Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes If you want to purchase property, start looking for an escrow agent. An escrow agent is a neutral third party who holds onto the buyer’s funds related to the real estate transaction until both parties have satisfied their contractual obligations and charges a fee for this service. This fee is…
The safest way to buy real estate in Costa Rica is through escrow services.
These services are a secure way to transfer funds between a seller and a property buyer. The escrow company is a third party that handles these funds in return for a fee. This fee is usually 0.25% of the funds to be wired, with a minimum of $900.
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes What you should do with the earnest money deposit is a real estate FAQ or frequently asked question for those buying or selling Costa Rica real estate. This question arises because, in Costa Rica, it’s customary for the buyer to give the earnest money to the seller. Local buyers rarely…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes Why use escrow in Costa Rica real estate and how does it work? Some foreign buyers of Costa Rica real estate just assume that this works the same as it does back home. Wrong! Let’s start at the beginning. In Costa Rica, local buyers, as well as sellers, do not…
Why do money laundering and buying property in Costa Rica often go hand in hand? Should you be afraid to be seen as a money launderer when buying property in Costa Rica? The answers are simple: In Costa Rica, real estate is still a means of money laundering. Yes, you should be afraid, but only…
When you purchase a property from a Costa Rica real estate developer, do you think you’d need to find out more about the developer’s record and building history? I bet you don’t.
Estimated Reading Time: 7 Minutes You are selling a property in Costa Rica, your counteroffer was accepted, and now what? In Costa Rica real estate it is common to have sellers from different nationalities. They all have sold houses in their home country. And now they think they have experience in selling a property in…
I had the opportunity to a mortgage refinance on different properties in Costa Rica in December last year. So I’d end up with a mortgage on just my house. That way, I’d have the other properties free and clear. With the mortgage refinance I would pay no mortgage administration fees and make a much lower…
The reason that I titled this blog with the question if realtors should hold earnest money out of the country? That is because the answer is a double NO. The first NO is that earnest money on a Costa Rica real estate transaction should never go to the realtor. The second NO is that if…