Water access on a new build property

@surfdog12.....We have a meter to our property and are billed monthly by our community ASADA......How is it that you are going to get permits to build if there is no legal water availability ?

edwinemora, that is the problem...

But the original farm that sold us our property does have a well and we are offered use of it. That process will require an investment on our part so we are looking at all our options.

Since you said you have a meter that means that your water is billed on a usage basis (?), which diminishes the value of my offer to take over payments from an adjoining property that is unoccupied.

@surfdog12....This sounds like untitled property with believed possession rights to the land...

@edwinemora or because they aren't issuing any water permits or meters in Santa Cruz indefinitly....

@Laura Spiers...His property is in 'Pavones',which is still the most Wild West for real estate transactions....

@edwinemora  yep.  Could be more than one issue

This discussion illuminates a common problem in many areas in Costa Rica and not just as it applies to water service.

In every case, it's critical to confirm that the utilities you will need will be available to you. If you need a telephone in the house, go to the phone company and get an authoritative answer to when they will actually install landline service. If you plan to rely on cell service, as more and more people are doing, go to the property and see if you can get a reliable signal.

Do the same for water, electricity, Internet access, etc. Don't take anybody's word for it except the utility that provides the service.

An important note, too: In Costa Rica, water is a publicly-owned resource. The water that may be under the surface of the land you own is NOT yours. It belongs to the public. If you have an idea to drill a well, you must first get a permit for the drilling and then, if you actually hit water, you must get a second permit to use that water.

Similarly, you may not simply divert the flow of a naturally flowing spring and you may not block that flow by dynamiting it, bulldozing it, or otherwise. Even though it's on your property, it's not yours to change.

And you may not divert the flow of river water at the bottom of the slope of your property. It's also not yours.

None of this is to suggest that putting the public's water to your own use isn't done, but the consequences of doing so, if discovered, can be severe.

Disclosure: I'm one of the owners at a design and build company in Guanacaste. I'm not a lawyer, so treat these as things to check, not legal advice. This thread is from 2024, but the problem still comes up.

On billing, ask the provider that serves your neighbor's lot whether it charges by meter or a flat fee. That decides whether your offer is attractive to them.

The bigger question is whether either option gets you a construction permit. Before paying a neighbor's bill, ask the municipality what proof of water it will accept, and whether an arrangement with a neighbor would count. Try to get the answer in writing.

The same goes for the farm's well. Ask the water authority and your attorney whether you can legally use that water, and how the right would be tied to your lot. The point daveandmarcia made about separate permits for drilling and for use is worth confirming before you spend on a pump and tank.

If there is an ASADA nearby, ask whether it is adding connections or keeps a waiting list.

@surfdog12

First, understand that water is a publicly owned resource. If you aspire to drill a well, you must irst get a permit for that. Then, if you actually strike water, you must get a second permit to actually use the water you found by drilling. Those same restrictions also apply to drawing water from a flowing waterway (river or creek) even though it abuts your own property.