Costa Rica Real Estate Magazine

EFFECT ON PROPERTY IN CONDOMINIUM IN THE TERRESTRIAL MARITIME ZONE

where the type of development that is carried out by the concessionaire will af- fect the concession in time and space, limiting the existence of the Condo- minium by the terms of validity that the concession may have in the maritime zone land, which can vary from 5 years to 20 years and can be renewed as long as there is no breach by the Conces- sionaire, or need for public utility. The extinction, termination or non-renewal of the concession directly affects the ex- istence of the condominium, the same thing not happening in case the condo- minium property is extinguished since it does not necessarily imply the termina- tion of the concession. The affectation of concessions to the condominium property regime is also an atypical situation since a relation- ship between public rights must coex- ist because the land will always belong to the Costa Rican State and a private right such as the domain exercised by a natural or legal person over a property; therefore, the treatment of the subject must be addressed differently to the af- fectation of a property in condominium regime, the greatest of which is that prior to the affectation of the concession to condominium property, there must be an authorization from the respec- tive municipality, as well as a guarantee from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), and the Costa Rican Institute of Housing and Urban Planning (INVU).

That is why we can always say there exists a concession affecting property in condominium, but not a condominium affected by the Concession because what will prevail is the greater good, which in this case is the Concession. There is no right to property in condo- minium in the Maritime Terrestrial Zone, but what exists is an atypical figure of af- fectation or regulation of Condominium in Concession of the Restricted Zone. It is a figure that we can perfectly use to boost the real estate market in the coastal areas, however, it is essential to improve the acceptance by the Coastal Municipalities, the ICT and the INVU so that the processes are not bogged down, nor is there fear of this modality, but rather a greater dynamism so that the high costs, real estate taxes and fees paid can be distributed among the largest number of people, thereby generating more income to the Govern- ment coffers and a lower payment by property owners. In Costa Rica, the is- sue is not exhausted, on the contrary, it is necessary to establish more precise legislation in accordance with current reality. Definition of Property in Condomini- um: this refers to control over a certain property that is owned jointly with one or more persons. This is regulated by the 1999 Law Regulating Condominium Property (Ley Reguladora de la Propie- dad en Condominio).

By Lic. César Mora Zanher Licda. Karla Gutiérrez Mora

S ubjecting a Land Maritime Zone (ZMT) Concession to affecta- tion of Property in Condominium is an issue that to date raises more questions than answers and must be addressed from various perspectives, through a modification to the Law and articles that could be contradictory, for example, Article 1 with respect to Article 3 of the Regulatory Law of Property In Condominium, since Article 1 limits the condominium regime at ZMT to its com- mercial and tourism exploitation, while Article 3 tells us about the wide range of zoning in the ZMT and that this can be affected to Property in Condominium, including for example, residential use. Let us recall that the Maritime Terrestrial Zone is divided into two portions or seg- ments, one that is the inalienable Public Zone of up to the 50 meter line, and the other the Restricted Zone of 150 me- ters from the 50 meter line to the 200 meter line, which is subject to granting by the Municipalities with prior approval of a Regulatory Plan, being this plan the one that determines the Zoning and

24 COSTA RICA REAL ESTATE MAGAZINE