When you move to Costa Rica to retire you will have to have a place to live. Some choose to rent while many choose to buy as an investment. The Costa Rica real estate market has been one of the best over the last few years. After you decide where you want to live and what you want to buy, you have to then select a broker. This can pose a problem because you don’t need a license to sell real real estate in Costa Rica. Since selling real estate is in vogue and there are a lot of gringo opportunists looking to make a quick buck it is hard to find an agent who looks out for your interests more than just making a sale. On top that many foreigners who sell property here aren’t even legal residents of Costa Rica and don’t have permission to work. Would you buy real estate from a tourist in the U.S. Or Canada? Some of these characters just come down for the high season to sell properties and then disappear into the wood work. If you need to find them for anything, you can’t. Also many of these people have never had any experience working I real estate in their home country. It seems that everyone is selling property in Costa Rica: cab drivers, waiters in restaurants, your friendly gringo neighbor, hotel employees and a lot of people without papers as I just mentioned. Even fugitives have gotten into act. AM Costa Rica on-line newspaper reported on September 3, 2008 than another U.S. citizen on the lam was arrested while working as real estate broker in an office on the Pacific Coast. In December 2005 and in December 2007 two other gringos wanted in the U.S. were arrested here. Both had been working as real estate salesmen. Many U.S. Citizens are hired illegally in the real estate business because of their English-language abilities. Here is some advice from my best seller “The New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica” about  why it is important to work with a good broker and how to find one.

1. A good broker can help you find a fair-priced property.
2. Only a small percentage of properties for sale are in the newspaper.  A lot of brokers have their own listings, which they don’t share with other brokers.
3. A broker can save you time and aggravation by showing you just what you want. He will do this by pre-qualifying you.
4. Good brokers have excellent contacts and will help you with every ?step  of the process.
5. A good broker will know all of the good areas and will not waste your time showing you undesirable neighborhoods. A broker who knows you are working faithfully with him will go all out to help you find what you want. Be sure and to tell your broker from the beginning if you are working with other agents.
6. A good broker can form a relationship with you and truly understand your specific needs.
7. Working with a broker in Costa Rica is similar to working with a broker back home. If you are patient, loyal and have confidence in your broker, you will find what you want.
8. Brokers offer a wide range of properties. They sell a little bit of everything.: houses, lots, commercial property, condos, and even fincas (farms). Therefore, it is best to find a broker who specializes inexactly what you are looking for.  A person who sells at the beach cannot possibly be an expert in properties in the Central Valley.

Here are STEPS TO FINDING THE RIGHT AGENT:

1. Unless you have a specific recommendation like the one I provide above, Call four or five real estate agents in the area and ask them to name the best two real estate agents they know OUTSIDE their own offices. Whatever name pops up most often is likely to be your best candidate.
2. Go Google the agent’s name and see what comes up.
3. Ask that agent to show you their Costa Rica cédula (ID for legal residents) or work permit.
4. Ask how long the agent has lived in CR (5-7 years minimum).
5. Ask for a few happy customers to contact.
6. Ask your friends or other foreigners in Costa Rica if they have their knowledge of said agent.
7. Just as in a marriage, communication is a key component of the relationship between a homeowner and an agent. If the communication isn’t there, the relationship won’t work. So if your agent doesn’t return your phone calls in a timely fashion or disappears without warning for weeks at a time, you should probably find someone else.
8. Let’s face it, even homeowners who have been through several real estate transactions can benefit from a little advice from their agent. But if an agent doesn’t offer any advice, it could be an indication that he or she is not fully engaged in the process.
9. If your real estate agent is actually a waiter, waitress, musician or has another job, then you are probably not going to be happy with where their priorities are.
10. Keeps it in the family A real estate agent who shows buyers only properties that are listed with his or her brokerage could be subordinating the client’s best interests. Since selling agents earn a separate commission off a real estate transaction, agents who make listings just from their company available may be trying to steer that commission to the brokerage as well.

This should eliminate 95%+ of the bad/poor agents....