group land buys
Go to “Land Available” to see lots and land for sale.
At Fruit Haven, we encourage people to become a part of the change and buy their own land.
This results in more permaculture land for growing fruit forests and living sustainably. A great way to advance our mission, and to help you own your own land. Food-producing tropical land is a great investment that holds its value better than almost anything else. Plus, it gives the ultimate economic and survival security to you and your family – if it ever became necessary, you always have the option to “live off the land.”
Participate in a group land buy at Fruit Haven and you get:
(click on each title to expand)
Your name on the land title as a co-owner
Ecuador has a secure land title system and as a foreigner, you only need a valid passport to buy land. You do not have to be present here, you can purchase remotely if you wish, via a limited power of attorney document. We do a thorough map and title study on each land to prevent future boundary or ownership disputes.
As a co-owner, you have a percent share of the property that is indicated in the title and the property registry certificate. For example, if you buy a share in Fruit Haven 3, you have 5% ownership of the property. The contract between owners (see below) ensures that you have a 1.5 hectare private homestead lot (in the case of Fruit Haven 3.)
A private homestead lot
Depending on the size of your share, you will receive a mapped and marked portion of the land that is legally tied to your name via the contract between property owners (see below). Here you can build your house, plant fruit trees, etc. We also offer remote management of planting and construction in case you’d like a cabin and fruit trees but aren’t able to come here right away to have it done yourself. Click here to see a page that helps Fruit Haven owners explore the options for developing their lots.
Legal contract between you and the other owners
This includes land use, shared property expenses, dispute resolution, property development fund contributions, defining private homestead lots, and other important clauses. See a sample.
A share in the property development fund
The property development fund includes shared property expenses like boundary marking, water system, path and trail maintenance, and property taxes to the local government. It also includes maintenance of a “community area” with house, workshop, internet, etc, so that owners can have a “home base” while they are working on developing their homestead lots, and so that guests and volunteers have a place to stay. The community area can also be used to host retreats and events.
The contribution to the initial development fund for each property is included in the share price.
After the initial development period is completed, each owner should expect to contribute to the fund every 1-2 years based on a budget that is discussed and decided upon by all owners. This usually ends up being $300-$500 per year per 5% share of ownership of the property.
Learn about why we chose Southeast Ecuador for Terra Frutis and Fruit Haven:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ieRyQnnWPQ
Learn about owning land in Ecuador:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLL4KAyGnMA
Learn about the basic structure of Fruit Haven group land buys:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCL5RAG5tUY
Get started - Buy land!
Fill out this questionnaire to be approved to participate in any Fruit Haven group land buy:
Trustee Questionnaire
Stage 1: We have found the property, and may have information such as: Owner, price, size, map, pictures, and features. We are looking for 1-4 people to buy the land as seed investors, so that there is no risk of it being sold to someone else and in the meantime we can organize a group buy. Once the group buy is organized, the original buyers re-sell it to the group-buyers, keeping a share if they want. They will typically earn a 10% commission for the risk they took in making the investment. The principal payment for the land from the group buyers goes into their property development fund share, and once that is paid in full, any excess goes back to the original buyers.
Stage 2: We have found an investor who has purchased the property and we are now organizing the group buy. We are looking for people to buy shares. They will get their name on the title, a personal homestead lot, and a contract specifying land use and other details. At this point, the development budget is partially funded and will be fully funded once all available shares are purchased. (more info on this above.)
Stage 3: We have already organized and carried out a group buy. Now there are multiple owners, each with personal homestead lots, and the property development fund is mostly or fully funded. There may or may not be shares of this property available for sale.
Equipment Investments
10 investors purchased a Mercedes Unimog 416 dump truck with 3 cubic meter capacity. There is currently 1 share for sale, a 10% share for $1600. Contact us for inquiries.
In 2020, we organized a group purchase of a Hyundi Robex R55-7 mini-excavator that we rent to various projects.
The following shares are for sale. Each share is 2.5% of ownership:
- 1 share, asking price $1000.
- 2 shares, asking price $875 or best offer
- 13 shares, $750 each
- 2 shares, $500 each
Other Land Opportunities
Stage 3. Nearby community Terra Frutis is offering lots for sale as part of a group land buy of their community land. Read more about it.
Liberty Homesteads is similar in scope to Fruit Haven but without dietary preferences/restrictions.
Do you want to buy land but not be part of the Fruit Haven or Terra Frutis projects? No problem! You can still benefit from our administrative infrastructure and property management. Check out Liberty Homesteads.
On that page you can find the property we are currently organizing a group land buy for – Liberty Homesteads 8, which is right next to Fruit Haven.
Stage 2. A property near Gualaquiza, 0.85 hectares with a large house, separate large restaurant-sized kitchen and an additional 2-room wooden cabin with porch. We hope to find up to 6 people to buy into the title with a private contract specifying a timeshare arrangement. We can also sell the property outright for $150k or best offer. Send us an email if you are interested. fruithaven.ecuador@gmail.com