Costa Ricans’ excessively polite way of talking is just one manifestation of the extreme value that the culture puts on respect. The good thing about this cultural trait is that it makes Costa Rica a friendly place for foreigners and everyone else. There has never been a guerrilla insurgency in Costa Rica, the country doesn’t

If you speak Spanish learned in Spain, Mexico, Colombia, or basically anywhere other than Costa Rica, you will be immediately impressed at how politely Costa Ricans speak – sometimes to a fault. Here it’s typical to call any adult “don” (for the men) or “doña” (for the women), even though most other parts of Ibero-America

Most of what’s written in Chapter 7 on buying a property applies here, but in reverse. If a broker showed your property to the buyer, he or she will probably act as an intermediary during negotiation. The main thing to remember is that through most of selling process, it’s the buyer who’s taking the risk,

Without a broker involved, showing the house is going to be up to you or to your hired help. Showing a house is something of an art and in many cases those few minutes make the difference between a sale and a walk-away. First of all, before you even put the house on the market,

As Costa Rica’s real estate market develops, it’s becoming an easier place for owners to sell their properties themselves. Real estate publications are popping up everywhere, while the keywords “Costa Rica” and “real estate” have become hot property on Internet search engines. Other higher-end marketing options – like yacht fairs and international real estate expos

Using a broker to sell your property is expensive. It will cost you at least 5% of the final sale price, often more. In exchange for that steep fee, brokers are supposed to do all the work of selling your property. Chapter 2 gives extensive advice on finding a broker as a buyer, but finding

Early on, it will be important for you to determine what, exactly, you want out of the sale. When deciding on an asking price for your property, there are three basic metrics you must take into account: 1) the price you want to get; 2) the appraised value; 3) the market price. The price you