Whereas most foreign real estate buyers and would-be property investors in Costa Rica are mostly concerned with getting a good deal with regard to purchase price, what they should really be thinking about is how to properly enter and document their properties in the National Registry. Hasty or careless attempts at registering properties will only help to create a mess that will not be easy to recover from.

 

A 21^st century real estate transaction in Costa Rica should only take place when the subject property has been properly registered and the transfer is recorded by means of escritura pública (public affidavit) duly entered into the public record. The author and recorder of this document should be a notary public under Costa Rican law, and it is important to note that the public office of a notary in this country differs significantly from that exercised in several common law jurisdictions. Notaries in Costa Rica are carefully appointed by judicial officers, and they essentially become officers of the court. To this effect, the services of notary public in Costa Rica tend to cost significantly more than they would in a jurisdiction such as Tennessee, for example.

 

The escritura pública serves as a property title and evidentiary deed, and it is created in accordance to the property type, which can be:

• Propiedad Titulada: single-family residence, fee simple and detached.
• Vivienda en Régimen de Condominio: attached condominium, apartment, or town house unit in a multifamily building or gated residential complex.
• Propiedades Concesionadas en la Zona Marítimo-Terrestre (ZMT): these are oceanfront properties located within 200 from the high tide mark, which is being challenged by climate change. ZMT properties can be held in ownership subject to municipal code and certain rules promulgated by the Board of Tourism (Spanish initials: ICT).

 

Although the notary public will take care of most proceedings associated with property registration, buyers and sellers must abide by the following requisites at a minimum:

1. All parties in the transaction should be properly identified by full names, permanent address, marital status, occupation, and ID document number. Any parties represented by a corporation, partnership or other type of business entity should be identified by the corresponding and establishing escritura pública. A registered agent or a person acting under power of attorney may represent the domestic company.
2. Legal description of the property, including registration number from the National Registry.
3. Geographic location in terms of province, canton and district. Metes, bounds and measurements should be included as well as any natural features such as creeks, primary forest, etc. The cadastral registry number of the property should not carry any pending liens or judgments.
4. Purchase price breakdown and agreement from all parties.
5. Satisfaction of taxes and all municipal or governmental fees.
6. The affidavit itself, sworn by all parties as to the nature and reason of their actions.