Costa Rica right now is a prime place to invest in real estate because the values of land are very low in comparison to other nearby beach areas if you are a foreign investor. Plus, Costa Rica real estate holds a lot of opportunity as rentals or hotels because the area is quickly becoming a top tourist hot spot, and with good cause since Costa Rica in general is a sunny place with plenty of unspoiled beach land waiting for development. In fact, in the upcoming years the price of Costa Rica real estate is expected to nearly triple, so there has never been a better time than the present to get in on the market than now.
However, as a foreign investor, you should know a few things to protect yourself and your real estate investment. First of all, unless you have an immense amount of time and revenue, it is not likely you are going to be able to purchase any beach coastal Costa Rica real estate. The maritime laws protect most beach land up to 15 feet away from the shore unless you are a serious investor for Costa Rica real estate who plans on bargaining with a local.
This said, another thing you need to know as a foreign investor for Costa Rica real estate is that you will always want to hire both a lawyer and a real estate agent when in the process of starting and closing a sale. There are many particularities in Costa Rica landowning laws, and in order to make sure you do not lose any money or get stuck with a property that has a great deal of tax liens tacked onto it, you will want to have a lawyer. The real agent will work around with your lawyer to help you close the final deal and protect you from purchasing Costa Rica real estate that is in bad shape. As a foreign investor you should never purchase Costa Rica real estate without these aids.
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