Guide to Real Estate in Costa Rica

Guide to Real Estate in Costa Rica

Costa Rica Real Estate This site was made to provide you with incisive, unbiased information so that you can make informed, smart, and secure real estate decisions. One of the authors, a journalist who worked five years for Bloomberg, a global financial news agency, visited Costa Rica a number of times before deciding to permanently relocate here. To prepare this guide, she traveled throughout the country and conducted over one hundred interviews with industry professionals.

The other writer has lived here for years and works as a professional journalist. Neither writer is involved, either directly or indirectly, in the real estate industry in Costa Rica and they received no hand-outs in exchange for positive comments in this book. Our purpose is to help the reader.

This website will walk you through all you need to know about buying real estate in Costa Rica. Included in the information it contains is:

A summary description of the country to help you decide if Costa Rica is the country for you.
Information on buying, renting, leasing, and selling homes and commercial properties.
Checklists that summarize key points on important topics such as due diligence. Use these for quick reference.
A point-by-point discussion of the legal process.
A thorough geographical overview of the country to help you decide where to buy.
An overview of construction, permitting, and sustainable development key topics.
A valuable overview of the insurance industry in Costa Rica.
A guide to doing business in Costa Rica, including a discussion of cultural issues.

Costa Rica Real Estate, buying properties With these trends very much in mind, we wanted to produce a thorough, detailed, and intelligently written guide to buying real estate in Costa Rica. The information it contains is as relevant for people planning to live here year round as it is for those who only plan to spend part of the year in the country. Whether you are buying a home as a principal residence, part-time residence, or solely as an investment, you will find information in this book that should help you make a smart, well-informed purchase. While this guide does not purport to offer advice to professional real-estate developers, it does contain information on legal and other issues unique to Costa Rica that they will find extremely valuable.

We hope you will find this guide useful and wish you every success in buying property in Costa Rica.

Christopher Howard

Christopher Howard is Costa Rica’s most read authority and is a Costa Rican citizen. He has lived in Costa Rica for almost 30 years and is considered by many to be a pioneer and innovator in Central America. During the time he has lived there he has written more than 10 books on living and retiring in several of the countries in the region including the bestselling New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica and the Guide to Costa Rican Spanish. It is not surprising that he has first-hand knowledge and insight into all aspects of Costa Rica’s culture, economy, language and its people. Because of his expertise, he is a frequent lecturer at investment and retirement seminars, has worked as a paid consultant for National Geographic and been interviewed on the NBC Today Show and News Week Magazine.

Editorial Reviews

Real Estate review "This could be the most comprehensive guide to buying real estate in Costa Rica and, indeed, in any Latin American country." -- Peronet Despeignes, former economics correspondent, Fortune Magazine

real estate review “You don't have to be enlightened to see how much work and wisdom has gone into this book. Mr. Howard could be the Buddha of Costa Rica real estate, separating reality from myth." -- Perry Garfinkel, longtime New York Times contributor, author of "Buddha or Bust".