Foreclosure real estate in Costa Rica refers to properties that are being sold because the owner has defaulted on their mortgage, and have stopped making loan payments. Once this occurs, the lender, often a Bank, then starts a legal process to repossess and sell the property to recover the unpaid loan balance.
Foreclosure is a legal process where a lender takes ownership of a property after the borrower fails to make mortgage or loan payments.
Properties that didn't sell at a foreclosure auction, and are then owned by the bank or lender, known as REO (Real Estate Owned).
If the the owner is behind on payments, this is called pre-foreclosure, but the property hasn't been taken back yet, but the property could be sold as a short sale.
Properties that are up for 'Auction' are sold at a public auction, and to the highest bidder during the Auction procedure.
Then, if the property doesn't sell at auction, it then becomes "real estate owned" by the lender, usually again a bank which leads to the property being sold through Real Estate Agents.
Investors and individual private buyers look at foreclosures for many reasons including that the property is often below market value, could be flipped or rented out for profit, or the property can if required be renovated to increase the value.
Foreclosures can come with risks and the property is usually sold as seen, and could come with a situation where the purchase need repairs.
Also, the Foreclosure process can involve more paperwork, there may be title issues, unpaid liens, plus foreclosures (like auctions) often require full payment on purchase.
Buying luxury properties in Costa Rica can be a smart move for both investment and personal use, depending on your goals.
Costa Rica offers very favorable property ownership laws where foreign investors and buyers have full property rights, which is not the same as in many other Caribbean and Central American countries.
Popular areas of the Costa Rica with International Buyers:
