diff --git a/docs/bootstrap.md b/docs/bootstrap.md
index 337fbafe..e86a5a62 100644
--- a/docs/bootstrap.md
+++ b/docs/bootstrap.md
@@ -66,6 +66,106 @@ exec "$SHELL" -l
 integration remains an explicit `basectl update-profile` step so the user can
 see what was installed before Base changes future interactive shells.
 
+## Inherited Or Migrated macOS Accounts
+
+An account restored from Time Machine, migrated from another Mac, or shared
+with a previous owner can retain a stale shell profile and Homebrew state. On
+Apple Silicon, the most common failure is an Intel Homebrew under
+`/usr/local` being selected by a Rosetta-translated shell even though native
+Homebrew is installed under `/opt/homebrew`. Homebrew's Ruby traceback may
+appear before Base is mentioned, but the underlying problem is usually the
+process architecture, prefix selection, Xcode license, or prefix ownership.
+
+Run this read-only diagnostic as the target user before retrying an install. It
+inspects each known Homebrew path explicitly before selecting the compatible
+prefix for the remainder of the current shell:
+
+```bash
+machine="$(uname -m)"
+translated="$(sysctl -in sysctl.proc_translated 2>/dev/null || printf '0')"
+printf 'machine=%s\n' "$machine"
+printf 'translated=%s\n' "$translated"
+printf 'shell=%s\n' "${SHELL:-unknown}"
+printf 'path=%s\n' "$PATH"
+
+for candidate in /opt/homebrew/bin/brew /usr/local/bin/brew; do
+  if [ -x "$candidate" ]; then
+    printf 'brew=%s\n' "$candidate"
+    file "$candidate"
+    "$candidate" --prefix 2>&1 || true
+  fi
+done
+
+if [ "$machine" = "arm64" ] && [ "$translated" = "0" ]; then
+  export PATH="/opt/homebrew/bin:/usr/local/bin:$PATH"
+elif [ "$machine" = "x86_64" ] && [ "$translated" = "0" ]; then
+  export PATH="/usr/local/bin:/opt/homebrew/bin:$PATH"
+fi
+
+if command -v brew >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  printf 'selected-brew=%s\n' "$(command -v brew)"
+  brew --config 2>&1 || true
+else
+  printf 'selected-brew=unresolved; stop before ownership checks\n'
+fi
+```
+
+On Apple Silicon, a native terminal should report `machine=arm64` and
+`translated=0`; the diagnostic puts `/opt/homebrew/bin` first for that shell.
+If the process is Rosetta-translated (`machine=x86_64` and `translated=1`),
+open a native terminal before continuing. On an Intel Mac,
+`/usr/local/bin/brew` is the expected prefix. Do not select a prefix only
+because it appears first on `PATH`; check the architecture and the explicit
+candidate `--prefix` results together.
+
+Check the developer-tool boundary separately:
+
+```bash
+/usr/bin/xcrun --find clang
+/usr/bin/xcode-select --print-path
+```
+
+If either command reports that the Command Line Tools or Xcode license is
+missing, complete Apple's interactive installation or license-acceptance flow
+as the target user and rerun the read-only checks. Do not hide that prompt in a
+non-interactive bootstrap pipeline.
+
+After selecting an architecture-compatible `brew`, inspect prefix ownership
+and the lock directory before `brew install`:
+
+```bash
+if command -v brew >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  brew_prefix="$(brew --prefix 2>/dev/null || true)"
+  if [ -n "$brew_prefix" ]; then
+    ls -ld "$brew_prefix" "$brew_prefix/var" "$brew_prefix/var/homebrew" \
+      "$brew_prefix/var/homebrew/locks" 2>/dev/null || true
+    test -w "$brew_prefix" && printf 'prefix-writable=yes\n' || printf 'prefix-writable=no\n'
+    test -w "$brew_prefix/var/homebrew/locks" && \
+      printf 'locks-writable=yes\n' || printf 'locks-writable=no\n'
+  else
+    printf 'brew-prefix=unresolved; stop before ownership checks\n'
+  fi
+else
+  printf 'brew=unresolved; stop before ownership checks\n'
+fi
+```
+
+The prefix and its lock directory must be owned and writable for the account
+that is running Base. If another macOS user owns them, stop and ask the owner
+or your device administrator to repair the Homebrew installation. Base must
+not automatically run `sudo chown`, recursively change ownership, delete lock
+directories, or reset Homebrew state. A source-checkout install is the safer
+alternative when the shared Homebrew prefix cannot be repaired or is not
+owned by the target account; use the [source checkout install recipe](#source-checkout-install-recipe)
+instead.
+
+Once the checks agree, follow the [canonical Homebrew install recipe](#homebrew-install-recipe).
+The diagnostic has already placed the architecture-compatible prefix first on
+`PATH` for the current native shell. If the architecture, prefix, ownership,
+or Xcode checks do not agree, use the source checkout path or stop with the
+collected read-only output; do not continue to the Homebrew install merely to
+obtain a longer downstream traceback.
+
 If `basectl` reports that the current Bash is too old, repair just that first:
 
 ```bash
diff --git a/tests/test_bootstrap_docs.py b/tests/test_bootstrap_docs.py
index 7bb12231..95bc31a8 100644
--- a/tests/test_bootstrap_docs.py
+++ b/tests/test_bootstrap_docs.py
@@ -50,6 +50,19 @@ def test_bootstrap_docs_explain_mutable_homebrew_default_rationale() -> None:
     assert "BASE_HOMEBREW_INSTALLER_SHA256" in normalized
 
 
+def test_migrated_macos_recovery_uses_canonical_recipe_after_safe_selection() -> None:
+    text = BOOTSTRAP_DOC.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
+    recovery = section(text, "## Inherited Or Migrated macOS Accounts", "## Install Mode")
+
+    assert "[canonical Homebrew install recipe](#homebrew-install-recipe)" in recovery
+    assert "brew trust basefoundry/base" not in recovery
+    assert "brew install basefoundry/base/base" not in recovery
+    assert "basectl setup --dry-run" not in recovery
+    path_export = 'export PATH="/opt/homebrew/bin:/usr/local/bin:$PATH"'
+    assert recovery.index(path_export) < recovery.index('brew_prefix="$(brew --prefix')
+    assert recovery.index(path_export) < recovery.index("brew --config")
+
+
 def test_readme_trust_conscious_proof_reviews_manifest_trust_before_demo() -> None:
     text = README.read_text(encoding="utf-8")
     proof = section(text, "### Trust-Conscious Proof, No Dotfile Changes", "## How Base Fits")