Looking to buy property in Costa Rica

Hi Rachmels,

Welcome to expat-blog!

I created a new topic from your post on the Costa Rica forum for better visibility.

Regards,

David.

There is a community called Altos de Antigua located 17 km south west of Puriscal and the road from there goes down the back way to the ocean at Parrita.  It is definately not on the beach but there are many Calgarians (and us from Red Deer) that own property and houses in the development.  Might be worth looking at if it piques your interest.

My best advice to you is to rent for a year, at least. I would stay on the Pacific side and look around for what fits you. Unless you have a ton of dough to spend on taxes (up to 4% of the property value!!!), you will not live on the beach, or here as it is called concession property. Concession law is complicated and expensive and unless you really know what you are doing (or have a fantastic lawyer) stay away from those properties. There is a property near me with a terrible concession that is not even on the beach, but within the maritime zone. It's a cute home but they are having a hard time selling it for less than $100,000! There is an incredible amount of fraud with beach properties and if it looks too good to be true…it is. You are better off looking for a place with a view of the water. Good luck!

Hi,

not sure, this could be the 1001st answer to your blog entry...

please contact me at [email protected]   if you like

Cheers

AM

You can buy property on the beach, yes; but as noted above:
GET A REALLY REALLY GOOD ATTORNEY and have it checked very very closely. PM Me for a name of an attorney you can trust.

However you should live in Costa Rica for at least 4-5 months before even thinking of moving there. It's not for everyone and you need to make sure you and Costa Rica are a good match.

The people who end up buying property then heading back to the USA (or Canada or wherever they come from) are usually the ones who didn't live there for awhile first, learn the language, etc.

Dear People

I hope all is well with y'all this evening.

You might consider checking out the Ojochal-Playa Uvita-Dominical area along the S. Central Pacific Coast.

Truly an Enchanting Paradise with Astounding Beauty!!!


Keep Smilin'

michael on the Pacific in Domincal.

Also, something that all real estate agents "fail" to mention is that you will never own concession property. All beaches are owned by the government. You only lease them. So that place you spent millions on with the soft sandy beach can be stripped from you, if the government deems it so, especially when fraud was involved. Be careful out there!

DDTica is absolutely right. Hands off ocean front and government land... as if Agenda 21 wasn't enough already to strip us of rights...
Climate on the ocean if only a few meters back if not located on a hill overlooking the sea can be detrimental to your health even though the northern temps may have nurtured the idea of switching toward such an alluring alternative as the beach can be.
Better to drive to the sea if need be and go back to a fresher climate in the evening. I've been in this country since the late 70s and used to own tons of oceanfront land but sold it all and enjoy now the benefits of a decent eternal spring climate further up above 750 m (some at 1,400m), below can be a trap. Also, seek out a place where you don't necessarily live next to those you tried to get away from in the first place. Purely foreign groups and residential compounds, even alternative ones, are not advisable to choose for retirement/pleasure as you'd invite the phenomenon of the "Tamarindo Syndrome" as I call it, representing a viable target for thieves and government follies. If all advise is heeded life in CR can be a lot less stressful than anywhere else the NWO is slowly settling in.

my friend terry has excellent condos along flamingo beach, maybe you ought interest, i ll message him to. what is your budget

I am an attorney. I do not intent to solicit your business, but I can give you a good piece of advice.

Get a good attorney. If you already have some friends in Costa Rica, maybe they can refer you to an attorney they trust.  Otherwise, I suggest looking into the US Consulate website in Costa Rica, they have a list of attorneys. Try not to get an attorney from the town you are buying the property. There may be conflict of interest. UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE GET THE ATTORNEY WHO IS FRIEND OF THE SELLER, THE DEVELOPER OR THE REAL ESTATE AGENT. It is recommended that your attorney is not the same as the notary public drafting the papers.

Get an escrow agent and title insurance. It will help you protect your investment.

Do not get into concession property. It is illegal to sell and buy concession property. Plenty of attorneys do not know that.

Never believe what real estate agents tell you. They are always lying. Real estate agents are not regulated here and do not require a license. They will always tell you that everything is fine. Whatever the agent tells you, you should always double check with your attorney. You should have your attorney deal with the agents in order to remove some pressure from you.

Right now is a buyer's market. Properties are not going to sell tomorrow.

Inquire about water. Water is a big issue here.

Your attorney should do some due diligence. Most of the time, attorneys do not even know what that means. Before you retain an attorney, inquire about what the due diligence entails.

