Ask for the water availability letter before you buy the lot. Without it there is no building permit, and the ASADAS of Playa Grande, Matapalo and Avellanas are not giving new letters, with no date to resume. Elsewhere the letter comes from AyA, a local ASADA or the condominium, and with an ASADA it takes about a month.
What is a water availability letter?
It is the document in which the water provider confirms that it can supply a lot. Every lot needs a valid letter before construction, and the municipality asks for it in the permit file.
The letter is the first step of the permit process. We check it before starting the design, because where there is no water availability the rest of the process cannot begin. The meters come later: they are delivered only once the full building permit has been issued.
Should you get the water letter before buying a lot?
Yes. It is our first recommendation to anyone looking at land on the coast: ask the seller for a valid water letter, or confirm availability with the provider, before signing.
A lot without water cannot be permitted, whatever its price or view. In the zones where the ASADA is in technical non-feasibility, owners have already received refusals, and there is no date for new letters. A few weeks of checking before the purchase avoid owning land that cannot be built on.
Who supplies water in each zone of Guanacaste?
It depends on the sector. In the areas where we work the provider is AyA, a local ASADA or a condominium with its own well.
| Situation | Zones | What it means for your lot |
|---|---|---|
| ASADA in technical non-feasibility | Playa Grande, Matapalo, Avellanas | No new letters and no date to resume; refusals have already happened |
| Condominium with its own well | Condominiums in Playa Grande, Reserva Conchal, Mar Vista | The condominium manages availability for its lots |
| Condominium supplies and issues the letter | Ladera del Mar, Papagayo | The construction committee issues the letter |
| ASADA, normal procedure | Flamingo outside condominiums (ASADA de Brasilito), Potrero (ASADA de Potrero), Hacienda Pinilla (ASADA Malinches de Pinilla) | About a month; in Hacienda Pinilla, after the committee approves the project |
| AyA | Tamarindo centre | Usually AyA; particular areas are checked lot by lot |
What does technical non-feasibility mean?
It means the ASADA has declared that it cannot take new connections. In Playa Grande, Matapalo and Avellanas the ASADAS are in this situation today: they are not giving new availability, and there is no date for it to change.
For a buyer, the consequence is direct. A lot served by one of these ASADAS, without a letter already issued, cannot get a building permit for now. Inside a condominium with its own well the situation is different, because the condominium manages the water for its lots. Check which case applies before buying in Tamarindo and Playa Grande, Puerto Viejo de Guanacaste or Avellanas.
How long does an ASADA take to issue the letter?
About a month, when the procedure runs normally. The ASADA receives the request, its board reviews it, and the letter is approved or rejected.
The letter goes into the permit file, and the meters are delivered only once the full building permit is issued. In Hacienda Pinilla, ASADA Malinches de Pinilla gives the connection once the design committee has approved the project, so the committee review comes first. We handle these requests as part of our permitting service.
Can a private well solve the water for a lot?
In some cases, yes, through a concession for a private well. It is the route when no provider reaches the lot.
On Casa El Sueño in Arenal, the local ASADA did not supply the lot, so we processed a concession for a private well. The well then becomes part of the project and of its budget from the start. Condominiums that resolve water with their own well, such as those in Playa Grande, Reserva Conchal and Mar Vista, work the same way at a larger scale.
What we've seen on our projects
- Käza and MayDan, Puerto Viejo de Guanacaste. Both obtained water availability from ASADA Matapalo in 2022, before the non-feasibility. The same lots could not get that letter today.
- Casa Vida, Hacienda Pinilla. Once the committee approved the project, ASADA Malinches de Pinilla gave the connection without problems.
- Casa El Sueño, Arenal. With no ASADA supply to the lot, the private well concession was the way forward.
Frequently asked questions
- AyA, Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados
- ASADAS, asociaciones administradoras de acueductos comunales
- Municipalidad de Santa Cruz, Guanacaste
