Pérez Zeledón | $1.5 million
A two-bedroom artist’s retreat with boulders built in.
This newly built, two-bedroom, one-bath home is tucked into a rural area about 25 minutes north of San Isidro de El General, the largest city in the Pérez Zeledón canton of Costa Rica, with services including banking and hospitals. The house blends into its surroundings by using materials like river rocks and giant boulders that double as walls, barriers and volumes.
The low-key beach town of Dominical, about an hour southwest, draws surfers, expatriates and tourists. Closer to the home, there is an organic farm, several restaurants and an abundance of parks, waterfalls, hot springs and other natural attractions. Juan Santamaría International Airport, in the Costa Rican capital of San José, is about 100 miles north. The drive takes about three hours, depending on the route.
Size: 2,690 square feet
Price per square foot: $558
Indoors: The home’s showcase interior boasts high ceilings, custom art, views of the surrounding rainforest, porthole windows and a free-form Jacuzzi in the living room.
The front door opens to a staircase that descends between two boulders to the loft-like living room, dining area, bar and kitchen. The bulk of the home is this cavernous room, where light either pours or peeks in through various sized windows. The living room has tile floors and a bar with counter seating and built-in wine storage. The designer kitchen has an island, black-and-white granite counters with sculpted edges, cedar cabinets and minimal open shelving. The dining area, with a table for four, opens to a terrace.
Both bedrooms are upstairs, each reached by its own staircase. One room has a round window and the other a wall of glass overlooking the greenery behind the home. The bathroom, with a shower built with rocks handpicked from the river, is near the kitchen and laundry area. The home is offered turnkey, including the art created by the architect-designer.
Outdoor space: At the front of the 0.67-acre plot, a landscaped garden has trees, a lawn and a walking path. A terrace with a grill is just outside the dining area. In the back, a bridge leads to a gazebo perched on a boulder that juts over the churning river running behind the property.
Costs: The current annual property tax is around $320.
Contact: Andrés Espinach, Costa Rica Sotheby’s International Realty, +506-2253-5333
Tamarindo | $1.349 million
A five-bedroom home with a pool in a gated community
This five-bedroom home from 2023 — one of eight in the gated community of Grande Salvaje, on Costa Rica’s Tamarindo Bay — was designed for indoor-outdoor living. Doors open to the pool deck and a backyard saturated in green, and many windows accentuate the daylight inside.
Residences in Grande Salvaje have 24-hour security, solar panels, optional energy storage batteries and private swimming pools. There are plans for a wellness center, tennis court and restaurant.
Tamarindo Bay, in the northeastern province of Guanacaste, is home to Las Baulas National Marine Park, named after baulas, leatherback sea turtles that nest there. The town of Tamarindo, about 30 minutes south by car, has a weekly night market, beaches, sloth- and turtle-watching tours, and various water activities including snorkeling, surfing and sport fishing.
Size: 4,548 square feet, including terraces and decks
Price per square foot: $297
Indoors: The two-story home, being sold furnished, comprises two wings connected by an airy hallway. The entrance, near the garage, proceeds to the shared living areas, which include an open-concept living room, corner kitchen and dining space. The living room has a sectional sofa with a chaise, a ceiling fan and doors that open to the pool on one side and the tree-shaded yard on the other. The kitchen has open shelves and a peninsula with a cooking range and seating for four under pendant lights. A lustrous wood dining table for eight is in a corner, connecting the living room and the kitchen.
From the dining area, a hallway leads to the wing with most of the bedrooms. The primary suite has a walk-in closet and a balcony. Its bathroom, in shades of sand, has a double vanity and a walk-in shower. Two more en suite bedrooms are upstairs, and a fourth is downstairs. A fifth bedroom is now set up as an office. Sliding doors along the downstairs hallway open toward the pool on one side and a garden on the other, linking the home’s interior and outdoor spaces.
Outdoor space: The primary suite has a balcony. Downstairs, lush landscaping surrounds the pool, deck and palapa. The star of this 0.18-acre property is the 70-year-old Guanacaste tree, whose branches and canopy tower over the home. The province draws its name from this tree, which is also Costa Rica’s national tree. The home has a driveway and a garage.
Costs: Annual property taxes total about $3,000. The monthly HOA fee is about $500.
Contact: Brian Bratton, Costa Rica Christie’s International Real Estate, +506-8704-9997
Guanacaste | $1.5 million
A custom three-bedroom home with a saltwater pool
This three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath house sits on a hill in the private community of Las Ventanas de Playa Grande, with custom homes built on 150 hectares in Guanacaste. Its terraces and pool deck nearly double its indoor living space. Inside, the ample windows face the ocean and forest. Outside, broad overhangs and a covered sitting area offer protection from sun and rain.
Around the coastal town of Playa Grande, there are restaurants, lodging options and a brewery. A beach by the same name is a five-minute drive from the home. Activities in the area include surf spots, white-sand beaches, a surf school and river canoeing. Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport is a 40-mile drive. Juan Santamaría International Airport is about 150 miles away.
Size: 2,010 square feet
Price per square foot: $746
Indoors: An open-concept living room, dining counter and kitchen are on one side of the house, near the pool deck. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer views of the rainforest and, to the west, Tamarindo Bay. The home is sold furnished and move-in ready. The living room has a sectional sofa, a wall-mounted television and a coffee table. The kitchen has a table-height counter for six set around an island with a sink. Cabinets and stainless steel appliances are along one wall. Sliding glass doors proceed to a deck with a dining table for eight and an upholstered conversation set.
The primary bedroom, with an en suite bathroom and a walk-in closet outfitted with shelves, is nearest the pool. Two guest bedrooms have views of nature through glass doors that open to a patio.
Outdoor space: The house sits on a 5.63-acre lot with many natural features, including a saltwater swimming pool, covered and tree-shaded terraces, a broad deck and forested walking paths. The property, built on a bluff, has generous views of the surrounding nature. Other amenities include covered parking for three cars, parking for bikes and motorcycles, a pump house and a storage area.
Costs: Property taxes total around $7,500 a year, which includes both the standard property tax and the luxury tax, according to the listing agent. A monthly HOA fee of $380 covers 24-hour security, landscaping, maintenance of common areas and shared amenities, and an allotment of 13,200 gallons of water.
Contact: Eduardo Araya, Costa Rica Sotheby’s International Realty, +506-2253-5333
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