Webinar - Buy Land they aint malking any more of it

Join us for a webinar on Thursday August 19th (1:00pm Eastern, 6:00pm BST, 5:00pm GMT) Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/718958275

James Cahill, Costa Rica Invest, discusses land, development land, land price trends, factors affecting land prices, the investment opportunities, the upsides and the pitfalls to avoid. By the end of the webinar you will know more about lands economic trends and specifically lots more about Costa Rican land. Nature Walk, a combination investment opportunity in Land, Teak, Development Usage with Ecological Advantages will also be introduced. The opportunity is also suitable for those with a medium term plan of having a home in Costa Rica. Better still, as a small thank you for attending we would love to send you a gravity defying teak wine bottle holder. This is hand carved from teak from Nature Walk. So don't forget to give your full address details and we'll ship direct to your door after the webinar. We have a limited number so the first 25 registrant attendees only!! Title: "Buy Land - they aint making any more of it" Date: Thursday, August 19, 2010 Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar. System Requirements PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP, 2003 Server or 2000 Macintosh®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.4.11 (Tiger®) or newer

First Teak from Nature Walk Milled

The first teak thinnings have been milled from Nature Walk, a unique sustainable ecological development in Costa Rica. These early millings have shown the teak to be of very high quality and ideal for building teak homes on site.

The first teak thinnings from Nature Walk have been milled and the milling has shown the teak to be of very high quality and suitable for the future construction of teak homes on the plantation.



Nature Walk located close to Jaco and overlooking the Pacific Ocean consists of fully serviced development lots of 1,000 m2 and upwards and the lots have the added advantage of the very valuable commodity teak growing on them.

Owners of the lots benefit not just from a fantastic location but also from the returns of the teak growing on their lots.

Teak has been used for 100's of years because of its hardness and durability. A natural oil occurring in teak wood makes it very resistant to pests and rotting and in turn this led to its popularity in boat building, a popularity which continues today.

Natural teak takes approximately 20 years to reach a suitable size for harvesting and commercial use. Some recently developed teak hybrids grow more quickly and take 15 years to reach a size suitable for harvesting.

Teak, however, is not a perishable commodity and the teak can be allowed to grow on beyond the 15 or 20 years and then harvested. In the meanwhile the trees have grown further and become even more valuable.

An interesting and little discussed fact about teak trees is that after felling the stumps will grow again and typically these stumps grow faster and produce more of the very valuable dark heartwood.

Currently milled teak fetches about six times the price of pine wood, four times the price of cherry wood and twice the price of mahogany.

A number of factors come into play in pricing teak:

- Growth Rate: teak is slow growing

- Supply: currently more than 95% of the world's teak comes from non-sustainable jungle sources. As world opinion has moved against the logging of our jungles supply of teak has fallen.

- Demand: teak remains in high demand and is particularly popular in the emerging economies of China and India.

World opinion continues to move against logging our jungles and Australia is currently considering making the import of illegally logged timber a criminal offense. Other countries look sure to follow Australia's lead.

Demand for timber is linked to world population growth and demand for teak will continue to increase inline with the world population growth. Demand will be further fueled by the emergence of new economies where teak is particularly popular.

Timber has been a steady performer over the last century and has typically out performed inflation by 3.2% per annum. Teak as a niche product has outperformed timber. Until sustainable teak production fills the demand for teak, teak looks to increase even more strongly in price over the medium term

5 Reasons to Hang Out in San Jose

Let's face it, when you come to Costa Rica you don't exactly want to make San Jose a destination. I mean, there's so much more to Costa Rica. But then again... You'd be surprised about all the fun things there are to do in San Jose.

Since I love to host friends and family at my house and I live in the Central Valley area, I've been able to explore San Jose extensively. So trust me when I say that it's actually a fun spot!

1. Avenida Central - I always start here. This closed off central street is like a promenade filled with shops and some-what decent restaurants. At one end stands the famous Mercado Central, in the middle is the elegant National Theater and at the other end you can hop on a bus going to San Pedro and other happening spots around San Jose.

2. Mercado Central - This is a must! The oldest and largest Central Market of Costa Rica is always full of excitement and activity. Hundreds of fruit /veggie stands, fish stands, butcher shops, poultry vendors, souvenirs and food stands occupy the indoor arena. You can enjoy a typical Costa Rican lunch while shopping for typical souvenirs to bring back home. Be careful though, pick-pocketers are on the loose and they will get you. Keep all your possessions as close to you as possible and even better if you leave most of them in your hotel room.

3. National Theater - This is one of the most beautiful and elegant buildings in all of San Jose, at least I think so. If you have a chance to catch a show, do so! The tickets can range from $2 - $30 and it hosts a variety of shows: dance, opera, symphony, and much more. Right in front of it is a great park filled with hundreds of pigeons so if you're equipped with kid, they'll have a great time burning off that extra energy running after them.

4. La Sabana Park - Every city has a grand central park and San Jose is right up there with the best. Sabana Park is amazing! With a huge man-made lake and a beautiful cemented trail that takes you all around it, you'll feel like a true local. I always get my son a horsey ride and then let him burn more energy off at the playgrounds. However, after dark it becomes a bit dangerous, so make sure you pack up before sundown.

