Costa Rica Property Taxes – Our municipal tax hike!

WeLoveCostaRica.com published an article last week about things returning to normal in our area of San Isidro, and we’re with him on that – amazing how the resilient Tico people bounce back from adversity and get on with the business of living.

The Vice Alcalda (mayor) was meant to speak to the Women’s Club last week but he had to pull out – members and officials in the municipality burning midnight oil to deal with landslides, bridge and road damage, and get things cleaned up. Deciding on priorities and allocating the resources must be a nightmare but Perez Zeledon is certainly getting on with the job.

Midst the rains, nature always takes us by surprise when the migratory birds begin to return – Baltimore oriels and yellow warblers back, just wondrous to see but impossible to photograph. But the last fortnight has been really special, we’ve had three of the toucan family enjoying bountiful berries around the garden.

The big chestnut mandible visits irregularly but we rarely see the emerald toucanets; more common at 1000m (we’re at 900m), we’ve only seen two solitary birds in five years but right now, we’ve had three juveniles every day for the last couple of weeks. Sorry it’s a lousy photo but the best I’ve been able to get during the poor weather. Its been really amusing watching our resident aracari taking them on and claiming their territory!

To the taxes: Last year there was a lot of debate about the government’s announcement on property re-evaluations and the introduction of the luxury property tax. Myths abounded (including that ‘they’ were after the Gringos with big houses!) but suffice to say, we established our valuation was good for five years, until January 2011. With that date approaching, all has been revealed.

A couple of weeks ago, two municipal officers rolled up to assess the property. They measured the buildings, established that there had been no new building or extensions, confirmed the types of construction, rooms and utilities, and confirmed land area etc.

Though we managed the process in broken Spanish, we were invited to call at the office where a senior officer could take us through the process in English, and he did – at pains to show us the national reference manual setting out all the criteria for valuation and assure us these were applied consistently.

A week later, he invited us back to discuss the outcome – our tax will increase from 48,000 colones per year to 168,000 colones annually for the next five years – which means they rise from around US$96 to US$336 for the year.

John delivered the obligatory raised eyebrows (albeit with a smile!) at the ‘hike’ but in truth, after all the speculation last year, we had expected it to be worse. Not a bad deal for 7 acres, a large home, the cabin and outbuildings, and a view to die for – though that’s free!

If we were back in our old home in the UK, out local council tax would be $6,300 this year. We were invited to sign up and promise to pay – there’s no such formality in the UK, the envelope arrives and its pay up and shut up!

Costa Rica gets heavily criticized for its bureaucratic processes but we appreciated this one, and as ever with our municipality, all conducted with supreme courtesy and helpfulness. The mystery is over, we’re pretty content!

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Written by VIP Member Sheelagh Richards. Sheelagh is originally from Scotland and her husband John who is from Wales are two inveterate British travellers who fell in love with Costa Rica, the beauty of the Talamanca mountain range and the perfect climate of the Rio General valley where they have established a small Bed & Breakfast called Casa de Los Celtas.

You can see more about John and Sheelagh’s very affordable B&B outside San Isidro here and photographs and prices here and you can also see a free online video interview with John & Sheelagh Richards here.

Please contact our Recommended Costa Rica Realtors working in the area: James Drews, Daveed Hollander and John Wieland, by using the simple form below and they’ll send you:

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.