Buying Real Estate in Costa Rica

The small and beautiful Central American country of Costa Rica offers property buyers not just one of the most beautiful locations the world has to offer, but also a great amount of investment potential.

The small and beautiful Central American country of Costa Rica offers property buyers not just one of the most beautiful locations the world has to offer, but also a great amount of investment potential.

If you’re considering purchasing real estate in Costa Rica or still deciding which exotic location is most likely to fulfil your dreams then read on to find out why we think Costa Rica should always be near the top of any Central American property hunter’s places to visit.

Costa Rica has the Pacific Ocean to its west and the Caribbean to the east, with Nicaragua situated to the north and Panama at its southern borders.  In addition to the sheer beauty of Costa Rica, any property investor will be pleased to hear that the Costa Rican political system is stable and well developed; the government have a very positive attitude towards foreign investment and offers excellent tax incentives to residents who make their income outside of Costa Rica.

The people of Costa Rica are polite, friendly and helpful; they enjoy good standards of education with a 97% literacy rate a life expectancy of 77 years, and they benefit from a well developed modern health care system.  Costa Rica is only a 2 1/2 hour flight from Miami airport and can also be reached easily from other major US airports such as Dallas, New York and Houston.  Flights are also available from Toronto in Canada.

Americans, Canadians and Europeans with a passport that is valid for at least 3 months after their arrival date can stay for up to 90 days, after which they must leave the country for a period of no less than 72 hours.  While you only have tourist status you are entitled to purchase real estate, the normal process is to purchase your property in Costa Rica via the formation of a Costa Rican corporation, this isn’t a complicated process and most real estate agents and property developers will be happy to assist you during this process.

Points to consider when planning to move to Costa Rica: on certain developments it can take some considerable time to get a phone line installed, and broad band internet access is not yet freely available.  Therefore if you’re thinking of moving your internet business with you, make sure that the developments you look at have the infrastructure in place required to run your business.  In the city of Costa Rica a certain degree of petty theft isn’t uncommon, although this diminishes when you move to the costal regions where the majority of the property development is happening.  Always remember not to leave valuables clearly visible in your car when you’re in the main towns and cities.

Like any tropical location in the world the flowers and plants grow bigger and more beautiful - as do the bugs!  Make sure that you’ve got a good mosquito repellent, keep the insect screens on your windows closed and don’t leave food lying around - that way you’ll be able to enjoy the magnificent beauty this beautiful tropical paradise without entertaining any unwanted house guests.

With its stable political system and continued investment into the developing infrastructure, Costa Rica real estate becomes an ever more attractive proposition to the shrewd overseas property investor.  Whether it’s a beautiful beach side retirement home or moving the management of your business to enjoy the very favourable taxation system that Costa Rica offers foreign businesses, we recommend that anyone investigating the real estate opportunities in Central America gives Costa Rica serious consideration.