Costa Rica Real Estate

NEW CONTACT TELEPHONES FOR ALL BELOW INFO

8827-1314 OR 83301035

OR mail@orbitcostarica.com

Real Estate:

Angela Jimenez with film crew of House Hunters
HGTV

House Hunters asked around for a buyers broker in Costa Rica and sent this
crew and director down to film Angela at 3 locations (Avalon, Vivicon at
Lilia, and Prados Oeste)

Angela uses her experience of 22 years to make sure the buyer understands
the market in Costa Rica and does not overpay

From: rohailey
To: Harold - Orbit Costa Rica
Sent: Saturday, December 11, 2004 12:12 PM
Subject: costa rica trip for retirement relocation residency

Being the son of a world renowned author I have been told I have a good command of the English language, but adequate descriptive words escape me when I try to portray for you the incredible assistance Harold has provided me in becoming comfortable in Costa Rica. Let me put it this way, not only does Harold know everything you will ever need to know about Costa Rican tourism, but he is also a genius when it comes to knowing the ins and outs of Costa Rican customs, law, and just about everything else. Also his wife Angela is well known architect, builder, and certified appraiser of real estate licensed by the Costa Rica Board of Engineers and Architects


So whether you are considering a visit to Costa Rica for a few days or contemplating Costa Rican residency, Harold is without a doubt the most important person you will ever get to know and trust in Costa Rica. His assistance and expertise was off the charts, and I couldn’t feel luckier for having met him. Harold is one special character and someone you definitely need to know. I am now proud to call him my friend as well as my advisor.



Roger Hailey

TEL 305- 6062575 FLORIDA

MOVING TO COSTA RICA SOON SO WILL HAVE TO LIST NEW NUMBER



ORBIT OPINION: THIS FELLOW IS SON OF ARTHUR HAILEY THE AUTHOR OF AIRPORT AND LOTS OF OTHER BOOKS.

WE APPRECIATE HIS EXUBERANCE AND HOPE WE CAN LIVE UP TO THIS PRAISE.


Hello Angela We had a wonderful time with you.

Thanks for all of your help. You gave us so much to think about. We are interested in having you take a look at the properties in Punta Uva. I have all of the contact info, and will send it to you shortly. If you could look at the hotel on the beach and take a quick glance at the house and plot of land next to the hotel, as it is also for sale.

We are also quite interested in the plot of land on the beach. Just send us the account info and totals so we can send you some money. I will be in touch soon.

Thanks again, J.T

E-mail: realestate1@orbitcostarica.com



DO YOU KNOW WHAT A PERITO IS?
by lic. angela jimenez rocha

For those not native to Costa Rica it is not a dog but an inspector.

Banks and other lending institutions usually do not trust their own in house employees to do valuations so they hire outside peritos to value any hard assets from real estate to diamonds to cars etc. before they will make loans.

The most common job of a perito in Costa Rica is valuation of property and it takes not only the eye of an engineer but also that of an architect and real estate agent rolled into one person to create the most informed valuations.

For an existing house the perito will take the land value per square meter and the square meter house values less the official College of Engineers and Architects depreciation schedule based on the type of construction and age. Where the real art of appraisal comes into play is the so called L curve that most lenders use here. The L curve has to do with demand for certain areas and the eye and nose of the perito about potential resell values if the lender is forced to take back the property.

Unlike the U. S., red lining seems to be common here and many lenders avoid certain areas.

In Costa Rica, there are 3 main types of lenders for property.
1. Private Banks
2. Government Banks
3. Mutuals and Coops

There are numerous private lenders who charge much higher rates than the above and often non residents use this type service since the requirements of the 3 main lender types are much stricter than the U. S.

One interesting item is the Mutual Lenders in Costa Rica are not allowed to sell properties for more than the outstanding loan value. This is called lucre in Spanish meaning they are not allowed to profit from foreclosures. This is because the government authorized Mutuals (Savings and Loans or the old building society as we know them in the U. S.) are for purpose of helping the public rather than acting as profit center.

Today there are only 3 main Mutual Lenders left after much consolidation thru the years as the government has tightly regulated the Mutuals who also offer some of the same deposit services like banks and are fully guaranteed by the government. The Mutuals typically make much smaller more tightly controlled loans with far less default rate than almost any other type of financial instituition.

What does this mean to a borrower? If you get a loan from a Mutual you can almost be certain you did not overpay for the property.

Angela Jimenez Rocha has been a perito for 17 years after graduating as an architect, first starting with the government of Costa Rica to inspect projects the government was funding. After that she worked with several Mutual and Coop Lenders. She has done over 8,000 valuations and thousands of inspections for government Bono programs where any person under a certain income can qualify for a free grant of cash to approximately $5600 if they own a piece of land that qualifies for the Bono program.

Angela has very strict guidelines on how this money is used and it is parceled out as the work progresses. Her job is to make sure that the house is built according to code and that no budget over runs occur before the last payment is made.
Given the problems many foreigners run into with cost over runs this may be of interest in understanding how to keep within a budget here.

Angela has also built upscale housing and was the award winning design for the expansive vistors center for the famous Cathedral in Cartago. She is especially skilled in prefab construction to keep costs down and what most people do not realize is prefab construction can actually be stronger than regular brick and mortor.

Recently she has done a couple of appraisals where the asking price was about 60% more than her appraisal. When the surprised non resident buyers wanted to know why, she went over each item in a comprehensive 2 page report and simply tried to explain buyers must be cautious in a market when that old adage cavaet emptor (buyer beware) really means that in Costa Rica.

