Short answer: yes, you can sell a Costa Rican property to a relative, and the process is the same as with any other buyer: a public deed (escritura pública) signed before a notary, payment of the transfer tax (impuesto de traspaso), and registration with the National Registry (Registro Nacional). What changes is the risk. Between family members it is easy to agree on a “family price” that has little to do with the market, while Law 6999 says the tax is calculated on the real value of the transaction, which must be in line with the usual market value. An independent appraisal gives both sides a technical number to negotiate with, put in the deed, and explain to the rest of the family.
Whether you are a foreign owner passing your beach house to your adult children or buying a lot from your Costa Rican in-laws, here is what the law says and how to set a fair price without straining the relationship.
Common scenarios
These are the family sales we see most often:
- Parents selling a house or lot to a son or daughter, often to help them get a home of their own.
- One sibling buying out the others after an inheritance, to keep the family house.
- Co-owners (siblings, cousins, business partners or former spouses) where one buys the other’s share.
- Direct sales between people who know each other, with no realtor and no bank involved.
In a cash purchase no bank orders an appraisal, so the price is often settled over dinner.
What Law 6999 says about the transfer tax
Costa Rica’s Real Estate Transfer Tax Law (Ley del Impuesto sobre Traspasos de Bienes Inmuebles, Law 6999, current text published in the SCIJ, the official legal database of the Attorney General’s Office) has four points worth knowing before you agree on a price with a relative:
- It taxes transfers “under any title” (Article 1). In principle it does not matter whether the deal is a sale, a swap or a gift: if the property changes hands, the tax applies.
- It looks at what was actually done, not at the label (Article 2). The law defines a transfer by the legal nature of the transaction, not by the name the parties give it.
- The tax base is the real value (Article 7). The tax is calculated on the real value of the transaction, which must be in line with the usual market value and can never be lower than the highest value on record for the municipal property tax (Law 7509).
- The rate is 1.5% (Article 8), and seller and buyer pay it in equal parts, with joint liability (Article 6).
Also, the values stated in the deed count as a sworn statement (Article 9), and the Tax Administration can audit the tax and apply the penalties of the Code of Tax Rules and Procedures (Article 10).
What the law does not treat as a transfer
Article 2 also lists transactions that are not transfers for the purposes of this tax. They include allocations or divisions of property between spouses or between co-owners, assignments of inheritance rights, and the waiver of marital property rights (gananciales). If your situation looks like one of these (for example, siblings who inherited together and want to split things up), ask your notary which legal form fits before you sign.
Why a “family price” can backfire
1. Writing a lower price in the deed is not an option
Stating a price in the deed other than the one actually paid means making a false sworn statement. And the law does not simply accept whatever number is written down: it requires a value in line with the market and sets the municipal value on record as a floor. What looks like a saving can end in a tax adjustment or penalties.
2. A sale that will never be paid may really be a gift
If what you really want is to give the property away, or to “sell” it for a symbolic price that will never be collected, the right move is to document it for what it is. Because the law looks at the nature of the deal and not its name, dressing up a gift as a sale (or the other way around) can create tax and family problems. Your notary or attorney can tell you the correct legal form.
Two useful facts: a gift of real estate is also a transfer under Law 6999, and the Income Tax Law exempts gifts for both the recipient and the donor (Law 7092, Article 28 bis, item 10). If you also file taxes in another country, ask your advisor there how a gift or a below-market sale to family is treated.
3. A very low price can divide a family
When one child buys the parents’ house far below its value, the other siblings may feel that child received an early inheritance, and that resentment can resurface years later, when the estate is settled. A value set by an independent third party changes the conversation: instead of arguing about what each person thinks, everyone reviews the same report, with methodology, photos and comparable sales.
4. The deed price affects other taxes
- Municipal property tax: Law 6999 requires the buyer to report the transaction value to the municipality where the property is located, and that report changes the value used for the property tax under Law 7509. To understand how the two values differ, read cadastral value vs. market value.
