# What Colombians Need to Know Before Buying Property in Florida

> Colombia is the number one country searching Miami real estate online — for 39 consecutive months, no other country has matched Colombian demand for South Florida listings. In...

- URL: https://maxliferealty.com/blog/colombians-buying-florida
- Author: Ryan Solberg, Florida real estate broker (BK3354351), MaxLife Realty
- Published: 2026-05-18
- Category: Investment

## Key Takeaways

- Colombia is the #1 country searching Miami real estate for 39 consecutive months — and the #2 foreign buyer in Florida by dollar volume at $925 million. Colombian buyers know this market. The question is whether you know the rules before you wire the money.
- FIRPTA withholding: when you sell, 15% of the gross sale price is withheld at closing — on a $500,000 sale, $75,000 withheld regardless of your actual capital gain. You recover it by filing a US non-resident return, a process that takes 6–12 months.
- Colombia has NO estate or gift tax treaty with the United States. Unlike UK or German buyers, Colombian-domiciled owners get only the standard $60,000 non-resident exemption on US assets — not a proportionate share of the full $13.6M exemption. On a $600,000 Miami condo, that exposes roughly $540,000 to federal estate tax at rates up to 40%.
- The COP/USD rate matters more for Colombians than almost any other buyer group. At 3,800 pesos per dollar, a $500,000 Miami property costs approximately COP $1.9 billion. When the peso was near its 2023 low of 4,972 per dollar, that same property cost COP $2.5 billion — a 30% swing.
- 64% of Latin American buyers in Miami purchase for investment — rental income or future resale. The dominant Colombian buyer profile is not a part-year resident; it's capital preservation plus yield: a Brickell or Doral condo that earns rental income while protecting wealth against peso volatility.
- Foreign national mortgages are available without a US Social Security number or US credit history. Specialist lenders use a Colombian CPA income letter and bank statements. Expect 25–30% down and rates 0.5–1% above conventional. Many Colombian buyers at $500K+ go all-cash to strengthen offers in competitive Miami submarkets.
- STR permitting in Florida is community-specific, not city-wide. In Orlando, only specific resort communities near Disney — Reunion Resort, Champions Gate, the Davenport corridor — permit nightly rentals. In Miami, short-term rental rules vary by building and municipality. Verify before you make an offer.

Colombia is the number one country searching Miami real estate online — for 39 consecutive months, no other country has matched Colombian demand for South Florida listings. In the twelve months ending mid-2025, Colombian buyers spent $925 million on Florida real estate, making Colombia the second-largest foreign buyer in the state by dollar volume, behind only Canada. That's a market that knows what it's doing.

But there is a gap between market enthusiasm and transaction readiness. Most Colombian buyers I work with arrive knowing the neighborhoods, knowing the USD price they want to spend, and sometimes knowing exactly which building they want. What they often don't know is the legal structure required to hold the property safely, the carrying cost in pesos at a realistic long-term exchange rate, or the single biggest financial trap for Colombian owners that UK and German buyers don't face: no estate tax treaty protection.

Here's what needs to be in place before you close.

## Know the Real Carrying Cost — Before and in Pesos

![A tidy Central Florida single-family rental home with fresh landscaping and a two-car garage](https://maxliferealty.com/images/blog/inline/investment-rental-1.jpg)

On a $500,000 Orlando or Miami property, non-residents can expect annual property taxes around $5,000–$7,500. Florida's homestead exemption — which can reduce taxes by $50,000 or more — is available only to Florida residents. You won't qualify.

Homeowners and wind insurance has risen sharply since 2022; budget $3,500–$6,500/year depending on construction year, roof age, and wind zone. Flood insurance is separate and mandatory in many zones — budget $1,500–$3,000/year in flood-prone areas. If you're buying for rental income, property management adds another 15–25% of gross revenue.

I tell Colombian clients to convert the full annual carrying cost to pesos at a conservative rate — not the best COP rate of the past year, but a rate that reflects the volatility range. At 3,800 pesos per dollar, $15,000/year in carrying costs is COP $57 million. At 4,500, it's COP $67.5 million. Run the number at multiple rates before you fall in love with a listing.

