Houses/apartments under development. Are they a good idea? What shoul

[happyretreat 0]

My husband and I would like to purchase a vacation home in Costa Rica. We have been approached by developers who are in process of building a condo. What are the risks in purchasing real estate which is not completely developed?

[Epicatt2 0]

Hi,

 

The are folks every so often who report that the put money into a project like this and then the project goes bust. Either the whole thing falls thru and nothing is ever actually built, or some projects wind up 'running out of funds' and the work on it shuts down.

 

I'm no Realtor and have no real estate interest, but if I were in the market to buy something in CR I would consider a project that is mostly complete and already has some people who have purchased and are living there. They should make pretty good references for whether or not the place is worth buying into.

 

If on the other had those folks living there cite a number of problems -or the development is complete and no one is living there -or the developer or sales personnel advises that the infrastructure is not 'quite in place yet, but will be finished soon', I would steer clear of the thing.

 

Just some musings here, as if I were considering buying a property.

 

Cheers!

 

Paul M.

==

[stfree 0]

My husband and I would like to purchase a vacation home in Costa Rica. We have been approached by developers who are in process of building a condo. What are the risks in purchasing real estate which is not completely developed?

 

Hi there Happy;

 

Paul (Epicatt) is right but maybe a litle soft here - but hey, we love the place and hate to point out the warts but warts there are.

 

Even in normal times there were a multitude of projects in Costa Rica that would never be finished by the original developers.

 

Now, as a result of the recession, it is much worse; a few projects are on their third and fourth resurrections and re-marketing and are about to go bust AGAIN.

 

BEWARE!

 

The legal system here does NOT protect the buyer anywhere close to the extent you are familiar with in the States. There is NO requirement for "agents" to be licensed or have any qualifications. Projects are often started without proper or with questionable permitting (a game of dice in itself) in place and with shaky or minimal capital. So, part way into development (and after lots of deposits have been taken), some governmental agency will issue a "stop" order or the money simply "runs out". And there it will sit, unresolved, until the glacial legal system grinds.

 

I would NEVER commit money to anything here that did not already exist 100% and I would need to see a clear Registro entry (title) on it. Even then caution is the word... I'm not exaggerating. It's the Wild West.

 

There ARE opportunities here but you should not expect that you can make a purchase of one without substantial knowledge, in-person examination and trustworthy counsel.

[costaricafinca 0]

Check out Intertica a 'For Sale By Owner' website that you may find a existing/completed property in the area you are interested in.