Is All The Good Land Gone?

Absolutely not!  There are still tons of great properties available.

The trick is determining what you are looking for first.  In other words; just flying down with the intention of window shopping for property will drive you crazy. 

I recommend making a list of what you want in a property, and understanding what is an absolute “MUST HAVE” and what are “WOULD BE NICES”

To help make your list, consider, for example;

• Do I want an ocean or mountain view?
• How big of property do I want?  ¼ acre? ½ acre? 1 acre?
• What is my budget?
• What is my intention for this investment?  Vacation home?  Permanent residence?  Rental property?
• Accessibility? Are there roads to the property?  Are they private or public?  Don’t assume.
• Is there infrastructure in the area?  Water? Electricity?  Phone?  Internet?

What To Look For in A Real Estate Developer

The first thing I look for in a developer is a long term track record in the area. 

Many, many developers come into Costa Rica from another country, buy some land, develop it, sell it and then move on.  Never to be heard from again. 

Generally they will have a record of doing this which can easily be found out with a bit of due diligence. 

Look for phrases something like; World wide developer, International developer or look at our previous developments.

As far as real estate brokers, definitely go with a well known name and stay away from free agents who work for themselves.  They don’t have anyone looking over their shoulder, while larger firms at least have general guidelines for their agents.

Personally, I like dealing with developers directly.  They are easier to deal with and there are fewer levels of approvals to go through.  In other words; they’re more willing to wheel and deal with you because there are no commissioned agents in the middle.

How Long Does It Take to Find Property in Costa Rica?

As long as you want.  Personally the number one problem I find in searching for real estate in Costa Rica is that everyone is a real estate agent.  Why?  Because the country lacks a structured real estate licensing program. 

This means that just about anyone can sell property.  Not only that, if you want $300,000 for your property and they can get $350,000, you get $300,000 and the agent can keep the remaining $50,000.  Pretty cool huh? 

Not really, because this becomes an incredible incentive to say just about anything to make a sale.  Not good for most buyers.

On top of this, most sellers have 5-10 agents representing the same property.  First one to sell wins!  Again, another incentive to make a sale no matter what.

This doesn’t necessarily mean a good outcome for the buyer, which is why we encourage our buyers to take their time and work with professionals who know the ins and outs of buying property in Costa Rica.

Why Costa Rica Instead of Brazil or Belize?

As the surrounding countries took the lead in property sales for awhile, Costa Rica wasn’t deterred. 

They continued to build new roads and bridges, lay down fiber-optic lines, increase communication networks, develop new airports and continue to create a better place to live and visit.

Now, the Latin America boom continues to boom, but now investors are seeing that acre for acre property prices are relatively the same. 

This means they need to compare the dollar for dollar value of their investment. 

This is where Costa Rica again leads the pack.  Investors see a better value for the dollar due to the increased infra-structure within the country. 

Not to mention the stable government, high caliber health care system and high ranking education programs.

Why Costa Rica As An Investment?

About 12 years ago, Costa Rican real estate was the hottest market in the planet. 

During that time, the neighboring countries kinda looked over the fence to see what all the fuss was about. 

Realizing that this was a pretty good idea, they decided to get in on the action and started selling properties in their areas as well.    

Since then, over the last 8 years, Costa Rican properties have continued to appreciate on an average of 20-30% annually. This has always made property in the country a good investment for international investors.

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