Promises of high yield profits when investing in Costa Rica can be a trap if you don’t do your homework. During the Costa Rica real estate boom there were suddenly lots of people doing the development of real estate projects. And they had absolutely no experience in real estate development.
Those real estate developments were mostly in the Central Valley and in the North, Central, and South Pacific beach areas.
During the boom, there were also quite a few real estate agents turning themselves into developers. They were buying very cheap properties and then offering the best deals in town at even better profits. Today, there are a lot of those investors stuck with shares in some kind of real estate development that never happened.
Paragon Properties
Paragon Properties became infamous because they were a boiler room sales office. They took millions from innocent Costa Rica real estate investors. Investing in Costa Rica is as serious business as it is anywhere in the world. But you can always learn from other’s mistakes, especially when investing your money in Costa Rica real estate.
Some developers offer cheap houses and cheap land that sound on paper like they’re a bargain. I see locations offered online like Playa Azul (near Tarcoles), San Mateo, Palo Seco (near Parrita) and San Ramon. Many of these areas that are offered cheap get flooded during the rainy season or it rains there so much that after one year living there, buyers are screaming to get out of there while others are in the middle of nowhere.
Unscrupulous
I once did marketing and sales for a developer in Jaco. He just started filling the wetlands with bulldozers until the city stopped him.
Others just start digging roads into the mountains without any permitting at all.
On the SUGEVAL alert list, you will find CR-Home, a retired couple turned realtor turned developer. I don’t know what they are being accused of. I’m sure not much is being done about it. They are offering property in 4 different communities they are developing. I do not know their developments and maybe they are offering a great deal. Each investor needs to do his own homework on that.
But once you see a name on the SUGEVAL list, at least it will show you that you should do your due diligence on them. Then, if they come out clean, great! You got yourself a good deal then.
ROI
Costa Rica is often advertised all over the world with the most unbelievable promises of returns on investment (ROI). Most are too good to be possible by some unscrupulous salespeople. Well, most of the time, they are NOT possible. It’s so easy to promise extraordinary profits on a website or on a nice brochure. Especially when the company that is asking for investing in Costa Rica is in a tropical country where rules are different than in your home country.
As a legitimate and serious real estate agent in Costa Rica, I want to warn you for wrong investing in Costa Rica. I hate to see investors lose all your money. Instead, to do your research before you put your savings in the wrong place.
A great investment climate
Costa Rica offers a great investment climate but like anywhere else in the world, you need to be careful where you put your money. Of course, there are lots of legitimate offerings in the investment market. If you are looking to invest your well-earned savings, you should look at these offerings. Anything is better than just put it in the bank and allow them to charge you for keeping it for you. As a reputable real estate agent in Costa Rica, I can assure you that a purchase in Costa Rica real estate can be a very good investment, but not with those impossible returns.
If you would invest money in your home country, you would investigate first who the company is? Wouldn’t you first find out who owns it, do they have experience in the field and if they are for real or not? On paper, it is so easy to say anything that will be believed by anyone 15,000 miles away. Well, in Costa Rica we have SUGEVAL, the superintendent of securities. They have an alert list for investors that you can check before you invest any money with somebody who offers unbelievable returns.
This is how the Sugeval list looks like
Investing in Costa Rica
I have seen investors start out buying a parcel in a lemon farm or a teak farm in the middle of nowhere when investing in Costa Rica. Most of these investors knew only where Costa Rica was located on a map.
To try to recover their savings, they built a house and are now living in the middle of nowhere, hating every day of it. If you receive offers of investing in Costa Rica that are too good to be true, you already know the answer to that one, I’m sure.
Make sure you investigate the area well before you purchase, during the rainy season and dry season. That’s why the American European real estate group has agents from coast to coast. Our affiliate real estate agents live in the area themselves.
Be smart and investigate well before investing in Costa Rica and waste your life savings. Don’t just believe a salesman because he speaks your language. Do your homework, please. Or contact us NOW.
Feel free to leave your comments on this blog.
If you like this blog, connect with me on Google+ or subscribe to our newsletter by clicking the banner below.
I DO want to remind our readers that we appreciate any referrals you can send us. Please also remember the American European real estate Group’s agents when you refer a real estate agent. We appreciate your business.