## Financing as a Colombian National

You can get a US mortgage without a Social Security number, US credit score, or green card. Foreign national mortgage programs from Florida-focused lenders — The Doce Group, Griffin Funding, Fidelity Home Group — verify income through a certified Colombian CPA letter and 12–24 months of bank statements. No US tax returns, no SSN, no US credit history required for most programs.

Typical terms: 25–30% down payment, fixed rates 0.5–1% above conventional, 30-year terms available. New construction condos may require up to 50% down.

With the COP strengthening from lows above 4,900 per dollar in 2023 to the 3,500–3,800 range in 2025–2026, many Colombian buyers are moving decisively on all-cash purchases. Cash eliminates the financing contingency, simplifies closing, and makes offers significantly more competitive in Miami's South American buyer-heavy condo market. If you're financing, time your COP-to-USD conversion through a specialist FX service rather than your retail bank — the spread on a large peso transfer can cost you millions of pesos at a retail rate.

## FIRPTA — The Rule That Surprises Everyone at Closing

FIRPTA (Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act) requires the buyer's title company to withhold **15% of the gross sale price** when a foreign national sells US real estate. That's 15% of the sale price — not the gain.

On a $500,000 sale, that's $75,000 withheld at closing and submitted to the IRS, pending your non-resident return. You can recover it — but it requires filing Form 1040-NR, and the refund process typically takes 6–12 months. Plan for a cash flow gap. Work with a cross-border CPA before you're anywhere near ready to sell.

## Estate Tax — The Most Dangerous Gap for Colombian Buyers

This is where I have a very different conversation with Colombian clients than I have with UK or German buyers.

Non-resident aliens without a US estate or gift tax treaty receive only a **$60,000 exemption** on US-situs assets at death. The US has estate and gift tax treaties with the UK, Germany, France, Australia, Japan, and a dozen other countries — treaties that give their buyers a proportionate share of the full $13.6M US exemption. **Colombia is not on that list.** There is no US-Colombia estate or gift tax treaty.

That means a Colombian national holding a $600,000 Miami condo personally has roughly **$540,000 exposed to US federal estate tax** at rates that reach 40%. At a 40% effective rate on the excess over $60,000, the potential estate tax bill on a single Florida property exceeds $200,000.

The standard solution is entity structuring: holding the Florida property through a properly structured LLC or foreign corporation that removes the real estate from your personal US estate. The details matter — a Florida LLC alone doesn't solve the problem; the entity structure needs to be designed by an attorney who handles US-Colombia cross-border cases. This must be done before you close, not after. It cannot be retrofitted onto an already-purchased property without triggering additional taxes.

I raise this in the first conversation with every Colombian client, not because it's the most exciting topic, but because it's the one that can quietly cost a household hundreds of thousands of dollars.

## Where Colombian Buyers Land in Florida

The data is clear: Colombian buyers concentrate heavily in South Florida. The Miami corridor — [Brickell](https://maxliferealty.com/contact), Doral, Edgewater, Sunny Isles Beach, Aventura, Coral Gables — accounts for the majority of Colombian purchases. These are familiar markets with large established Colombian communities, direct flights from Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali, and a deep pipeline of Spanish-speaking professionals, property managers, and service providers.

**If your goal is capital preservation plus rental yield:** Brickell and Edgewater condos in Miami's urban core offer walkable environments, strong long-term rental demand, and appreciating USD-denominated assets. Sunny Isles and Aventura offer newer luxury inventory with ocean access and large Latin American buyer communities that support resale liquidity.

**Doral** deserves its own mention: it's the neighborhood with the deepest Colombian community presence in all of Miami-Dade, with Colombian restaurants, Colombian schools, and a buyer-seller ecosystem that functions almost independently. Many Colombian investors buy here first.

**If you want more space per dollar or a base near Orlando:** [Dr. Phillips](https://maxliferealty.com/dr-phillips) has a long-established international buyer community, excellent schools, and positions you between Disney and downtown Orlando — practical for buyers who visit seasonally and want a genuine neighborhood rather than a resort compound. [Windermere](https://maxliferealty.com/windermere) and the [Butler Chain of Lakes](https://maxliferealty.com/butler-chain-of-lakes) corridor suit buyers drawn to waterfront lifestyle and larger estate properties. [Lake Nona](https://maxliferealty.com/lake-nona) suits newer-construction buyers who want a master-planned environment with strong employment-corridor fundamentals anchoring long-term rental demand.

