Costa Rica House Builder
Start a project

Local & Trusted Offices in Costa Rica and the United States

We build in English & Spanish

Español Free lot feasibility review

Design phase · Construction phase · One advocate

Full Project Management

One point of contact on your side, from the first sketch to the day you get the keys — in English and in Spanish.

Start your project

Overview

Building a house in Costa Rica means hiring an architect, a builder, a topographer and an engineer, then working through a string of institutions that each run in Spanish and on their own clock. Full project management puts one bilingual advocate between you and all of them. We set the scope with you, build the budget from real Costa Rican construction costs, run competitive bids for the architect and later for the builder, carry the permit file, and then stay on the job through construction — on site every week, controlling change orders and reporting back with photos — until the warranties and the handover file are in your hands. Unlike our general contracting service, we are not the builder here: we work for you, and we hold the builder to the contract on your behalf.

What's included

  • One bilingual point of contact from feasibility through final handover
  • Competitive, side-by-side bids for both the architect and the builder
  • Every permit carried for you: CFIA, municipal, uso de suelo, water and power
  • Weekly site visits, photo reports and video walk-throughs for owners abroad
  • Contracts with milestone payments and a controlled change-order process
  • Preferred pricing through our vetted network of suppliers and trades

Scope by phase

What we handle, phase by phase.

01

Design phase

Everything that has to be settled before construction can be priced honestly.

  • Your vision, scope and a budget you can actually build to
  • Lot review covering utilities, access and overall feasibility
  • Architect proposals compared, with a written recommendation
  • Architect onboarding and a review at every design milestone
  • Approvals: CFIA, municipal permit, uso de suelo, water, power and insurance
  • Scheduling of vendors, surveyors and inspectors
  • Material choices matched to your microclimate and to what is stocked locally
  • Preferred pricing from our vetted vendor list
  • Representation and translation in every key meeting
Design management in detail →
02

Construction phase

Keeping the build on the contract, on the schedule and on the budget.

  • Bids from builders we have vetted for your type of project
  • Bid comparison, negotiation and a clear selection recommendation
  • Contracts with defined payment milestones and a build schedule
  • Contact with the contractor almost every day, on site every week
  • A written progress report with photos every week
  • Live video walk-throughs whenever you are abroad
  • Inspection tracking and punch-list close-out
  • Change orders priced and approved before the work goes ahead
  • Warranties and a complete handover file
Construction management in detail →

How it runs

Four stages, in this order.

  1. 01

    Brief & feasibility

    Your goals, budget and lot are tested against what the uso de suelo, the utilities and the terrain allow before anyone is hired.

  2. 02

    Design & permits

    Architect selected by competitive bid, the design reviewed at each milestone, and the permit file carried through the CFIA and the municipality.

  3. 03

    Builder selection

    Qualified builders price the same drawing set; we compare, negotiate and put a contract in place with milestone payments.

  4. 04

    Build & handover

    Weekly site visits and reports and change orders under control, then inspections, punch list, warranties and the keys.

Who we work with

For owners building in Costa Rica — often from somewhere else.

Bilingual, start-to-finish project management for expats and investors building in Costa Rica.

  • International buyers & expats

    Building a home to live in full time, or a vacation house to come back to every year.

  • Real estate investors

    Developing vacation rentals or properties held for long-term return.

  • Eco-community builders

    Building in Alegría Village, Ecovilla, Serena or another community with its own design rules.

  • Remote owners

    Running a project from abroad and needing someone trustworthy on the ground between visits.

Local practice

Built to Costa Rican standards, not imported ones.

Whatever the service, the underlying method is the same. Structure is reinforced concrete block and beam or light-gauge steel, sized against the seismic zone your lot sits in. Overhangs are deep enough to keep driving rain off the walls. Foundations are raised and drained. Timber is treated or naturally resistant, and detailed to stay out of ground contact.

These are not preferences. They are what has been shown to survive here, and they are why we do not simply execute a set of plans drawn for a different climate without redesigning the parts that would fail.

See the full build standard
  • Delivered in
  • Santa Ana Lindora · Pozos · Río Oro
  • Escazú San Rafael · Guachipelín · Jaboncillos
  • Santa Cruz Tamarindo · Playa Langosta · Senderos
  • Carrillo Playas del Coco · Playa Hermosa · Ocotal
  • Curridabat Guayabos · Lomas de Ayarco · Hacienda Gregal
  • Belén Cariari · La Asunción · San Antonio
  • Garabito Herradura · Los Sueños · Jacó hills
  • Peninsula Papagayo Nacascolo · Papagayo master plan
  • Nicoya & Cóbano Nosara · Playa Guiones · Santa Teresa

Field notes

Read before you commit.

Questions

Full Project Management in Costa Rica

How is project management different from hiring a general contractor?

A general contractor builds the house and earns its margin on the construction contract. A project manager works for the owner: we select and supervise the architect and the builder, check their work and invoices against the contract, and have no stake in the construction price. If you would rather have one company design and build under a single contract, that is our general contracting service.

Can I hire you for only the design or only the construction?

Yes. Design management and construction management are each available on their own. Full project management joins the two so nothing is lost in the handoff between the architect who drew the house and the builder who has to build it.

How do you work with owners who live outside Costa Rica?

Most of our clients do. You receive a written report with photos every week, live video walk-throughs whenever you want to see the site, and every decision in writing with the options and costs laid out. If you cannot be here to sign, a limited power of attorney lets us act within the limits you set — part of our owner's representative services.

Related services

Next step

Tell us about the lot.

Send us the plano catastrado and a rough idea of what you want to build. We will come back with a feasibility read on what the site actually allows, what it is likely to cost, and how long permitting will take in your cantón.

Start your project

Replies within one business day. Consultations in English or Spanish.