Pinal Villa is a small community about a mile behind Melaque, Jalisco on the Costalegre, Mexico.

I bought the first of two lots in November of 2007 and the second adjoining lot in the summer of 2008.   What we paid is less important than to say they were equal to less developed lots that had no water or electricity and no neighbors to share the costs.

I've learned a lot and am still learning - but the first lesson was to fence and mark your lot well because the Ejido will just go by fence lines and ignore what your original paperwork says.  We lost almost three feet off the back and a foot or two on one side. Many of the lots in Pinal Villa are un-plotted (not on a map) so had to be re-measured.

The cost of title transfer is only per square meter and doesn't matter if there is a house or vacant lot.  For us it was about $2500 pesos.  If the previous owner has not paid taxes or have receipts you need to pay the last 5 years - $100 pesos a year.

The next step for construction is hooking up to water though not absolutely necessary (just found out to get a construction permit you do need your water permit).   They can bring in a Tinaco (water tank) and fill it with a truck.  In our case and others in Pinal Villa, Melaque is in charge of the water even though we're in the Jaluco Ejido area.  The water permit was about $1200 pesos and the installation $1000 pesos.  Installation included a fancy 2 1/2" to 1/2" connector, 10 meters of pipe and a quality shutoff valve - and the ditch across the street.