Over the past 15 years the landscape of Guanacaste has changed dramatically. During the early 2000’s real estate developments began popping up with the main targets being buyers from The United States and Canada. As people from both the U.S. and Canada began purchasing vacation homes in Guanacaste, the area underwent rapid change and the once remote and seldom visited area became the most popular region of Costa Rica. Today, in 2014 Guanacaste is undergoing a second real estate boom as the global economy continues to recover from the financial crisis of 2008.
Prior to the early 2000’s, Guanacaste was a region of Costa Rica visited mainly by surfers, willing to traverse the 
bumpy, unpaved roads in search of the perfect waves. As real estate developers began to see potential in the sparsely populated region, the region itself began to change. In 2002 the Daniel Oduber International Airport opened in Liberia, the provincial capital of Guanacaste. The roads from San Jose to Guanacaste began to undergo improvements and suddenly it wasn’t just surfers flocking the beautiful beaches, buy a myriad of potential home owners and real estate developers looking to carve out a piece of paradise. From 2003 to 2008, property and home prices in Guanacaste tripled, and then the bubble burst.
When the global financial crisis hit, Guanacaste was hit, not as hard as other locations throughout the world, but since the main driving force behind the development of Guanacaste has been Canadian and United States buyers, this market took a hit and prices dropped dramatically. Since 2008 and the slow but continual revival of the international economy, prices are starting to rebound, though they are still considerably lower than they were prior to 2008.
These factors have created a unique setting for real estate in Guanacaste in 2014. A large portion of houses, condos, and villas are on the market for below value prices, opening them up to buyers who had previously been unable to afford property in this area. The lower prices mean an increase in sales, and as buyers are returning to Guanacaste, stalled real estate developments are starting up again. Guanacaste is home to Costa Rica’s most expensive real estate developments, such as The Four Seasons Resort at the Papagayo Peninsula, and the Las Catalinas development funded by Atlanta billionaire Charles Brewer. While Guanacaste is home to some of the nation’s most luxurious real estate, many beach front homes that were listed at $200,000 to $300,000 are now being sold for as little as $80-$125,000.
New developments in the area are targeting Costa Rican buyers as well now, no longer looking to only Canadian and U.S. buyers, helping to create a mid range level of condos and other beach front accommodations. While the real estate market in Guanacaste is rebounding, there are two factors that will have an impact on how real estate continues to develop. The first factor is foreign investment. Foreign investment will either help to stabilize prices, or drive them higher depending on who is buying and what they are looking to buy. The second main factor that will affect Guanacaste real estate is development of real estate markets throughout the rest of the country. For now, Guanacaste is the most popular location to purchase beach front property, but with large infrastructure projects slated for the Caribbean coast and further south along the Pacific coast, there could be more competition for Guanacaste to stay on top. Only time will tell how the tale of Guanacaste real estate will unfold.
PPV Tamarindo Real Estate is an Eco-conscious, residential Ocean View community located on Costa Rica’s beautiful Pacific Coast. Our development offers more luxury than you would ever expect at an affordable price. Our development is close to beautiful beaches; offers Ocean View Condos; lots offering panoramic Ocean views; and affordable tropical residential lots.
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