5. Museums - That's right! Get some culture while you're at it. My absolute favorite museum is the Children's museum. First of all the building is impressive, but once you go in, you'll never want to leave. Even my five year old is stimulated for 3 to 4 hours! And if you have time check these out too, Jade Museum, Museo Nacional de Costa Rica, Museo de Oro Precolombino.


Thank you to Marina K. Villatoro, The Travel Expert Blog (all you need to know about travelling in Central America) for this exceelnt story and you can also follow Marina on twitter @marinavillatoro

Rainforest Alliance Launches Second "Picture Sustainability" Photo Contest

July 7, 2009

Whether the word "sustainability" conjures up images of red-eyed tree frogs, tapirs, and scarlet macaws or farm families enjoying decent houses with running water and their children attending well-maintained schools, you're invited to submit photos depicting the concept of sustainability to the Rainforest Alliance's second "Picture Sustainability" photo contest.

With sponsorship from Fujifilm, the Rainforest Alliance hopes to raise awareness about conservation issues while expanding its collection of photos for use in its publications and on its Web site.

"Powerful images can provoke emotional responses and act as calls-to-action the way few other media forms can," explained Rainforest Alliance president Tensie Whelan. "Winning photos will captivate a wide audience and connect people to the beautiful ecosystems that the Rainforest Alliance helps to conserve."

One grand-prize winner will receive a five-day, four-night rafting and eco-tour for two to Costa Rica, including airfare, sponsored by Colorado-based Aventouras and Costa Rica Nature Adventures' Pacuare Jungle Lodge. The trip combines rafting on the world's most scenic white water, surrounded by unparalleled natural beauty, with gourmet food and the utmost in service at the award-winning lodge. The grand-prize winner also will receive a Fujifilm Finepix digital camera.

Four category winners -- one from each of the contest's photo categories -- will also receive a Fujifilm FinePix digital camera. All winners will receive an honorary one-year membership to the Rainforest Alliance.


Winners will be chosen from the following categories:

• Wildlife on farms, forests or other natural habitats;



• Landscapes (forests, waterways, flowers and plants, beaches, wetlands);



• Sustainable tourism (hiking, bird watching, mountain biking, and other land-based nature activities; surfing, scuba, kayaking, snorkeling and other coastal or marine activities; other ecotourism-related subjects);



• Conservation (people working to protect natural resources, including water, flora and fauna).

Rainforest Alliance staff members will select up to five finalists in each category, post them on its Web site and invite the public to vote on category winners. Separately, celebrated nature photographer Art Wolfe will select the Grand Prize-winning photo from the group of finalists based on overall composition, creativity, artistic merit and relevance to the Rainforest Alliance mission.
Photographers can enter by visiting http://www.raphotocontest.org/. Photos must be submitted by November 1, 2009 and winners will be announced on the Rainforest Alliance's Web site on December 15, 2009. All photos are considered donations to the Rainforest Alliance to be used in the organization's publications and Web site.

The Rainforest Alliance thanks Fujifilm and Art Wolfe for their generous support of this contest.

Guanacaste Tree - The National Tree of Costa Rica

The unusual Guanacaste Seed Pod

The Guanacaste Tree is the National Tree of Costa Rica. It is an evergreen (or briefly deciduous tree), known especially for its superlative proportions. Becuase of its immense size and the shade it provides from the sun it is one of the best known trees in Costa Rica.

In Finca Di Pacifico Dos, our teak plantation, with land for future development, 60 ha will remain as natural park or forest reserve. Within these preserved areas are a number of these immense Guanacaste trees, including one giant specimen of over 200 years of age.
The Guanacase tree also has unusually shaped seed pods, resembling mushroom caps filled with seeds which rattle when the seed pods are shaken.

The Guanacaste trees typically flowers from February through to May and the flowers have an intense and beautiful aroma.


Humberto Camareno, the manager of Matenimiento Forestales our recommended foresty maintenance company poses beside our largest Guanacaste tree - over 200 years of age and a magnificent specimen








One of our beautiful 200 year old jungle giants

Humming Birds of Costa Rica

HUMMINGBIRDS by Christopher Baker of Eco Interactive


Click here to hear the sound of the Steel Vented Humming Bird


Of all the exotically named bird species in Costa Rica, the hummingbirds beat all contenders. Their names are poetry: the green-crowned brilliant, purple-throated mountaingem, Buffon’s plummeteer, and the bold and strikingly beautiful fiery-throated hummingbird. There are more than 300 species of New World hummingbirds constituting the family Trochilidae (Costa Rica has 51), and all are stunningly pretty. The fiery-throated hummingbird, for example, is a glossy green, shimmering iridescent at close range, with dark blue tail, violet-blue chest, glittering coppery orange throat, and a brilliant blue crown set off by velvety black on the sides and back of the head. Some males take their exotic plumage one step further and are bedecked with long streamer tails and iridescent moustaches, beards, and visors.


