FAQs (English)

None. The costs regarding the payment of the commission are covered by the seller. In the event of a sale the commission is 5% (five percent) of the final amount agreed between the parties. And in the case of a rental, it is the amount equivalent to a monthly payment.

That depends on what the client prefers. If you have construction experience, it is probably more favorable to build, since you do it to your liking. But if you do not have experience in this area, it is advisable to buy a property and, if necessary, remodel it to your liking. This is because it would save having to go through all the construction related procedures and at the same time you should have enough time to adequately monitor the construction process.

We help you get bank financing and we go hand in hand with the buyer at all times.
The first step you should do is get an initial prequalification to know if you are eligible for bank financing. This must be done before starting any type of negotiation or before mooring a property. It is a very simple procedure and it takes two or three days to obtain the prequalification.
We have executives in practically all banking and financial institutions that help us process all the credits of our clients.
Once the prequalification has been obtained, all the documents requested by the banking or financial institution are presented. But basically it is to present your income, whether you are a salaried worker or an independent worker, to know your credit obligations or current debts, family obligations and to verify that the bank fee that you would be paying for your credit does not exceed 30% or 40% of your income, this depending on the institution with which you want to carry out the procedure.

The Ministry of Finance recently published a notice on its website to clarify various aspects of the Capital Gains Tax, which is due to be collected as of July 1, 2019.
We summarize below some of the most important aspects mentioned in the indicated notice.
The declaration and payment of capital gains tax must be attended by the natural or legal person who transmits or sells the property, not by the person who acquires it.
The form to be used is D-162 “Declaration of Capital Gains and Losses”.
To calculate the amount to pay the tax, both the value for which the asset was acquired and the value for which it is being transmitted must be considered. The tax will be the one that results from applying the 15% rate, to the amount obtained when the initial acquisition value is subtracted from the value of the transmission or sale.
If the sale is of a property purchased prior to the entry into force of the law, that is, a property purchased before July 1, 2019, the transferor may choose to apply 15% in the manner indicated above, or either a rate of 2.25% on the total value of transmission.
It is very important to take into account that according to Law 9635 of Strengthening of Public Finances, the acquisition value is the real amount for which the good was obtained, and it will be defined based on the valuation rules provided in article 30 bis of the Income Tax Law, No. 7092, and its reforms and in article 37 of its Regulations. The tax value of the property must not be used for these purposes.

These would be the fees of the Notary Public, the tax stamps, and the transfer taxes as established by law:
• Notary Public Fees: They can vary from 1% to 2%, depending on the price of the property and the complexity of the transaction. Similarly, all Notaries are regulated by a table imposed by the Costa Rican Bar Association.
• Tax stamps: 0.8%.
• Transfer tax: 1.5%.
In accordance with the current legislation of Costa Rica, the transfer deed must be made for the real value of the sale, since within the deed the amount and number of the management check must be indicated, which must match the amount of the transaction
Similarly, the buyer must issue an affidavit of the origin of the funds, this is for the legitimation of capital and is part of the information that must go in the deed of sale.

We as a company take care of making the formal purchase offer, once you decided to buy one of our properties.
For this we will indicate what will be the procedure and the strategy to achieve that your offer is accepted. It is not recommended to make an offer without first consulting the real estate consultant who is serving you.
Once the purchase offer is accepted, a formal purchase sale contract will be signed, which will serve to tie the property for a specified time, until the time of the final purchase sale transfer signing.

Yes it is
When buying a property in Costa Rica, the property title of the current owner must be transferred to the new buyer.
However, if the property belongs to a duly registered company in Costa Rica, the seller can sell the shares of the company to the buyer. This helps you reduce the transfer taxes and the transfer of property title, although for this it is essential to know the history of that company to know if it has any type of debt or default, obligation to third parties, lawsuits, etc. Remember that when you buy a company, you buy all your obligations, both current and past, that is why the lawyer must thoroughly review the company before making the transfer.

Can a foreigner buy real estate in his name? YES, any person, regardless of their immigration or citizenship status, can buy real estate in Costa Rica on a personal basis. You can also do it on behalf of a company created in Costa Rica.
In some cases there may be benefits to buying property on behalf of a company or corporation. That’s at the tax level. Can a foreigner buy real estate in his name?

YES, anyone over the age of 18 can create a corporation, be part of it, be a shareholder or be part of its board of directors.
A foreigner can own 100% of the shares of a company.
It is an easy, short and cheap procedure that is carried out by a lawyer and notary.
Currently all companies pay an annual tax, depending on whether the company is active or not, that tax may vary

YES, Costa Rica is one of the safest countries to invest in America. Its security and peace are shown by its political constitution, which has not been modified since 1948, the same year that the army was abolished. The funds that would go to the army go to education, social security and environmental protection.
This allows us to have a solid democracy and legislative security, which make Costa Rica an ideal country to invest in.
The Costa Rican government values foreign investment as an important income for the economy, therefore its legislative system is constantly modified seeking benefits for the foreign investment sector.

YES, the Political Constitution of Costa Rica does not differentiate between foreigners and locals; Regarding the purchase and sale of properties, both have the same rights. Although not all banks finance the purchase of a property from a foreign or non-resident person.
Some banking or financial institutions require some form of roots in Costa Rica, such as having a formal job in the country, being married to a national or having a Costa Rican child, already having property within the national territory, etc.
But in case of not having that roots, there are banks that can also finance the purchase of your property.
We can gladly advise you.

YES, it is important to have a trustworthy lawyer and notary for any purchase or sale of real estate. If you do not have one, we in the office have excellent professionals we trust who will be happy to help you.
It is important that the lawyer speaks your language and answers all your questions; in order to ensure that the transaction is carried out without any problem.
The lawyer must check that the property to be acquired is correctly registered in the Public Registry of Property in Costa Rica. Check that the registered plan agrees with the plan registered with the Public Registry. Verify that the registry owner agrees with the person who is conducting the negotiation. Those are some of the basic studies that the lawyer must carry out.
All attorneys have a fee table, which is regulated by the Costa Rican Bar Association.
If you have any questions, you can contact us and we will help you.

It is important to have the advice of a serious company like Casa Joven Bienes Raíces, since we know the real estate market perfectly.
We make sure that you purchase your property at a fair price. We focus on the client’s needs, stick to their budget and work to get their property.
We check that the property is correctly registered with the Public Registry of Property and that there are no legal problems.
We speak your language.
In case you need a bank loan, we advise you correctly, since we have trusted bank executives in the different banks or the national financial system.
Our best business is for you to successfully complete your business and recommend us. We are a company that if we see that there is something wrong in the business, we will inform you to discard the property.
 Our commission is a consequence of our good service.