Angela can be contacted at 8330-1035 or 88271314or check her web site
www.orbitcostarica.com/certifieda.htm



From: "Paul Avalone" <paulie603@hotmail.com>

To: <mail@orbitcostarica.com>

Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2007 10:33 PM

Subject: RE: costa rica

I recently retired to Costa Rica and rented sight unseen by email a wonderfull condo in Avalon in Santa Ana from Angela and Harold of Orbit Travel. They did exactly what they promised and their advice thru the months has led me to the paradise I hoped for in Costa Rica. Angela especially is an expert in all aspects of real estate and is a well know certified appraiser for the banks in Costa Rica. They referred me to an attorney who handled all my needs in obtaining all the documents I needed to live here. If you need any more info you can call me at 203-4028. Best time to call is afternoon or night since i spend my mornings in the pool at the condo.

Paul Avalone
former unhappy resident of New York City retired from the rat race at 56.


REPRINT FROM AM COSTARICA OCTOBER 30,2207 VOL 7, NO. 215
COSTA RICA'S ENGLISH ON LINE NEWSPAPER

An A.M. Costa Rica guest commentary

An experienced appraiser addresses issue of property value

By Angela Jiménez Rocha*
Special to A.M. Costa Rica

After 22 years of watching prices and preparing many thousands of appraisals for the banks here along with private clients, I am amazed at the increase in prices asked at the

Angela Jiménez

Angela Jiménez Rocha

current time. However, the trend seems to be going up, and the construction costs from well known, reputable builders also have risen greatly.

If we consider the Central Valley, especially areas like Escazú and the newly hot area of Santa Ana, the price per square meter for nicely finished condos with amenities and security is $1,100 and up. For something

like a Trump Tower lookalike, the price is now $2,000 per square meter.

Today it is hard to find raw land for $100 in decent areas in the Central Valley, and many developments are asking $150 to $200 per square meter for land. One of the well known golf course communities was $50 meter 10 years ago and now $250- to $300. 10 years ago Santa Ana was a sleepy little town where land prices were $10 to $30 a meter. Today it is booming with new condo developments where land is $150 a meter.

We are owners of condos and also an adviser to Avalon, which is one of the great, new condo developments in Santa Ana. This developer has had such great success that people are standing in line to snap up any new project he has in advance of construction. For most of the new projects buyers are asked to put up 20 percent for pre-sale before construction starts. This is a risk unless the buyer checks carefully who the developer is and makes sure there is a fiduciary or bond to guarantee completion.

But why is the demand so great? Costa Rica really has become a boom area for much more than North American retirement and second-home buyers. The country is attracting Europeans like never before, and thousands of rich people from places like Venezuela. The prince of Saudi Arabia just flew in and announced that he is increasing his stake in Costa Rica where he already was major shareholder of the Four Seasons complex. Steve Case of AOL-Time Warner fame announced he was starting a new $800 million project. Famous hotel chains have been lining up from all over the world starting new projects.

The cold hard facts are 78 million baby boomers are going to retire soon, and Costa Rica is on the top of the list for those wanting to leave the States. There is simply not enough space any longer in the Central Valley to accommodate even 1 percent of these potential new arrivals.

What the new comer to Costa Rica needs to understand is that

there is a two tiered market here. Housing like you see in the States and the local Tico market. Zoning for all practical purposes does not exist here, and the only way to assure high-class neighbors is to pay high prices for land. Does that mean you cannot find a Tico-style house for $25,000. I appraise these every day for the Costa Rica housing bank which is guaranteed by the government. There are lots of them, but most Americans would never feel comfortable or secure living in these areas.

Buyers come in all shapes and sizes, and there are lots of people who think nothing of paying $500,000 and up for a house. But the local people see that as a television dream since the average wage is $500 month. Many Ticos are leaving the Central Valley to live in areas like Puriscal which is nice area but does not offer the services most North Americans are used to. Even here prices are moving up rapidly.

I have nothing against real estate agents, but my profession is strictly licensed and regulated by the goverment where real estate brokers are not required to have any license.

My advice to a buyer is to inspect and appraise carefully before buying. Real Estate agents are fine for locating property but usually have no expertise in all of the risks that exist here which are much differnt than the U. S. Just making sure of the road quality leading to a property is something most take for granted, but Costa Rica roads and bridges often fail and the authorities are often strapped for funds to repair these quickly.

A couple of weeks ago there was a photo of 100 meters of road that collapsed near the University of Peace in Ciudad Colón where several upscale projects are located. No one knows how long it will take to fix the road or if there are other problems about to surface.

We have a recent client who has upscale desires, and we inspected and appraised a terrific house in Escazú for $545,000, which we found worth the asking price. But when our attorney checked the documents he found a clouded title the seller forgot to explain.

Next the buyers asked us to inspect a six-bedroom, 500 meter condo with incredible views and an asking price of $990,000. Our appraisal came in at $712,000.

On the other side, we appraised a tract of beachfront land two years ago which was titled. Many such tracts are not titled but are granted through a local concession. The seller was offered $450,000 by one of the largest tourist operators here, and we appraised this property at $850,000. The seller sold it off our appraisal at around $1,200,000 and, as I understand, it is now on market for $2 million.


* Ms. Jiménez, an appraiser licensed by the Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y Architectos for the last 21 years, has conducted thousands of appraisals.

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