Real Estate in Costa Rica What are Some of The Cost Involved?

When you are looking to purchase real estate in Costa Rica, there are things that you have to deal with during the transaction process. These things are required once you have signed the contract and went over the information with the real estate agent and the attorney.

Here are some of the things you have to do in regard to the real estate transaction:

• When real estate property in Costa Rica is being sold, you generally sign a contract stating that you intend to purchase it. However, there may be an option that goes along with the contract. If you have someone that doesn’t want you to have the property, they can resell it to another party. The deposit you put down for it would be tied up and you would have a difficult time getting it back. In order to recoup the money, you would have to take the seller to court.

• When the person makes a deposit for a real estate transaction in Costa Rica, the money is usually held by the real estate agent or an attorney. They can do this because the country does not have many trust accounts set up for that like you would find in the United States. There are some financial institutions that can set up trust accounts in Costa Rica, but they are few and far between.

• After you have purchased real estate in Costa Rica, you are required to pay government tax on the property. The amount is equal to about ¼ of what the property is worth. In addition to that, you will have to pay a local government tax. The amount you are required to pay cannot exceed $10 a month.

• When real estate property in Costa Rica is being transferred, there are additional costs, such as the stamp fee. With the transfer and legal fees combined, the responsibility is placed on the seller and the buyer to pay the cost. When all is said and done, the total amount of the transfer cost for the property is a little over 5%. During the process, an attorney needs to be involved. Depending on whether the seller or the buyer has the upper hand, they get to select the attorney of choice.