I).Municipal Real Estate Taxes: The “Tax”is due to the county where the real estate property is located, on a yearly basis and payable as of 1st of January of every year at the local Municipality.
The Municipality Real Estate Tax department collects the Tax in arrears in one, two or four payments. The Tax is due on any real estate property either titled or not: a vacant lot, a house, a condominium, a building or an ocean front Construction under Concession system. Both the old owner and the new owner are jointly and severally responsible for the Tax payment. If the new owner pays the Tax, he or she has the right to demand the respective share from the old owner.
As of Oct 1st 2009 a Luxury Household Unit tax is due to the National Revenue Administration only on those household units with a value above CRC100 million colones (usd172,000 approximately at an exchange rate of 581 CRC to 1USD – Please see paragraph IV below on this second tax).
II).The Tax: is one quarter of a point (¼ of 1 or 0.25%) of the property’s “Registered Value”.
III) Lack of Tax payment: lack of due and timely Tax payment shall carry interests in arrears according to the Revenue Administration and Proceedings Code. Such debts shall constitute an encumbrance upon the property and its title, in the form of a Legal Privileged Mortgage. The Municipality can execute both administrative and judicial proceedings in order to enforce the Tax and/or foreclose the property in arrears. The Municipality must publish a legal notice of collection in a national coverage news paper and notify the property owner according to the Notification rules mentioned above. The general statute of limitation for the Taxes´ collection and enforcement is three (3) years, therefore the Municipality must enforce the payment within such period.
By Lic. Jose Juan Sanchez.