San José real estate market — prices, rental yield and trend

• Average price: $2,279 / m²
• Gross rental yield: 9.92%
• Net rental yield: 8.66%
• Transaction cost: 7.5%
• Price basis: local-market average

Residential property in San José averages $2,279 per square metre. That makes it the 194th most expensive of the 236 markets in the set.

What a buyer pays in San José

The $2,279 figure is a local-market average across all residential property types: a flat in a prime district sits well above it, an older unit on the edge of the market well below. Buying costs — transfer tax or stamp duty, notary, registration and agency — come to about 7.5% of the price here. On a 100 m² apartment at the average price that is roughly $17,090 on top of the $227,860 purchase price. That is below the 10.3% median across the set, which shortens the time it takes for a purchase to break even. That is 6.9% below the Costa Rica national average of $2,446.

What it earns

A square metre lets for about $18.8 a month. Against a purchase price of $2,279 per square metre that is 9.9% gross, before tax. Both figures come from the same source and the same period, so you can check the arithmetic yourself. It ranks 3rd of 269 markets by gross yield. Rental income is taxed at 12.8–30% — the rate is not a single number here. That is the difference between 6.9% and 8.7% net on the same property. The 8.7% net figure we publish uses 12.8%.

How the tax works. 12.75% of the gross rent: the 15% rate of LISR art. 31 ter after the single 15% deduction of art. 30 (0.85 × 15%). Confidence is low: no tax-authority ruling confirms that this real-estate schedule applies to non-domiciled owners, and on a strict reading the residual 30% remittance rate of art. 59 could apply instead, which is the upper end of the band. Local confirmation is advisable. Source: hacienda.go.cr.

Who can buy in San José

Freehold; concession only in the coastal strip. That is the rule a foreign buyer meets first, not legal advice — check the current position locally before you commit.

How this figure is built

The price figure for San José is built from asking prices from listings. It was last refreshed on 2026-10-17. We rate our confidence in this market’s data low — treat the figures as indicative and check them before acting. We recompute every market the same way, which is what lets San José be compared with a country average or another city.

Sources: Numbeo city page · numbeo.com. Snapshot: 2026-10-17.