Option is the best way to tie up that property

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

Finding a good deal on real estate can be harder to do these days in Costa Rica, with land prices sharply increasing.

Once found, lock it up with an option contract, and register it with the Registro Nacional.  This step puts a legal lien on the property, so the seller cannot weasel out of the deal if another buyer with more money shows up. Double-dealing occurs every day in a fast-moving real estate market.

There are other good reasons to option a property before buying it, especially if there are structures on it like a house.  Home inspecting engineers now are available here to check out buildings.  Inspections to disclose defects in a property that could materially affect its safety, livability, or resale value can save money eventually.

Most topographical surveys of real estate in Costa Rica are outdated. Verifying a property’s boundary line is important.  There are so many land disputes these days, not verifying the boundaries is poor judgment for a buyer.

It's just another Mickey Mouse rumor

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

A false rumor that the Walt Disney Co. plans to construct a major resort on the Pacific coast is getting new life, thanks to telephone solicitors for real estate deals.

A study by a local consultant shows no evidence that Jacó or Quepos will join ranks with the likes of Los Angeles, Calif., Orlando, Fla., Paris, France, Tokyo, Japan, or Hong Kong, the five population centers where Disney has theme parks and resorts.

The rumor has been so persistent that a local real estate firm contracted the consultant, Garland M. Baker, to investigate. The company later agreed to make the report public.  

People who have invested or are considering investing in Costa Rican land say that the Disney theme has worked its way into the sales pitches of telephone salesman in the United States. One man who bought even property said he was told that the Disney announcement would appear in the Jan. 6 issue of USA Today. He has been watching that newspaper since.

When laws collide, projects can be big losers

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

When laws collide, the fallout can hurt the little guy — or in this case, keep the little guy from getting full title to his new condo.

A simple pyramid can explain the legal system in Costa Rica.  Sources are the Constitution, legislated laws, presidential and executive decrees along with the rules and regulations that give instructions on how to apply law.

The order of importance of law is from top to bottom.  The Constitution is the supreme law, specific laws carry more weight than presidential decrees, and rules are just regulations on applying a law in different situations.

Costa Rican law is always under the watchful eye of the world.  Treaties with other nations can change law in the country, but only after an evolutionary process where individuals have to fight for specific rights in an international court.  

Some laws and rules are confusing, and others clash.  One example important to coastal developers is the “Reglamento a la Ley Reguladora de la Propiedad en Condominio,” or the regulation to the law of condominium property.

Employers have options to stem cellular abuse

By: Garland M. Baker B.

Exclusive to A.M. Costa Rica

Editor's Note: While this article was accurate at the time of publication, some information may now be outdated. We are currently preparing a comprehensive update. Sign up for our Alerts to be notified as soon as the revised content is live!

Give an inch, and they’ll take a mile.   

Offer a hand, and lose an arm.   

These management axioms also have to do with cellular telephones.  Cell phone abuse is rampant among employees.  

Even someone who still does not have a cell phone is not immune from the increased numbers of them. In a movie, a restaurant, a church, or a meeting, people are using the technology and being a disturbance.   

In the workplace, some employees will not take a job if they do not get a cell phone.  Yes, the instruments can be very productive tools.  They save time. They also contribute to lost productivity and employees avoiding making their own decisions because they can always call someone else and ask what to do.

There is nothing more frustrating than trying to have a business meeting with an employee and the wife calls, or the kids call, or Mami calls.  In Costa Rica, one always needs to talk to Mami, it is part of the culture.