The sight of towering concrete block structures sprouting out of the Costa Rican mountainsides and coastlines is not uncommon these days. Whether vertical or horizontal, with ocean or city views, the Costa Rican condo jungle offers something for every taste.
For those who seek the high life, the pricy suburb of Escazú, west of San José, has expanded skyward, and offers a seemingly endless selection of high-rise condo options. Escazú connoisseurs may be familiar with Bohemia Country, a sleek, modern tower on the hind streets of the Costa Rica Country Club.While this beauty sold out last year, its sister tower, Bohemia Bello Horizonte, is expected to crest the slopes of the Escazú neighborhood of Bello Horizonte in fully finished splendor in May, according to sales manager Manuel Cisneros.
A tower of only 28 apartments, four per floor, Bohemia Bello Horizonte prices start at $180,000 per unit, depending on elevation, he said.
Bohemia Bello Horizonte offers 24-7 security, two elevators with capacity for eight people, a recreational area with clubhouse and pool, gardens, a play area for children and parking for two cars per apartment.
The asset that distinguishes Bohemia from other condos may be its modernity, according to Cisneros.
“Before, we used to sell colonial-style homes, and there was a certain niche of modern architecture that was not being met. We wanted to give our clients more alternatives,” he said.
Interested apartment hunters should move quickly, because only eight units remain unsold.
For more information on Bohemia, visit www.condominiobohemia.com or contact Cisneros at 382-8386.
Condominios Torres de la Colina, a conglomerate of four towers, also in Bello Horizonte, is scheduled for completion in late November 2007.
With 136 units, of which 70 have been sold already, Torres de la Colina is expected to house a 95% foreign population.
The condo will offer onsite and rental management, 24-7 security, ample gardens, a gym, tennis court, cafeteria service, multilevel pools, a clubhouse and rancho, maid and laundry service, satellite TV and wireless Internet, among other perks.
Unit prices start at $126,000, according to condo marketing manager Karolina Acuña. Buyers have the option of choosing from three apartment types, each with unique city views: the “comfort” apartment, with one balcony; the “panorama,” with panoramic windows; and the “grand-view” corner apartments, which have several balconies, Acuña explained.
For more info on Torres de la Colina, contact Acuña at 288-2080. But the west is not limited to high-rise living only, and offers plenty of options for those who seek a horizontal lifestyle.
Condominios La Planicie, behind Hotel Real InterContinental in Escazú, is an elegant set of 10 two-story condos on grounds that extend over 1,900 square meters, according to owner César Soler.
With six unsold units, each La Planicie condo has three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms and luxury finishing, including Spanish tiles and granite and cedarwood kitchens.
La Planicie has a recreational area set up for barbecues or other outdoor activities, and 24-hour security.
The 160-square-meter units are selling for $138,500, while the 175-square-meter units cost $148,500.
For more information, contact Soler at 815-0007 or 228-9637.
For those who want to live out the dream of the perpetual vacation, how about taking all the comforts of Escazú and clustering them into a collection of 38 two-story beach villas?
Cantos del Mar, in Punta Dominical, on the southern Pacific coast, is a unique set of fully furnished, two- to three-bedroom luxury villas.
With a spectacular view of the punta, outdoor patios, a common area with a pool and clubhouse, 24-hour security, property and rental management, and the option of a private pool for an extra $20,000, these condos start at $300,000, according to sales director Tina Wallace.
With the sale of each resort-style villa, Punta Dominical S.A., the company in charge of Cantos del Mar sales, will donate $1,000 to the Osa Campaign, a conservationist effort in the OsaPeninsula, in the country’s Southern Zone, according to press representative Chris Lyman.
According to Lyman, the real estate project, whose biggest group of buyers is from the United States, is very environmentally focused.
“The big picture is to create real estate opportunities for people but not ruin the natural state that Dominical has right now,” he said, explaining that the development attempts to stray from “what’s happened in the northwestern province of) Guanacaste.”
For more information, visit www.puntadominical.com or call Tina Wallace at 787-0269 or 812-8339.
