OK, now you have your Mexico Paradise Real Estate You have either received physical possession or have received legal possession or maybe both, and your next challenge… How do you get your Mexican Property Set up with an account in your name at the Electric Company

CFE (Comision Federal de Electricidad) is the institution where you will set up your account for electricity The electric company here in Mexico is a federal institution and it is not private Obviously the first thing you wish to do once you have your Mexico Property is to set up the accounts for electricity, set up the Mexico water accounts, gas, telephone and television But the first question; is the property a new construction where you will be ordering a new meter (new account), or is the property a resale, where you the new owner will be requesting a change of residence owner

Mexico Electric Contract; Setting Up a New Meter and Account

Before contracting the Mexico Electric account, the company requires a few items listed below (as listed out by the company):

1) Electric Cables must exist in the street

2) The nearest electric pole must be within 35 meters of the meter

3) The internal electric installation must be complete and safe for the residence

4) The exterior panel and base for the meter must exist and be properly prepared for insertion of the meter.

TheCFE will require a few documents and charge a fee to set up your new Mexico Property Electrical Account

a) Name of the new resident and address

b) $502 pesos (2008 second semester fees)**

c) copy of the new resident owner's identification (official id, passport)

d) copy of the of the purchase/sales contract

e) proof of address for the Mexican property (Developer may have previous electric bill, or phone bill etc)

f) Phone number

Once these documents are delivered and fees paid, it will take approximately 8 – 15 days for the Electric Company to visit your Mexico home and connect

Mexico Electric Contract; Changing the Registered Owner Name on an Electric Account

If you have purchased a residence that already has an existing meter, you will want to update your name to appear on the Mexico Electric account and bills

The electric company will require the following documents and fees.

a) copy of the purchase / sales contract

b) copy of the official Identification of the new owner

c) proof of address for the Mexican property such as recent telephone bill, recent gas bill, or better yet the last electric bill with name of the previous owner.

d) $300 pesos (2008 second semester fees) **

* It is important to ensure that your name is captured completely and as what appears on your official identification and as it appears on your new Mexico Title These electric receipts will be documents necessary for filing when you selling your residency See the post, Mexico capital gains taxes.

** The fees charged by the Electric Company may vary from state to state.

More Information on Mexico Electric Company

Once you have your electric set up and operating, some other side notes that might be helpful;

The standard here in Mexico for electricity is 110 volts Three prong outlets are not common on older structures, but the newer buildings have these redily available Adapters are easy to find in major office supply outlets such as Office Depot and Office Max as well as in Home Depot and Home Mart supply outlets It is always wise to buy a surge protector and electrical no-break aparatus for your computers

Most meters here in Mexico are either a 5 digit or a 4 digit reading The hand will point between two digits, the lesser value of the two digits is what is captured on the bill between readings.

In Mexico, 23% of the total electric consumption is consumed from residences Of this amount, 43% is calculated for ilumination purposes

Payments can be realized by internet for the electric bills.

Beatriz Lozano www.TOPmexicorealestate.com

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