**If your strategy is STR yield near Disney:** Reunion Resort, Champions Gate, and the Davenport/Haines City corridor are the purpose-built options. These communities explicitly permit short-term rentals, sit within 15–20 minutes of the Disney parks, and generate 40–50 week occupancy when managed professionally. Entry prices start around $380,000 for Davenport townhomes; Reunion Resort homes run $500,000–$750,000+ for resort pool homes. Gross yields of 8–12% are achievable; net yield after management, taxes, insurance, and maintenance is the number to pressure-test.

## HOA and STR Rules — Read Them Before You Make an Offer

![A real estate agent showing a bright, open Central Florida home to smiling buyers](https://maxliferealty.com/images/blog/inline/buying-home-tour-2.jpg)

In [Dr. Phillips](https://maxliferealty.com/dr-phillips) and the established Orlando lifestyle communities, most neighborhoods prohibit short-term rentals or impose 30-day minimum tenancy requirements. In Miami, STR rules vary building by building and municipality by municipality. The communities and buildings that permit STR carry a price premium precisely because of that permission.

I've had clients fall in love with a building, negotiate a price, and discover on day three of due diligence that Airbnb was prohibited by the HOA. The title company will not flag this for you. Pull the CC&Rs before you make an offer.

## Property Management Is Not Optional

For Colombian owners managing a Florida property from Bogotá or Medellín — typically on a 1-to-5-hour time difference — on-the-ground management is not optional. For STR properties: platform management, dynamic pricing, guest communication, cleaning coordination, pool and spa servicing, and hurricane prep all require a local operator. For long-term rentals: tenant placement, maintenance coordination, and annual inspections. Budget 15–25% of gross revenue for STR management; 8–10% for traditional long-term management. This is the cost of operating a USD-denominated asset from thousands of miles away.

## Get the Right Professionals in Place Early

Before you make an offer, you need: a Florida estate attorney who handles US-Colombia cross-border entity structuring (not a general estate planning attorney — someone who specifically knows the non-treaty exposure and LLC solutions), a CPA who files US non-resident returns for Colombian property owners, and a local agent who knows which communities permit STR and which neighborhoods have the strongest Colombian buyer community infrastructure for resale.

At MaxLife Realty, I work with Colombian buyers across both the Miami corridor and Orlando. [Reach out when you're ready to start the conversation.](https://maxliferealty.com/contact)

---

*Planning a longer-term base in Central Florida? The [Complete Orlando Relocation Guide](https://maxliferealty.com/moving-to-orlando) covers income tax savings by state, neighborhood comparisons, and which community fits where you're coming from.*

