Cross-border real estate transactions made easy
Ruffo simplifies cross-border real estate transactions. We let home buyers and sellers sign and notarize transaction documents from their smartphone so they don’t have to get on a plane to sign in person. Our customers range from immigrants working in Switzerland buying property back in their hometowns to to Silicon Valley software engineers buying beach houses in Cabo.
Active Founders
Nelson Munoz
Nelson has over 9 years of experience in the US and Dominican Republic in technology startups, fintech, machine learning, product management, and innovation strategies. Nelson has worked at DVx Ventures and PwC in the U.S. and ITC Finnova and Fihogar in the Dominican Republic. Nelson holds a master's degree in engineering and management from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a bachelor's degree in business administration from Babson College.
Noe Branagan
Engineering leader with over 10yrs leading engineering efforts for companies in different stages; Passionate about knowledge sharing and education, especially those that help other developers grow or get people into software development; likes to mentor/coach. If you have anything in mind, send me a message @noeBranagan. Currently, co-founder & CTO @ Ruffo making cross-border real estate transactions easy for everyone.
Luis Pellerano
Luis is the co-founder and COO of Ruffo. Luis oversees Ruffo's operations and plays a leading role in the company's strategy and products. Prior to joining Ruffo, Luis served for over 8 years as an associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York and Palo Alto where he specialized in cross-border financings and M&A. Luis holds an LL.M. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law and an LL.B. from Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra.
Company Launches
TL;DR - When buying a home abroad, Ruffo lets buyers complete the required documents 100% online instead of having to get on a plane, go to a foreign consulate, or hire a foreign attorney.
🙄 The problem
When purchasing real estate abroad, signing transaction documents is a huge pain. You either get on a plane to sign in person, take your chances going through a maddening DMV-like experience at the nearest consulate, or pay thousands of dollars to (often questionable) foreign attorneys for signing in your name.
The risks, hassles, and costs of today’s cross-border document completion process drives many buyers to abandon their purchase halfway through, and forces many other would-be buyers to hold back. On top of stifling the homeownership dreams of buyers, today’s process also costs home sellers, real estate agents and mortgage lenders millions of dollars in lost sales every year.
😌 The Solution
We allow buyers to complete, sign and notarize foreign transaction documents from their computer or mobile phone in just minutes. Ruffo generates the relevant transaction documents and connects the buyer to a notary in the U.S. to sign and notarize online. Ruffo then obtains the required government certifications to ensure that the document is legally valid in the foreign country where it will be used. The end result is a seamless foreign document generation and signature experience that saves the buyer time and money, while helping home sellers, real estate agents and mortgage lenders close more sales in less time.
In the words of one of our customers:
“I’ve seen the difficulties other US buyers have gone through when trying to complete their documents [for the purchase of property abroad]. My experience has been completely different. Ruffo made the process quick and easy. I was able to complete it from my house, without having to go to a consulate or waste money.” - Rosa Parra, New York, NY.
🙏🥺 The Ask
- Introduce us to anyone you know who works (directly or indirectly) in real estate in Mexico, specially in areas frequented by tourists and expats like Cabo, Tulum, and etc.. Real estate developers, agents, mortgage lenders, home marketplaces, mortgage marketplaces, appraisers, etc. Would love to chat with any of them!
- If you or anyone you know is trying to purchase real estate in Mexico or the Dominican Republic, let us know! We’ll make it a lot simpler :)
- If you know of anyone who has purchased real estate in a country they did not reside in, send them our way! We’ll pay them to tell us about their experience.
- If you have ever had to deal with cross-border paperwork, we’d love to hear about it! Whether you loved or hated the experience, we’ll probably learn something from it and might learn of new ways our platform could create value.