About
Build Tropical brings together architects, investors, and expats to share firsthand knowledge about building and living in Costa Rica and beyond.
Build Tropical is an independent publication covering what it actually takes to build, buy, and live in the tropics.
We bring together architects, investors, and expats to share firsthand knowledge about building and living in Costa Rica — and beyond. Practitioner-written, backed by real project data, and built from years of on-the-ground experience.
Why we exist
Most information about tropical construction and relocation comes from people who've never poured a foundation in 90% humidity. We started Build Tropical because the gap between what people are told and what actually happens on the ground is enormous — and expensive. Everything here is written by practitioners who design, build, invest in, and live in these places every day. Everything here is written by practitioners who design, build, invest in, and live in these places every day.
Our writers are practitioners. They've designed buildings that survive rainy seasons, run the numbers on vacation rental deals that looked too good to be true, navigated the daily realities of raising families in a country where the permitting office closes at noon, and managed construction crews through Guanacaste's dry season and wet season alike.
What we cover
Architecture and construction in tropical climates — real costs, real timelines, real material choices. The financial realities of buying property as a foreigner, from closing costs to property management. The ground-level reality of hiring crews, sourcing materials, and getting permits stamped. And the honest, unglamorous details of daily expat life that nobody puts on Instagram.
We publish original research, cost breakdowns from actual projects, and guides built from lived experience. When we share numbers, they come from real budgets — not estimates pulled from a Google search.
The Writers
James — Investor
Background in commercial real estate in Canada, now based on the Pacific coast. Covers where to buy, what the rental numbers really look like, and how to avoid the mistakes that cost people six figures. Skeptical by nature, spreadsheet-first.
Laura — Expat
Moved from the US to Costa Rica in 2020 with her husband and two kids. Writes about the stuff nobody tells you — visas, schools, healthcare, groceries, and what it actually costs to live here month to month. Honest about the downsides.
Carolina — Contractor
Costa Rican builder from Guanacaste. Grew up on job sites, studied civil engineering at TEC, has been running construction crews for fourteen years. Writes about hiring crews, managing builds, material sourcing, and everything foreign clients get wrong. The local perspective you won't find anywhere else.
Matt — Architect
Trained in Austria, worked at international firms in London and China, now runs a practice in Costa Rica. Writes about what things actually cost, how permits work, and which building methods survive the tropics. Every claim backed by real project numbers.
Get in touch
Have a question about building or living in the tropics? Want to contribute or collaborate? Reach us at hello@buildtropical.com.