## How to Buy Florida Real Estate as a Colombian Citizen

1. **Run the Full Annual Carrying Cost — in Both USD and COP** — Colombian buyers often focus on the purchase price and underestimate the ongoing cost of owning a Florida property from a distance. On a $500,000 home in Miami-Dade or Orange County: annual property taxes run $5,000–$7,500 (non-residents do not qualify for Florida's homestead exemption); homeowners and wind insurance runs $3,500–$6,500/year and has risen sharply since 2022; flood insurance is separate and mandatory in many zones. If you're buying an STR near Disney or a rental condo in Brickell, add property management at 15–25% of gross rental revenue. Total annual carrying cost on a well-managed investment property can exceed $20,000/year before mortgage. Convert that number to pesos at your expected long-term rate — not the best rate of the last 12 months — before you commit to a price.
2. **Understand Your Financing Options as a Colombian National** — Standard US conventional mortgages require a Social Security number and US credit history — Colombian nationals don't qualify through normal channels. Your realistic options are: foreign national mortgage programs through specialist lenders (The Doce Group, Griffin Funding, and Fidelity Home Group are three Florida-focused lenders that work regularly with Latin American buyers); or all-cash purchase. Specialist lenders verify income through a certified Colombian CPA letter and 12–24 months of bank statements rather than US tax returns. No SSN or US visa is required by many programs. Typical terms: 25–30% down payment, fixed rates 0.5–1% above conventional, 30-year terms available. With the COP strengthening to the 3,500–3,800 range in 2025–2026 from lows above 4,900 in 2023, many Colombian buyers are moving more aggressively into the cash purchase category. A competitive all-cash offer can move faster and often beats a financed offer in the South Florida condo market.
3. **Understand FIRPTA Withholding When You Eventually Sell** — FIRPTA (Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act) requires the buyer's title company to withhold 15% of the gross sale price and remit it to the IRS when a foreign national sells US real estate. On a $500,000 sale, $75,000 is withheld at closing — regardless of what you paid for the property or what your actual capital gain is. You file a US non-resident return (Form 1040-NR) and the IRS refunds the excess over your actual tax liability. The process typically takes 6–12 months. Work with a cross-border CPA who handles Colombian nationals with US real estate income before you sell, not at closing.
4. **Understand the Estate Tax Exposure — Colombia Has No Treaty** — This is the most significant financial risk most Colombian buyers don't know about until it's too late. Non-resident aliens without a US estate or gift tax treaty receive only a $60,000 exemption on US-situs assets. The US has estate and gift tax treaties with Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, South Africa, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Canada — Colombia is not on this list. That means a Colombian national who dies holding a $600,000 Miami condo personally exposes roughly $540,000 to US federal estate tax at rates up to 40%. At a 40% effective rate, that is $216,000 in US estate tax on a single property. The standard solution is to hold the property through a properly structured entity — typically a Florida LLC owned by a Colombian corporation or trust — that removes the Florida real estate from your personal US-situs estate. This must be set up before you close, not after. Work with a Florida estate attorney who handles Colombian or Latin American cross-border cases.
5. **Choose Your Strategy Before You Choose a Neighborhood** — Colombian buyers in Florida fall into two use cases that require different markets and ownership structures. Capital-preservation investors want rental-income properties in Miami's established international submarkets — Brickell, Doral, Edgewater, Sunny Isles, and Aventura. These buyers hold condos that generate long-term rental income while the asset appreciates in a stable USD-denominated market. Lifestyle buyers — Colombian professionals, entrepreneurs, or pre-retirees planning to spend significant time in Florida — often target the same Miami submarkets or shift to Orlando for more space per dollar: Dr. Phillips for its established Latin American community and excellent schools, Lake Nona for newer construction and a master-planned environment, the Butler Chain of Lakes corridor for waterfront lifestyle. STR investors focused on Disney-proximity yield concentrate in Reunion Resort, Champions Gate, and the Davenport corridor, where resort amenities and professional management drive 40–50 week occupancy.
6. **Verify STR Permissions and HOA Rules Before Making an Offer** — Short-term rental rules in Florida are governed at the community level. In Orlando, two communities in the same zip code can have completely different rules — one allowing nightly Airbnb rentals, one requiring 12-month minimum leases, one prohibiting rentals entirely. In Miami, STR rules vary by municipality and by individual building. Brickell condos that permit STR command a significant premium because of that permission. Always read the HOA CC&Rs and review the rental restrictions section before going under contract. Your agent should pull governing documents during due diligence; the title company will not flag rental restrictions for you.
7. **Open a US Bank Account and Assemble Your Cross-Border Team** — Open a US bank account before closing — it simplifies wire transfers, rental income deposits, and ongoing expense payments. Many Colombian buyers open accounts through US regional banks or use international banking services offered by banks like Citibank that have a Colombian presence. Assemble your advisory team before you start searching: a Florida real estate attorney with Latin American or Colombian cross-border experience (specifically for LLC/entity structuring to address the estate tax exposure), a cross-border CPA who files US returns for Colombian property owners, a foreign national mortgage specialist if financing, a licensed property manager for STR or rental operations, and a currency specialist to time COP-to-USD conversions at favorable rates. At MaxLife Realty, I work with Colombian buyers in both the Orlando and the South Florida corridor and can connect you with the right professionals.

---

Source: "What Colombians Need to Know Before Buying Property in Florida" by Ryan Solberg, Florida real estate broker (BK3354351), MaxLife Realty, https://maxliferealty.com/blog/colombians-buying-florida (last updated 2026-05-18). Content may be quoted with attribution to MaxLife Realty.