- Capital gains: since the Law 9635 reform, selling real estate can trigger capital gains tax. Under the Income Tax Law (Law 7092, Article 31 ter), the rate is 15% of the gain, and for property acquired before that chapter took effect (July 1, 2019) the seller may choose, on the first sale, to pay 2.25% of the sale price instead. The gain on the sale of the taxpayer’s habitual residence is exempt (Law 7092, Article 28 bis, item 7). How this applies to you, and how today’s price affects a future sale by your relative, is a question for your accountant.
- Non-domiciled sellers: if the seller is not domiciled in Costa Rica, the law requires the buyer to withhold and pay over 2.5% of the total agreed price as an advance on the seller’s capital gains tax (Law 7092, Article 28 ter). Your notary or accountant will explain the procedure.
How to set a fair price with a relative, step by step
- Get an independent appraisal before you negotiate. An appraiser registered with the CFIA (Costa Rica’s Federated College of Engineers and Architects) inspects the property, measures the construction, checks its condition and age, and compares it with recent sales of similar properties in the area. The result is an explained market value, not an opinion.
- Share the report with everyone involved. Siblings or other heirs who could be affected should see the same document from the start.
- If you decide on a discount, make it a conscious decision. It is perfectly reasonable for a family to want to help one of its members, but you should know what the property is worth before deciding how much to take off, and ask the notary how that difference is handled.
- Check the title. Review the registry report (estudio registral), the survey plan (plano catastrado), any liens, and whether the boundaries match the ground. A title problem does not go away because the buyer is family.
- Put the payment terms in writing. If the price will be paid in installments, have the notary document it. Verbal agreements between relatives are the most common source of disputes.
- Sign the deed before a notary and register the transfer. The National Registry will not register the document without proof that the tax was paid or that an exemption applies (Law 6999, Article 15).
What the appraisal includes and what it costs
A real estate appraisal report includes the on-site inspection, a description of the land and the building, its condition, the analysis of comparable properties in the area, the valuation method used, photographs and the value conclusion. It is delivered digitally signed and dated, so there is a technical record of how the value was determined.
If the sale comes out of an inheritance (one sibling buying out the others), the same report serves as a neutral starting point for the negotiation. In that case you may also want to look at our inheritance appraisal service and the guide on how to divide assets in a Costa Rican estate.
A residential appraisal starts from approximately USD 300 (₡150,000). The final price depends on the type of property, its size and its location, and is set in the quote.
The appraisal does not replace the notary or decide the tax treatment of the deal. It answers the question families argue about most: what the property is worth.
Frequently asked questions
Is an appraisal mandatory to sell to a family member? Law 6999 does not list an appraisal as a requirement for signing the deed. What it requires is that the transaction value be in line with the usual market value. An appraisal is the technical way to know that value before you sign.
Can I sell to my son or daughter for less than market value? The parties agree on the price, but the transfer tax is calculated on a value in line with the market and never below the value on record for the municipal tax. If the price is much lower, or will not actually be paid, talk to your notary or attorney before signing so the transaction is documented correctly.
Who pays the transfer tax, the seller or the buyer? The law says both are taxpayers in equal parts, with joint liability (Article 6).
Several of us siblings inherited a house and one wants to keep it. How do we set the price? With an independent appraisal that everyone accepts as the starting point. Whether the deal is a sale of rights, an assignment of inheritance rights or a division between co-owners (which the law treats differently) is a question for your notary.
Does the appraisal protect me with the tax authority? We do not make that promise. The report documents, with data and methodology, how the value was determined. The tax is calculated on the value stated in the deed, and the Tax Administration keeps its power to audit (Law 6999, Article 10).
Request a quote
Díaz Peritajes is a firm with several appraisers, founded by Ing. José Alberto Díaz Vidaurre (CFIA member since 1982). We have bases in Pérez Zeledón and Curridabat and cover all seven provinces. Message us on WhatsApp at +506 7272-7270 with the property location and the purpose of the appraisal, and we will send you a quote in less than 24 hours.
This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a notary, attorney or accountant.