We work throughout Costa Rica, and Papagayo is one of the areas where we already have a project, Ladera del Mar 103, in process. A house here costs up to 2,500 USD per m². At Ladera del Mar the community supplies the water and its construction committee issues the letter, after a design review of 250 USD in two rounds.
| Cost per m² | Up to 2,500 USD |
|---|---|
| Municipality and time | Carrillo, about 30 days; the permit is valid for 1 year once granted. CFIA about 30 days, Ministry of Health about 3 weeks above 300 m² |
| Water | Ladera del Mar: supplied by the community; the construction committee issues the letter |
| Condominium committees | Ladera del Mar 250 USD, two rounds · Ladera del Mar 103 came back almost overnight |
| Special rules | Golfo de Papagayo Tourism Pole, concession regime |
| Our projects here | Ladera del Mar 103 (in process) |
Projects we designed and built in this area
Concession land is not freehold, and that changes everything upstream
Papagayo sits inside the Golfo de Papagayo Tourism Pole, a special regime created for the development of the peninsula. Land there is generally held under concession, not as full fee-simple property: which means the right to build, the term of that right, what can be built, the obligations that come attached and the approvals required all sit inside a legal framework that works differently from a normal titled lot in Santa Cruz. Foreign buyers routinely assume the process is the same as anywhere else on the coast, and it is not. This is the single most important thing to understand before signing anything here, and it is worth having it explained by the architect as well as by the lawyer.
On top of the concession framework, the community operates its own design committee and architectural standard, so a project here carries the institutional layer and the community layer at the same time, with the municipal permit in Carrillo at the end of it. Practically, that means the approval path has to be mapped before the design is priced: what gets submitted, to whom, in what order, and what each stage can demand.
The sites themselves are steep and spectacular, and the architecture follows from that: stepped floor plates, long views held from most rooms, structure that works with the slope rather than flattening it, and planting used to hold the ground and screen the neighbours. Everything that applies to the rest of this coast: sea air, afternoon sun, wind, applies here too, at the top end of the specification.
What has to be approved, and by whom
Papagayo is in the canton of Carrillo, inside the Golfo de Papagayo Tourism Pole. Three layers apply.
- 01Golfo de Papagayo Tourism Pole, concession regime and institutional approval.
- 02Community design committee: architectural standard, submittal and approval. At Ladera del Mar 103 the community construction committee, with one or more engineers, reviews the drawings against its own checklist before they go to the municipality. The fee is $250 and there are usually two rounds. Our review came back almost overnight, though this varies by project.
- 03Water, wastewater and utility connection within the development. Water comes from the Ladera del Mar community itself, and the construction committee issues the availability letter once the project is approved.
- 04CFIA registration of drawings and professional responsibility
- 05Ministry of Health, for houses above 300 m² of construction: about 3 weeks, after the CFIA and before the municipality.
- 06Municipalidad de Carrillo, construction permit: about 30 days. Once granted, the permit is valid for 1 year.
- 07Realistic total, from design to building licence: 5 to 9 months. Design takes at least 4 months, and houses over 300 m² also go through the Ministry of Health.
What it costs to build here
This is the highest specification segment on the coast, and the site conditions are demanding. What moves the number:
- Slope: retaining, foundations, access roads and site drainage
- Community standard, the finishes and systems the guidelines require
- Two approval layers: drawings, fees and programme time
- Logistics inside a controlled development, access windows and delivery restrictions
- Distance to the sea, corrosion-grade hardware and finishes throughout
- Up to $2,500 per m²
- Ranges can include landscape and pool. Earthworks and retaining walls are priced separately for each lot, and design fees are not included.
What we do, end to end
One studio for the whole chain, the same team from the first site visit to the handover. Each service is described in full on the services page.
Questions from owners in this area
“From the conceptual drawings, the attention to detail, their professionalism, kindness and patience, working through the permit process, a straightforward and fair billing process, and everything between the beginning of the job and planting the plants, we couldn’t be happier.”
“After giving her our rough ideas she presented many options and helped us revise the final design to become our dream home. Her attention to detail and constant communication made the entire process fun and easy.”
Tell us where your lot is
Four fields. We reply with what we can tell you about that specific lot: access, water, setbacks and what the municipality will allow.