Do not buy property through a corporation. They will always try to sell you a corporation, instead of the property outright. Avoid doing that.



I hope this helps.

Outlier Legal Services wrote:

I am an attorney. I do not intent to solicit your business, but I can give you a good piece of advice.

Get a good attorney. If you already have some friends in Costa Rica, maybe they can refer you to an attorney they trust.  Otherwise, I suggest looking into the US Consulate website in Costa Rica, they have a list of attorneys. Try not to get an attorney from the town you are buying the property. There may be conflict of interest. UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE GET THE ATTORNEY WHO IS FRIEND OF THE SELLER, THE DEVELOPER OR THE REAL ESTATE AGENT. It is recommended that your attorney is not the same as the notary public drafting the papers.

Get an escrow agent and title insurance. It will help you protect your investment.

Outlier is 100% correct in saying the above, though I THINK what he meant to say is "Under NO circumstance get the attoreny who is a friend of the seller, the developer or real estate agent".

I made that mistake once and almost lost my shirt. Luckily a good attorney got me my money back.

However, I have heard that title insurance is a waste of money in Costa Rica, that basically the real estate attorney has to do all that stuff that the Title Insurance insures, anyway. Can you expand on why you think it is a good idea?

Outlier Legal Services wrote:

Do not get into concession property. It is illegal to sell and buy concession property. Plenty of attorneys do not know that.

Never believe what real estate agents tell you. They are always lying. Real estate agents are not regulated here and do not require a license. They will always tell you that everything is fine. Whatever the agent tells you, you should always double check with your attorney. You should have your attorney deal with the agents in order to remove some pressure from you.

Right now is a buyer's market. Properties are not going to sell tomorrow.

Inquire about water. Water is a big issue here.

Your attorney should do some due diligence. Most of the time, attorneys do not even know what that means. Before you retain an attorney, inquire about what the due diligence entails.

Again Outlier is spot on, here. Due your due diligence in checking everything out.

Outlier Legal Services wrote:

Do not buy property through a corporation. They will always try to sell you a corporation, instead of the property outright. Avoid doing that.

Outlier, could you expand on this? I have always heard - from many sources including my attorney - that buying and selling property through a corporation is the best way to go. You just have to make sure the corporation is paid up, and in legal order. No? Please explain because you are the first attorney I've heard say NOT to use a corporation to buy and sell property.

Hi there
Just got this Post Sorry Have to inform the "bosses of my NEW email
[email protected]
I have a VERY Unique property for sale with INCOME ..
THREE  HOUSES AND 3 Apartments

ALL FULLY furnished with Kitchens and Appliances to BOOT JUST bring a TOOTHBRUSH and use the WIRELESS Internet and  LOW OVERHEAD and tax ... AWESOME VIEWS and PERFECT moderate CLIMATE NO HUMIDITY  and LOCATION 
2 stores on our road ..and 19 minutes from Lovely city of HEREDIA and 20 mins from Not so lovely San Jose and 20 minutes from the AIRPORT
NEARBY tourist attractions and ... Price Negotiable

ALSO  ADJOINING LOTS for SALE ready now with ALL paper work and Electricity and Water..One lot is 300 meters ...Had an offer of $40,00O ( but my attorney will verify I did not like the  buyer, A bit too secretive and God knows what he wanted the lot for ?)
OTHER larger  of 550,00 lot I may keep for ME or sell at almost Double the other lot of 300 meters ... or you can also have the option of buying a lot
I have lOTS of NON Gringo priced Connections for BUILDERS after 20 years of being hoodwinked )
I THINK if you SEE my 3 acre ( approx )PIECE OF HEAVEN wiTH AWesome VIEWS and Location ..YOu may BUy IT everyone loes it BUT I am NOT advertising for obvious reasons ..SO Hurry and SEE! THEN you will not have to spend your winter in Canada BRRR  and have ME a built in CARETAKeR on the property ! GREAT deal for you ! as I tend the place with loving care !