These tiny high-speed machines are named because of the hum made by the beat of their wings. At up to 100 beats per second, the hummingbirds’ wings move so rapidly that the naked eye cannot detect them. They are often seen hovering at flowers, from which they extract nectar and often insects with their long, hollow, and extensile tongues forked at the tip. Alone among birds, they can generate power on both the forward and backward wing strokes, a distinction that allows them to even fly backwards!


Click here to here the feeding call of the Rufous-tailed Hummingbird


Understandably, the energy required to function at such an intense pitch is prodigious. The hummingbird has the highest metabolic rate per unit of body weight in the avian world (its pulse rate can exceed 1,200 beats a minute) and requires proportionately large amounts of food. One biologist discovered that the white-eared hummingbird consumes up to 850% of its own weight in food and water each day. At night, they go into “hibernation,” lowering their body temperatures and metabolism to conserve energy.


Typically loners, hummingbirds bond with the opposite sex only for the few seconds it takes to mate. Many, such as the fiery-throated hummingbird, are fiercely territorial. With luck you might witness a spectacular aerial battle between males defending their territories. In breeding season, the males “possess” territories rich in flowers attractive to females: the latter gains an ample food source in exchange for offering the male sole paternity rights. Nests are often no larger than a thimble, loosely woven with cobwebs and flecks of bark and lined with silky plant down. Inside, the female will lay two eggs no larger than coffee beans.



For more information about travel to Costa Rica, contact Eco Interactive Tours

Thank you to Christopher Baker for his excellent article

Child Care Costa Rica

Our preferred charity in Costa Rica is Child Care Costa Rica. This charity was set up and is administered by our Costa Rican development company and a portion of the profit from each of our developments goes to support this very worthy charity.


Child Care Costa Rica provides support for single parent families by providing accomodation and other monetary support as required.


The charity hopes to support up to 200 families and all funds received by the charity go directly to the families without administrative overheads.

In addition the charity also helps to support other childrens projects and provides sports facilities for a number of schools throughout Costa Rica.


A medical evacuation support program is also provided with use of a private plane to evacuate sick or injured people from remote areas of Costa Rica to the nearest suitable mediacal facilities.

International news about forestry investment

Savills one of the UK's leading estate agencies has just released it's Forest Market report. Whilst the report focuses on UK forestry the message is clear:

Woodland and Forestry bucks the downward trend

The main points of the report are as follows:

1. Forestry prices have outperformed Equities by more than 50% over the past two years.
2. Since 1976, Rural Estates have also outperformed Equities year-on-year with Rural Estates up by nearly 30 per cent against Equities, currently down by more than 30 per cent at the latest count. See the graph here
3. Over a three year period, Forestry has outperformed both Farming's Top 25% and Rural Estates. See the graph here
4. Against a current backdrop of sharply declining investment assets across a broad spectrum, an investment in commercial woods has provided a positive return over the past six years.

You can download the full report here.

The news for forestry investment is good.

Teak has outperformed softwood foresty and timber, combine an investment in teak with development land and you may have the "perfect investment".

Combine that forestry investment with development land in Costa Rica and you have the perfect investment.

15 Good Reasons To Invest In Costa Rica Now

Costa Rica Real Estate Investments
15 Good Reasons to Invest in Paradise Now!

1. Foreigners are encouraged to invest and own real estate in Costa Rica.
2. Private property in Costa Rica is inviolable and guaranteed by the constitution even for foreigner nonresidents in the country.
3. Costa Rica is a booming tourist destination (more than 400 weekly flights; a Mecca of sport fishing and surfing; championship golf courses; fine-dining; eco-tourism and world class surfing).
4. Costa Rica is a true eco-paradise (26 National Parks, 13 live volcanoes, endless mileage of coastline, primary forests, and much more).
5. Costa Rica has a very good medical infrastructure (public and private hospitals and clinics) excellent doctors and surgeons (all trained in the US and /or Europe) and medical insurance is available for foreigners (individuals, families, retirees) at very low cost when compared to the U.S.
6. Located just a few hours away from your doorstep with daily flights serving all major U.S. and Canadian cities.
7. Real Estate in Costa Rica is very affordable compared to the U.S. and international second home markets.
8. Costa Rica is located out of the hurricane belt, therefore no hurricanes, storms or other natural hazards in the country.
9. Costa Rica is a tax-friendly destination when it comes to real estate investments (extremely low property taxes and no tax on capital gains or inheritance).
10. Very affordable and manageable lifestyle. Services and labor cost (maids, gardeners, nurses, assistants,...) is very low when compared to the U.S. or European standards.
11. High-quality construction standards (anti-seismic buildings, high-end finishes, exotic local and foreign materials).
12. Safe and controlled legal environment (National land register, title insurance and escrow services available throughout the country).
13. Local financing available for foreigners investing in Costa Rica.
14. According to recent studies and surveys, Costa Rica has been ranked as the most stable and reputable country in all of Central America.
15. Costa Ricans are very friendly and educated people, always ready to help or to share their culture with local visitors and residents.

You can see Eric Carvajal's top 7 resons to invest in Costa Rica on Christopher M. Knight's website here

You can See Coldwell Bankers views on investing in Real Estate in Costa Rica here