Whether to buy through an LLC or personally is an issue that needs to be examined case by case. The solution depends on the particular situation of the owner and the risks he or she is willing to take.
The main advantage of holding a property under a corporate structure is very much the same everywhere: limited liability, meaning that company assets are not liable for the personal obligations of the owner. For example, if you have a car accident or have problems paying your creditors, only property held personally can be affected, not the property held by the company.
In addition, holding property under a company also allows for quick resales since reselling all the shares of the asset-holding company is easier, faster and less expensive than it is to convey real estate.
Also, companies are a useful tool for estate planning.
Finally, if the company is in fact a working company paying income taxes: (a) the owner may deduct any property taxes paid from the income tax due, in effect negating property taxes; (b) the owner may also deduct property expenses.
The disadvantages are two: (a) the continuing expense of running the company. about $300-500 a year; and (b) that companies pay an annual 1% tax on assets, while individually-owned property only pays the 1% tax on any value greater than 7,438,197 pesos.
