Colombia Forum

fecherklyn
Joined 2015
Posts: 1382

3 years ago

Does Work at home Work?

3 years ago

Working from home- how good is it? – Will it last, or does it need a major overhaul? They are big questions, but I have some recent experience which suggests the idea needs refinement.

I have just sold my house in Medellin. Well, let me restate that, I think I have sold my house but there are some obstinate ruffles that need ironing out.

We signed a Promesa de Compraventa on 28 October 2020 envisaging deposit of the buyers’ down payment ( 20%) no later than 15 December 2020 together with signature of Escritura Publica (Registration of Sale Agreement) on the same day, and payment of the remaining balance no later than 15 January 2021. So, a maximum of nearly 3 months envisaged between initial agreement and sale finalization.

The deferment of the final payment (no later than 15 January 2021) was necessary as the buyers’ needed a bank mortgage and Bancolombia needed time to carry out their valuation processes. Essentially, this process passes legal title to the buyers prior to full payment, but the transitional debt and repayment terms figured in the documentation so we felt fairly safe, all the more so as the Promesa included a Cláusula Penal of 10% if the buyers were unable to comply with the Promesa provisions.

Sounds OK? Well, here we are, Jan 20, and the buyers’ down payment remains unpaid. The signature of the Escriture Publica at the Notary remains to be fulfilled and Bancolombia is holding everything up. WHY – Covid 19 and the work at home obstacles.

In short, our sale involves a small “chain” - our sale, and the buyers’ sale of his own property. Normally, this would not pose any significant delays…..let me restate that more accurately…. “no significant delays if everything was processed by the staff working in their offices and passing documentation by hand to co-workers a few offices away down the corridor.

After weeks of being advised by Bancolombia “payments are on the way” we received clarification. All over Medellin, perhaps Colombia ( ?) there is a massive backlog of property sale operations piling up (into many hundreds) at the Oficinas de Registro and the banks themselves. In Bancolombia’s own words, “it may take several weeks, even months, to get rid of this back log”.

Quite simply, Work at Home is not “Working”. But maybe you have different experience?

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