Playa Flamingo and Costa RIcan beach real estate

This is a view of Playa Flamingo.  I have shown some other views of Playa Flamingo that you can access by clicking on the label in the left margin for Playa Flamingo.  This photo also shows the development of homes on the hillsides overlooking the ocean.  The real estate market has cooled down in the past year due to the worldwide recession.  There was a boom for about 5 years before that, sparked by the addition of international flights directly into Liberia, just one hour away.  

Home sites and homes and condos with a view of the ocean will bring a much higher price, of course, than other property, and in this photo you can see homes built high on the hills, similar to what you would expect to see in California.  My wife and I decided for our two condos in Tamarindo that we wanted to buy places right on the beach or directly overlooking the beach so we could enjoy the beach and the ocean without having to get in a car.

Ocean view property and property near the beach in Costa Rica can be purchased for a fraction of the price of land near or overlooking the ocean in places like California, and the ocean is warm enough to swim in all year around.  Real estate in Costa Rica is more expensive than in neighboring Nicaragua and Panama because Costa Rica has much more of an infrastructure for visitors and is much more attractive for foreigners to buy property because it has such a long history of stable democratic government. 

The price of single family homes is not much more than the price of condos.  The reason for that is there is greater peace of mind for Americans and Canadians to buy a condo rather than a home when selecting a second a home or vacation property.  Particularly if the property will not be used part of the time, there is greater security in buying a condo where there is a security guard, and others to take care of the yard and exterior maintenance.