I have had LOTS of Canadian guests in the past who fell in love with my property and wished to buy it WHEn it was not for sale I  WISH I had their email addresses  .. I should check me gust book from ALBERTA ...MANY of them so maybe they also will see this

I would  be your FIRST TENANT  lease back ...
I have lived here 22 years  and LOVE this Area after checking the WHOLE of Costa Rica I am  now RETIRED from my B&B BUT RENT  to Gringos by the month ..
Property is in AWESOME area 10 minutes from HEREDIA yet with Country Atmosphere and BUS stop at the gate
email at
[email protected] or phone (506 ) 2268 9363

Regards
Deborah

GOOD advice BEWARE !
I have lived here 22 years and STAYED  away from the too hot , too muggy and SCARY deals there ..a VISIT dirve an hour and stay at a cheap place was our decision THANK GOD ...and the FRESH clean air and water her in Central Valley and VIEWS of Volcanoes and city lights were an Added Bonus ...
I cant believe 22 years passed so quickly ..Check out this area even if you don't buy my place would love to show you around
Deb

DD Tica ...MY sentiments entirely EVERYTHING on our doorstep PLUSg fresh air to Sleep by ..WOW ..LOL I THOUGHT I wanted the beach but after a few one hour drives there I soon changed my mind..LOVE OUR CLIMITE and AMNITIES here in the HEREDIA Hills
PURA VIDA
Deb

PS : after using at LEAST TEN CROOKS I have FABULOUS Attorney who does NOT charge Gringo Prices so I don;t refer to everyone though doubt if he will get corrupted my the almighty dollar
Message me if you need him ..
Deb

SAMRAMON,
Thank you for your comments . Indeed, I meant to say "Under NO circumstance get the attorney who is a friend of the seller, the developer or real estate agent".

Regarding the Title Insurance, it is good to get coverage for title issues. If you are buying property at the beach, that means that it is a rural area (unless it is downtown Quepos, downtown Limón,  downtown Puntarenas, so on and so forth), where generally are issues with the title chain, encroachments, surveys, so on and so forth. The idea of insurance is to have a piece of mind, which is the purpose of insurance. In case someone sues you for a boundary dispute, then you just claim your insurance and avoid a headache.

Naturally, people are going to say that it is a waste of money. The insurance company (which generally in this case will be Stewart Title) is not in the business of losing money. They are not going to issue a policy for a property that has title issues. So, if you are planning on buying property and Stewart Title is not willing to issue a policy for that particular property, the message is: DO NOT BUY THAT PROPERTY. If the title company is willing to insure that property, go ahead and buy. It is like fire insurance in your house: you pay it but you never got a fire, what a waste of money that was, but it you have a fire you will certainly be happy to have insurance.

Regarding corporations and real estate. Generally, attorneys recommend using a corporation for the following reasons:

Less taxes. When you transfer the shares of a corporation, the amount of taxes that you pay on the dollar is less than if you were to transfer a property. For a $300k property it may mean a difference of about $2000 in taxes. This factor represents a number of issues.  First, it is tax evasion. The purpose of corporations is not to save taxes for people when selling their assets, the purpose is to allow an structure for investors looking to create a business. I will be wary of any attorney willing to break the law. An attorney should recommend to comply with the law, not to break it. People are willing to criticize the government for how inefficient the services and infrastructure is, we lost any moral ground to complain when we break the law, especially when we fail to pay our share of taxes. If we do not like the law, we should push to change it, not to break it. If attorneys are so opposed for their clients to pay the correct amount of money on taxes, why haven't they lobbied to change the law. Finally, the government is changing that, the transfer of the shares of the corporation will result in equal amount of taxes if the purpose of the transaction is to transfer property.

Fees for the attorney. Of course attorneys will not tell this to clients, but they will directly benefit from creating corporations and charging those fees, plus the fees for managing the books of the corporation. Also, whenever you need a paper for the corporation you will need to request it from the attorney, which translates into more fees.
Liability. Attorneys tell people that it is a good idea to put your assets in a corporation in order to protect you from liability. They will tease your ear with the example of a car accident and will tell you, if you hit someone with your car, you would not want them to take your house away from you. That is way there is car insurance. Get good insurance.

Easy to transfer. They will tell you that it is easy to transfer, which is not true. You will need to do so many transactions in order to complete the transfer. It is easier to transfer the property than to transfer shares. Transferring shares requires a meeting of the shareholders, contract for the transfer of shares, endorsement of the shares, appointment of new directors, and registration of that appointment, and guess who will do all of those transactions? Yes, the attorney.
I tell my clients, if you want to buy a house, then buy a house, not a corporation. If you want to buy a car, then buy a car, not a corporation.

Today, attorneys will tell you to do it through a corporation because they are swimming in it, they are so used to it that they do not see what they are doing wrong. You will rarely find an attorney that will tell you different. I have not met one yet.

Hi, thanks for your response.
I cannot really counter your argument because I am not a  Costa Rica attorney! But just for the record, this still goes counter to what I have learned over the years from other attorneys.