Did you know that in Costa Rica you do not need any qualifications, training or experience whatsoever to call yourself a Realtor?
If you do not want to lose your shirt buying real estate in Costa Rica, please remember these four crucially important points:
- Contrary to what some people might tell you, there is no single, official Multiple Listing Service to speak of so trying to establish even a rough idea of what a property is worth is difficult. Take a look on the internet and you will often find the exact same property listed by different ‘Realtors’ at dramatically different prices.
- Half the population call themselves ‘Realtors’ because in Costa Rica you do not need any qualifications, training or experience whatsoever to call yourself a ‘broker.’ and… There is an organization of ‘brokers’ involved with real estate, however, very few people who call themselves ‘brokers’ have even heard of it never mind belong to it … And nobody is regulating or watching over these people!
- And you know the legal system is based on Napoleonic Laws and not Common Laws as they are in the US & Canada right? How much do any of us know about the Napoleonic legal system?
- Although many people speak some English, Costa Rica is a Spanish speaking country and all legal documents will be in Spanish. If you can’t read Spanish well then understanding contracts for example will be very difficult.
This means that when it comes to buying real estate which may be one of the biggest investments of your life…
More than likely, you will be listening to ‘expert’ advice coming from someone with zero qualifications or training in real estate, who is trying very hard to earn a sales commission selling you a property that could be dramatically overpriced…
Sounds like a recipe for disaster and it can be!
There are a few excellent Costa Rica real estate professionals but finding them is a challenge so what can you do? How do you ensure that you’re not going to ‘lose your shirt’ or get ripped off when you buy property here?
Knowing a few simple facts about buying real estate in Costa Rica could save you a fortune and prevent a lot of headaches.
Continue reading this article by Scott Oliver published at Welovecostarica.com
