract. With the scope, the price, the timescales and the payment terms in writing.
- Construction with a resident engineer. The work is directed by an engineer, not an intermediary. You receive regular reports with photographs and video, and have progress video calls.
- Milestone payments. Each payment corresponds to a stage that has been completed and verified in a signed record. You pay for what has been built, not for promises.
- Handover. With as-built drawings, and the work accepted by you or by whoever you designate.
What can be done without travelling
- Signing remotely with a power of attorney. A special power of attorney granted before a Colombian consulate, or before a notary in the country where you live and apostilled, allows a relative or a lawyer to sign on your behalf for the purchase of the plot, the filing of the building permit application and other procedures.
- Obtaining the building permit. It is issued in the owner's name; we support the process and coordinate with the designer and the curaduría urbana (municipal building-permit office) or the planning office.
- Following the work. Through the reports and video calls, plus any visits your family wishes to make, whenever they wish.
The money
If you live outside Colombia, the money you bring in to buy the plot or to build may be treated as foreign investment even if you are Colombian: under the foreign-exchange regime, what counts is where you reside, not your nationality. In that case it must come in through the foreign-exchange market — a bank or an authorised intermediary — and be registered with the Banco de la República (Colombia's central bank). That registration is what later allows you to take the money out again if you sell. Your bank and an adviser can tell you how to do this in your case.
Three recommendations that apply with us and with any contractor:
- Pay into the contracting company's account, in the company's name, and ask for an invoice.
- Do not transfer large advance payments without a signed contract and a schedule.
- Pay against progress records, not against calendar dates.
What we do and what we do not
We handle the visit, the budget, the construction, support with the building permit and the reports. We do not give legal, tax or immigration advice: for the title search on the plot, taxes and the registration of the investment, we recommend an independent lawyer. It is better for you if the person reviewing the deal is not the same one doing the building.
Where we work
In Armenia and across Quindío, with frequent work in Risaralda, Caldas and northern Valle del Cauca. See our full coverage and the country houses we build. If you are not Colombian, also read the guide for foreigners.
Write to us from wherever you are. Tell us what you want to build and in which municipality, and we will book a call with our English-speaking consultant at a time that suits you.