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That’s the point though Stan, you may not think so but many of our VIP Members obviously do think it is “broke” and that it does need fixing.
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comOf course you would think that it is not broke if you were making the money.
What about if you have a large percent of the west cost of CR that is not owned by a tico?
Its like if 40 percent of the U.S. was owned by non U.S. Residence.
How do you think americans would feel?They are just having a huge problem with California being sold out.
I was shocked to read that many of the developments along the pacific coast are neither properly permitted, and some are not permitted at all. in fact, the recent article i read said that 1 in 4 development projects is inadequately permitted (or not at all) and that the builders would prefer to pay the hefty fines than go through all the bureaucratic hassle of getting the permits in the first place. If I were King, I’d bulldoze those projects and forbid those people from doing business in Costa Rica for a millenium. I also spoke to some folks who recently left Playa Coco becuase of the overbuilding, which they claim is being done by the Italian mob, and those people claim that many of those projects are unpermitted. it is a rape and pillage mentality — go into a developing country, buy up cheap property from the locals, develop the hell out of it, with or without permits, and take the money and run. i foresee Costa Rica becoming like the Yucatan — totally destroyed by overdevelopment, with the ultimate reality of forcing the Ticos out of their own area/country/province because it has become too expensive to live there at all for teh average person. How many places has that happened to on the planet? Look at Cabo San Lucas. it was once a sleepy fishing village where the locals enjoyed a nice life near the water. Now they’ve turned it into a riviera where the locals have sold out to the developers (as if they had a choice) and moved inland. I don’t know what the answer is, but I can honestly say that the massive gringo-style mansions going up along the coast appall me. It is really setting up the barriers between the have and the have-nots. I wonder who really benefits from this kind of growth in the long run.
The world became smaller and smaller as we could travel easy and have more time and money. They call that globalisation. The world is changing but not everybody likes those changes. Americans should not complain about “a huge problem in California” if they do they same in other countries. Some countries protect their land to foreign owners (India).
We have to get used to the idea that some day GM and Ford will be owned by Toyota (for example). The world is not like it was 40 years ago when everything and everybody seemed to have its own place.
Speaking of Costa Rican being put out of the market. My Costa Rican friend is building a home for $35.00 a square meter and the North Americans are building for $65.00 a square meter. There are several homes built tico style that are being sold for $25,000 to 35,000.
There is a changing time in Costa Rica more people are being educated and more of them will be affluent. The Costa Rica we see today is quickly changing. How can you put people on a guilt trip for purchasing what people are selling.
There are two properties one on each side of me that are for sale. The owners are Costa Rican and the price they have put on the land is outrageous for a North American. It is crazy, but they will leave the price just as is, in hopes that a nut will come by and purchase the land. They think the nut is me.
The guy on the right of me has 1,000 meters of land and the rest is rock going down the slope to the river. He has divided that 1,000 meters into 3 lots, for a total price of $30,000. He thought he would scare us into purchasing it. He said that people getting help from the government to purchase land and build a house would be buying the land. Well it has not happened, so who is the bad person, the one who sales or the one who buys.
We Costa Ricans are definitely being forced out of the housing market in the coastal areas and some of the prime urban areas like Escazu, Santa Ana and Curridabat where developers are charging anywhere from $300K all the way up to $2 Million for Condos and Houses. Another problem is that the influx of foreigners and tourists are causing the prices in commercial establishments in these areas to sky rocket making it impossible for Costa Ricans to vacation where they have traditionally been able to vacation throughout history. For example: Tamarindo, Flamingo, Playa Hermosa, Papagayo and Playas del Coco. This is obviously causing an anti american sentiment as people feel that we are being cheated out of something that is ours. Especially in areas like Nosara, Tamarindo and Mal Pais where foreigners feel they own the area and treat Costa Ricans poorly when they visit (from personal experience).
Nonetheless, a great percentage of the sellers offering condos, houses and land are Costa Ricans and many people have benefited greatly from the real estate boom. You see a lot of Costa Ricans driving around San Jose in BMWs, Land Rovers, Mercedes Benz and Audis which were rare back in the 80’s and 90’s. High end stores, restaurants and bars are opening everywhere. Also, there are still plenty of housing options in the $50,000 – $150,000 range in urban areas like Ciudad Colon, Santa Ana, Escazu, San Pedro, San Antonio de Belen, Los Reyes, Heredia, Alajuela, etc. and in Coastal Areas like Playas del Coco, Jaco, Hermosa, Puerto Viejo, Quepos and Puntarenas. The poorest of Costa Ricans get housing aid from the government and the rest may still find very affordable options but still 20% of Ticos are very poor and need help from the government and all of us. I can assure you that the economic situation in Costa Rica is a lot better than it was in the 70’s, 80s and 90’s so don’t feel bad about purchasing quality property in Costa Rica as you will contribute to the economy by paying taxes, purchasing goods, services and hopefully through some charity donations to your local community.
If you want to contribute to Costa Rica here’s some advice: 1) learn Spanish, 2) pay above minimum wage, 3) do charity with your local community, 4) avoid corruption, and 5) be respectful and nice to Ticos. I believe that with these 5 issues most Costa Ricans will appreciate your presence and slowly the negative image will start to change. Before I’m bashed for my comments, I am Costa Rican, I have lived here for 26 years, I’m from Santa Ana, I went to school in the US and lived there for 5 years. Oh yeah…my girlfriend is gringa!
Alachner,
Thanks for your words, they were just great and right on. Many of us are here to not only receive benefits, but also to be a benefit to Costa Rica. I have never lived in a country that put out a welcome mat for foreigners. In most countries they have some things they do not like about the foreign invasion. We felt like that when the Arabs started buying properties in major States and cities in the US. Usually the problem is one that impacts a State and not the entire country as here in Costa Rica. Thank you for your words, you explained it better then most.
I’m a little angry myself, because it just seems that we have done some things without much thought. One of our favorite sayings is,”if this was in California do you know what it would sale for” It is not in California, it is in Costa Rica and the cost of police service is low, the cost of education is low, there are no sewers in most areas, no gas lines, some areas do not have garbage pick up, the streets are not paved and there are no street lights in most areas. The services are just not here and those services have a big effect on the price of housing and land. This is not California, where the medium income is $80,000.
Of course if I’m selling land to you and you tell me the price is not bad. The next guy will raise his price and they will keep on raising it waiting for people to get off the planes telling them that the price is not to high. Based on that information my place is worth about 1,000,000. which is really ridiculous, but just offer it to me and see how fast I move (smile). Thanks for such a nice explanation.
Maravilla,
Your right on… Development without master planning is a recipe for disaster. Tamarindo’s gridlocked roads and emminent meltdown of water and sewer infrastructure is the result of no or poor planning… The burden of correcting the mess will end up with those who least profitted from the boom. The guilty will either be long gone or promoted… If only, I were king… (you can take the job nights and holidays)
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