The main areas that are researched are the following:

Public Registry of Panama – Here the attorneys check to ensure that the property is registered to the name of the seller, or the sellers entity (corporation, foundation, or trust) and that there are no pending liens or encumbrances on the property. A copy of the public deed and all amendments to the public deed are extracted from the Public Registry, which are then researched and confirmed to be valid and authentic.

Ministry of Economy & Finance – Here the attorneys check to ensure that the property has all property taxes paid up to date.

Utility Companies – The attorneys check with the various utility companies to ensure that the property has all water utilities, electrical utilities, etc. paid up to date so that there are no future claims from the utility companies.

Agricultural Reform Department – In the event that the property is not titled property, rather it is what is referred to as “Possession Rights” property (Propiedad de Derecho Possessorio), the attorneys research and confirm the Possession Rights Certification at the Agricultural Reform Department (the department that regulates government lands in rural areas that are granted ownership rights to those citizens or entities who have proven use of the land through a Possession Rights Certification).

Courtesy: of Panama Offshore Services.