Investments
Investments
By Explore Costa Rica Staff
Oct 25, 2004, 15:06

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Costa Rica Investments

Now, more than ever, there are even more secure investments available in Costa Rica. The hot investment area is real estate on Costa Rica’s spectacular Pacific Coast. According to a recent article in the country’s, financial daily, La Republica, property in the Central Pacific coast has risen 250% in value over the last six years.

Furthermore, with the paving of two new sections of the Costal Highway, the driving time between the country’s capital, San José and the nearest beach resorts will be reduced in half. The first stage of the new highway will link Ciudad Colón in the Central Valley to the town of Orotina near the Central Pacific Coast. The other section of new highway will link the towns of Quepos and Dominical to the south. There are plans for a major marina in Quepos, a water park with artificial waves between Quepos and Dominical and a new international airport in the town of Palmares. All of this will combine to make result estate values will soar even higher.
 
As an example of this boom, the Marriot Corporation built its crown jewel of Central America “Los Sueños Resort” and pre-sold 50 condominium units of 2,000 square feet each for $250,000. The next year they sold another 50 at $350,000 and this year’s upper-end units sold between $450,000 to $850,000. And there is a waiting list!
 
South of Jaco Beach at the Del Pacifico development, the owners say investments will yield at least 25% to 30% in yearly appreciation. Obviously this area is the place to find secure investments with a high rate of return. Liquidity is not a problem since land is in demand.
 
Why is this happening? Every bit of coastline worldwide is becoming over-crowded, over-priced and more scare contributes to a high level of interest Costa Rica’s beach areas. The U.S. National Association of Realtors says Americans are buying second homes in record numbers, thus driving up the cost of vacation homes everywhere in the country. A recent newspaper article stated one in every seven people in the U.S.  now lives in areas bordering the coast. This trend is driving the great migration of Baby Boomer. As a result, land in prime sunbelt areas of the U.S. have become prohibitively expensive and hard to find. This is not the case in Costa Rica.
 
Savvy people with a thirst for adventure, fun and profitable investments are now taking a closer look at Costa Rica. Actually, an investment in real estate in Costa Rica’s Central Pacific is much better than an investment in California real estate 30 years ago.
 
Along Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast you will find wide white and dark sand beaches, rocky outcrop and clear water set against a tropical backdrop of primary rain forest. The beaches are reminiscent of those in California and Hawaii, but you can buy here for one-tenth the cost. For a very reasonable price you may purchase a couple of acres of land with an ocean view. You can have a spectacular home perched on a hill, complete with custom tiles, and finished in mahogany, teak and precious woods you never knew existed. The geography looks like California or Hawaii years ago. 
 
Getting in before the crowd has always been the secret to making a lot of money with real estate investments. People who took a chance and invested in real estate in beach property in California, Hawaii and some parts of Florida were ahead of their time. They saw opportunity where others saw nothing. They took well-planned risks and were paid handsomely for their investments and created better lives for themselves and their families. What really gets people excited about Costa Rica is that it offers some of the most undervalued prime beach real estate in the world. As the rest of the world finds out about Costa Rica, prices will only go up.
 
By the way you can legally use your pre-tax IRA to purchase real estate in Costa Rica.