The banking system in Costa Rica can be divided into two categories: public and private banks. Public banks, those owned by the government, have been the dominant financial providers in the country for many years. Most foreigners end up dealing with either Banco Nacional or Banco de Costa Rica when seeking real estate financing from a public bank.
Private banking was not available in Costa Rica until a law change in 1996, which allowed them to accept consumer deposits. These local private banks have started aggressively offering mortgages to foreigners in the past few years.
The largest of these private banks is BAC San Jose, which is a division of BAC International. Other private banking options include Scotiabank, HSBC, and CitiBank.
While it’s possible for a foreigner to get a mortgage with a bank in Costa Rica, the process is extremely difficult and time consuming. It is likely that many banks in your country of residence offer conventional property loans because they can verify your residency status, work history and financial track record. The Costa Rican banks cannot secure home financing because they don’t have access to that information, and even if they did, they would not be able to confirm it officially and legally. The language barrier makes it even more complicated since all legal documents in Costa Rica have to be received in Spanish and translated by an official Costa Rican translator.

You may be able to negotiate with the seller to finance some of the purchase price by carrying back a promissory note. Terms are negotiable as far as the rate and terms but this could be a win win solution for the both the buyer and seller

If you can’t get the seller to carry back paper on the house you’re buying, your other alternative is to hook up with a private lender. They will require an evaluation of the property which the buyer would have to pay for. Some lenders will ask for income verification such as the last 12 months bank statements or proof of where the income comes from. Most private lenders will loan anywhere from 50% to 70% of the value of the property for up to 15 years, however shorter terms are much more common. Rates can range from 8 to 18% and are interest only.