With real estate prices down and the Canadian dollar at par, or slightly above its U.S. counterpart, the time for Canadians to invest in Costa Rican real estate has never been better.

Properties are available all over the Country, with some of the best opportunities to purchase being in the Central Valley, selected Pacific Coast beach locations, and around Lake Arenal. There is a slight trend toward increased real estate prices in the last few months, so the bargain real estate purchase opportunities will probably only be realized for one more season at most.

Apart from the price and currency exchange benefit, Canadians also have an opportunity to utilize their RRSP funds to finance such an offshore property purchase.

Through placing a mortgage over a Canadian property owned by the RRSP fund holder, the mortgage is able to be funded from their RRSP funds, with current bank interest rates applicable, but with payments of principal and interest being made back to the RRSP fund instead of the bank.

If the funds are utilized for the purchase of an investment property (eg. rental), as opposed to a personal use property, the interest payments are tax deductible from the fund holder’s current year’s income, in the same manner as if it were a bank mortgage for the same purpose. The procedures to follow are discussed in more deal in Revenue Canada Bulletin IT-320R3.

The up-side market potential for prudent real estate investing in Costa Rica at this time probably exceeds that of an equivalent Canadian real estate investment. Canadians, if you have ever dreamed of owning a piece of Costa Rica, now would be the time to act.

[custom_script adID=97]

Written by Lic. Rick Philps. Richard (Rick) Philps is a Canadian citizen, naturalized as a citizen of Costa Rica. Rick practiced law in Canada as a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, for fourteen years, prior to moving to Costa Rica in 1998.

He the earned his Bachelor of Laws and Licensing Degrees (Civil Law) from the Metropolitana Castro Carazo University, and a Post-Graduate Degree in Notary and Registry Law, from the Escuela Libre de Derecho University, in San Jose, is a member of the Costa Rica College of Lawyers, and has practiced law in Costa Rica since 2003. Rick practices law in the areas of real estate and development, corporate, commercial, contract, immigration, and banking.

If you would like to contact Attorney Rick Philps and his associate Attorney Roger Petersen, the author of the Legal Guide To Costa Rica, please help us to help you by giving us your your email address and answer the three little questions in the form below:

To speak with Attorney Rick Philps and Attorney Roger Petersen about hiring them as your Costa Rica attorneys, please contact them using the information below:

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.