So Where's the Affordable Costa Rica Real Estate Everybody's Talking About?

Scott Oliver

So where can you find the affordable real estate that everybody's talking about?

The problem you face as an English speaking buyer of Costa Rica real estate trying to find quality homes under US$250K is that you are understandably only going to notice the real estate advertisements, magazines and websites that are in your own language - English!

It's also understandable that agents want to sell you the higher priced, not 'affordable' Costa Rica real estate because that means more commissions for them and for their families... We would all like to earn more money, right?

This is why it's not easy finding 'affordable' Costa Rica real estate on the internet. That may change in the future but for now, your best source for 'affordable' real estate for sale is 'La Nacion' which is the biggest, most influential Spanish language newspaper.

On Saturdays, you can read the details of various Costa Rica real estate projects, dozens of display advertisements and hundreds of classified ad's listed in their real estate supplement which is called 'Metro Cuadrado' (M2).

You will quickly see that the Costa Rica real estate advertising in 'La Nacion' is targeting Spanish speaking people and the advertising in the local English language weekly newspaper - the Tico Times, is aimed at English speaking people&

Here's a great example for you.

Last Saturday, after carefully examining all the classified advertisements for houses and condo's for sale in both 'La Nacion' as well as the Tico Times, here's what we discovered:.

• 'La Nacion' = 59% of the classified advertisements were for properties under US$100K and the average sales price = US$91K
• Tico Times = 20% of the classified advertisements were for properties below US$100K and the average sales price = US$125K

That's a dramatic difference and it clearly shows the different 'target market' that each newspaper's advertising is trying to reach&

And it will also show that every single day in the newspaper, you will find dozens of advertisements for condo homes selling for under US$250K. There are far more for sale that are simply not advertised.

We should remember that just like your home town, some of these areas may not be 'appropriate' for you but many of them will... We know gringos who have bought homes for less than US$75K and are happily living in a Tico area in a Tico style home&

We also know gringos who have bought homes for US$75K - Did a quick US$5-10K 'facelift' to upgrade them and make them more attractive to gringos (which isn't difficult when you can hire laborers for way less than US$4 per hour) and then sold them for US$100K and put a net US$25K in their pockets.

Hmm! Twenty-five-grand? - Muchisimas gracias!

You can see more about these Costa Rica Condo Apartments At Affordable Prices here.

Even if you don't speak Spanish, there should be no serious problems if you read How the Ticos Find The Real Estate Deals where you will find an easy to understand glossary of Spanish real estate terms to help you ...

Once you have your short list, then it's time to find a Spanish-speaking friend who can travel around with you and help you through the 'language' of house hunting...

Written by Scott Oliver, author of How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa and Costa Rica's Guide To Making Money Offshore. This new feature was created at the request of numerous VIP Members who have asked us repeatedly to recommend experienced developers with a proven track record who are building quality homes in Costa Rica.

If you would like to communicate with a real estate professional who focuses on Costa Rica real estate in the Central Valley area priced below US$250K, please use the form below: