Costa Rica and Real Estate:

Overview: Property Rights, Real Estate Purchase, and Ownership

Before making the decision to buy a property in Costa Rica, and especially before buying a specific property in Costa Rica, there are several elements that you need to be aware of to make sure that your investment is a success and that you keep possession of your property.

Due-Diligence Process for Real Estate in Costa Rica:

One of the most important steps to make sure to get the LEGAL title of a property is to have a detailed property investigation with title search conducted on the property of interest. This includes the search in the central depository (Registro Publico) in San Jose. After this, the two documents "escritura" and the "catastro" are checked on any discrepancies. If any are found measures need to be taken to resolve them before a purchase is executed. Further the information of these documents are compared with the real existing properties, especially the current borders and paths (way of rights) to make sure that you will get what is on the papers. One also has to make sure in the same process to uncover any possible non-declared mortages of the property. The correct proper registration of the property, which is a detailed process, must be conducted by an honest professional (lawyer) to make sure that you are the legal owner of the property with all its rights (legal title). These steps are similar to purchases of real estate in other Central American countries or most of Latin American where there is still some weaknesses in laws governing property rights and zoning restrictions. In Costa Rica there is an established US company offering "title guarantee services" which can be recommended in bigger or more complicated purchases to reduce the risk of the investment.

"Zona Maritimo Terestre":

Should the property of interest be close than 200meters to the cost then it lies in the "Zona Maritimo Terestre". In this Zone there are different additional rules and regulation, from local to national, which govern the development and ownership of properties. Should you plan to invest in this zone we recommend working with an experienced lawyer and possibly considering the "title guarantee service". We can get you in contact with experienced professionals specialized in the specific laws and regulations should you decided for an investment in a property in the “Zona Maritimo Terestre”.

Squatters and Expropriation Risk:

As it is sometimes formulated that owning a property in Costa Rica is more like a "lease" of it on time it is important to continuously execute the ownership after establishing it to keep ones rights active. This is especially because of "Local rights of occupation" and other laws that could give squatters the chance to occupy and eventually claim a property. A caretaker, or property use contract, as well as a monitoring service, should take care of these issues. One should just be aware that after gaining ownership of a property in Costa Rica there is a minimum of guarding necessary to keep the property rights intact. With the "Nueva Ley de Expropriacion" the chance of expropriation without adequate payment is now much reduced and not any hindrance for real estate properties investments in Costa Rica. With the services that Sunrise Real Estate offers you will be able to execute and prove the ongoing active ownership of the purchased property.

Legal residency in Costa Rica:
For receiving legal residency in Costa Rica there are different processes and requirements for "Inversionistas", "Pensionados", and "Retirados" on which we can give information as well as contacts to different organizations of Costa Rican Residents

Costa Rica – from food to weather:


Some bits of information gathered together about Costa Rica, much more can be found out on different government sites and in travel or other country information books. Most data are from 2001 and 2002 publications:

Costa Rica is generally considered one of the most beautiful and safe countries to visit and live in Latin America. Nearly free of Civil Wars, revolutions and a standing army, Costa Rica is also a somewhat unique destination in Central America and by many called " Switzerland of the Americas". Costa Rica offers from Active Volcanoes, Wooden-Handcraft, coffee and other plantations, rivers with river-rafting, Jungles, Beaches, and Sport-fishing nearly everything an active visitor or resident wishes to do. The education and health system in Costa Rica is also one of the best in the region with several Hospitals and Universities that have US-partners. As one of the oldest democracies in the Americas the residents are fiercely proud of the peace, prosperity, and political/social stability that was achieved over the years.

Geography
Location: Middle America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Nicaragua and Panama

Geographic coordinates: 10 00 N, 84 00 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean

Costa Rica Area:
Total: 51,100 sq km, includes Isla del Coco
Land: 50,660 sq km
Water: 440 sq km
Land boundaries: total: 639 km
Border countries: Nicaragua 309 km, Panama 330 km
Coastline: 1,290 km
Maritime claims:
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Weather Costa Rica:
Climate: tropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November)
Terrain: coastal plains separated by rugged mountains
Elevation extremes:
Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
Highest point: Cerro Chiripo 3,810 m
Natural resources: hydropower potential

Land use:
Arable land: 6%
Permanent crops: 5%
Permanent pastures: 46%
Forests and woodland: 31%
Other: 12% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 1,200 sq km (1993 est.)

People of Costa Rica
Population: somewhat over 4 million (2002 est.)
Costa Ricans, also called "Ticos'

Costa Rica food:
Typical Breakfast: Gallo Pinto - Rice, Beans, Eggs
Lunch: Casada - Mixed rice and beans with some salad, meat, or vegetables
Dinner-Plate: From Patacones (Fried Platanos) to Cecvice, Fish and much Meat everything possible
Other Specialities: Palmitos -Palmheart, Tamales -Meat surrounded by cornmass and wrapped in leaves
and then "grilled" Nacional Salsa: Salsa Lizano or Inglesia a "must" for riceandbeans
National Drinks: Guaro, cazique, local rum

Ethnic groups and religion:
White (incl. mestizo) 96%, black 2%, Amerindian 1%, Chinese 1%
Religions: Roman Catholic 95%
Languages: Spanish (official), English spoken around Puerto Limon

Literacy:
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 94.8%

Economy of Costa Rica:
Costa Rica has basically a stable economy but depends heavily on tourism, the company Intel, and the export of bananas, coffee, and other agricultural products. Poverty has been reduced over the past 15 years, and a strong social safety net has been put in place. Recent trends, however, have been disappointing. Economic growth slipped from 4.3% in 1994 to 2.5% in 1995, and to 0.9% in 1996, and then rebounded in 1997 to 3%. Inflation rose to 22.5% in 1995 from 13.5% in 1994, receded to 17.5% in 1996, and then dropped to 11.2% in 1997. Unemployment appears moderate at 5.7%, but substantial underemployment continues. Furthermore, substantial government deficits have undermined efforts to maintain the quality of social services. The government thus faces a formidable set of problems: to curb inflation, reduce the deficit, encourage domestic savings, and improve public sector efficiency while increasing the role of the private sector, all this in harmony with IMF agreements.

Inflation rate—consumer price index: ~ 11% (1999 est.)
(Most banks offer bank accounts in US $)

Your Real Estate Opportunity in Costa Rica by Sunrise Real Estate