Costa Rica Land & Property
Atenas, Costa Rica

Costa Rica Land and Property, serving all your Costa Rica Real Estate needs.
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Closing Costs

Below is a list of fees and other costs of purchasing and owning real estate in Costa Rica.

Fees and Taxes

To BUY or SELL:
A.) LAWYER'S FEES: The following information was obtained from an article in We Love Costa Rica.com , written by Roger A. Petersen. You may have to register with them to see the full article, but registration is FREE and you will be missing a LOT of very good information plus a very informative newsletter if you don't!
For all acts and contracts that are authorized to be performed by a Costa Rican Notary Public the fee schedule is based upon the actual value of the transaction involved according to the following minimum schedule. (This schedule would be the one that applies to real estate closing transactions)
First 10 million Colones = 2%
Over 10 million Colones and up to 15 Million Colones = 1.5%
Over 15 million Colones and up to 30 million Colones = 1.25%
Over 30 million Colones = 1%
The law also states that for acts or contracts that are complex in nature, there may be a 50% surcharge from the above.
Furthermore, the sliding Notary Fee schedule is set as the minimum which may be charged. The Notary may charge more than the fee schedule so long as the client agrees. According to Article 1 of the law it is mandatory that they abide by the minimum schedule that is established in the Executive Decree.
( Roger A. Petersen is an Attorney at Law, member of both the Costa Rican Bar and the Florida Bar. Mr. Petersen is a partner with Alliance Law Group in San Jose, Costa Rica.)Other fees include the following:B.) STAMPS: approximately 1.1 %
C.) TRANSFER TAXES: 1.5 %
The amount of the preceding items is paid according to the declared value of the sale which is declared in the "escritura" (Title) of the property, which is registered in the National Registry or before the municipality (which ever of the two is more)D.) REALTOR'S COMMISSIONS:
The Association of Costa Rican Real Estate Brokers prohibits the practice known as "price padding" or "net pricing" among it's members. (They are the official governing board of realtors but only a very small percentage of realtors actually belong) This is the common practice of adding an amount to the seller's asking price (normally at least 15% and sometimes 100% or even more!) and pocketing the difference. (This is usually ON TOP of the commission they charge the seller or in some cases the buyer) Good news for our clients:
We do NOT practice "price padding" AND we charge only 5% usually paid by the seller. More information on Closing Costs:
By custom, in an all cash transaction, buyer and seller split the closing costs, but the split may be adjusted up or down to fit the occasion and the needs of the parties involved. When a mortgage is involved the buyer is usually expected to pay the costs of closing and always expected to pay the cost of registering the mortgage. (see below)

Costs of Other Documents:

MORTGAGES:
Construction of the mortgage: approximately 50% of the cost of transfer (over the value of the mortgage)
Cancellation of the mortgage: Approximately 50% of the cost of the construction of the mortgage. These processes are not recorded with the "transfer taxes" of 1.5%; because what is indicated in regard to the percentage of the cost, with respect to the sale of properties, refers only to the amounts in "a" and "b" above. RENT AND PURCHASE OPTIONS:
These are "private contracts" that are not required to be signed in front of a public notary. Some people ask (in our opinion, all should) that they be done with a notary so that the exact date may be inscribed and/or the signatures authenticated. In either case, the contract is equally valid with only the signatures of both parties since the contract is considered law between the two parties. The difference that could exist is if the document must be used in court since the notary has "public faith". If the contract was made privately - without the services of a notary- and one of the parties denies that his own signature is authentic, it must be examined by a handwriting expert recognized by the Supreme Court.

Property Taxes:

"REAL PROPERTY TAX LAW"
"LEY DEL IMPUESTO A LOS BIENES INMUEBLES"
Taxes for real property are recorded in an amount of 2,500 colones per million. It is the obligation of the property owner to declare the value of his property to the corresponding municipality at least every 5 years.

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