Buying a Texas home while living outside the U.S.

The simplest route: no lender appraisal and no credit approval. The funds arrive by wire at the title company, which acts as escrow agent and releases them at closing. You will still be asked where the money comes from and to send it from an account in your name.

These are non-traditional (non-QM) loans for people who live and work outside the U.S. NerdWallet (Feb 2026) notes they usually require larger down payments and carry higher rates. As one published example, Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions' foreign national program (Oct 2026) lends up to 70% of value, investment properties only, $100,000 to $1.5 million, with 12 months of reserves, funds seasoned 60 days and held at least 30 days in an FDIC-insured U.S. bank, no gift funds, and closing in a U.S. LLC allowed. Every lender sets its own terms.

If you file U.S. taxes with an ITIN, some lenders offer loans with 10% to 20% down. See the guide to buying with an ITIN.

Fannie Mae accepts lawful non-permanent residents on the same terms as citizens. FHA, by contrast, only accepts citizens and permanent residents since May 25, 2025.

You can sign yourself before an authorized official in your country or give power of attorney to someone you trust in Texas. Ask the title company and lender what they accept first, since they must approve the signing method.

Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code 121.001 allows an acknowledgment taken outside the U.S. by a U.S. consul or consular officer, or by a notary or other official authorized to administer oaths in that country. That includes a Mexican notario publico.

Mexico joined the Apostille Convention on August 14, 1995, Venezuela on March 16, 1999 and Colombia on January 30, 2001; the U.S. on October 15, 1981. The apostille authenticates the notary's signature. Ask the title company in writing whether it wants one and whether it needs an English translation.

Per the Texas Secretary of State, the online notary must be physically in Texas, but the signer can be anywhere, with identity proofing and a recording kept for five years. If the title company and lender accept it for your closing, it saves the trip.

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) explains that the owner's policy protects you for as long as you own the home, while the loan policy protects the lender until the loan is paid off. All Texas companies charge the same title insurance rates, so the difference between them is service.

Under the standard TREC resale contract (form 20-19), the seller must deliver the title commitment within 20 days after the title company receives the contract. It lists liens, easements and restrictions, and you have a short window to object. Review it carefully even from far away.

TDI recommends verifying payment instructions directly with your title agent and confirming receipt right after you send funds. The CFPB adds that instructions should be confirmed by phone at a number you already had, never one from an email.

The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) logged 12,368 real estate fraud complaints and $275.1 million in losses in 2025, as reported by HousingWire. A buyer abroad who communicates by email is an easier target. More in the guide to notario and wire fraud.

IRS Publication 519 (2025 edition) explains that rent from U.S. property owned by a nonresident alien is taxed at 30% (or a lower treaty rate) on the gross amount, with no deductions, and that the tenant or managing agent withholds it.

The IRS lets you elect to treat the rent as income effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business, so you can deduct expenses and pay graduated rates on net income. You attach a statement to Form 1040-NR, give Form W-8ECI to whoever pays you the rent, and file a 1040-NR every year the election is in effect. File more than 16 months late and you can lose the deductions.

The Texas homestead exemption, $140,000 for school districts, only applies to your principal residence. A home you rent out or visit from abroad is taxed on its full value, so build that into your numbers from day one.

If you are a foreign person when you sell, the buyer generally must withhold 15% of the price for the IRS. There is an exception when the price is $300,000 or less and the buyer will live in the home. See the guide to selling from Mexico.