Black Friday in Costa Rica: housing, loans and renting

If you see a housing offer around this date, whether a pre-sale project, a loan or a rental, it pays to know what the law says before signing. Here is where Black Friday comes from, what the Ministry of Economy checks and, above all, the rules and the official places where you can check each one.

Where Black Friday comes from and what the MEIC checks

Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States, the day the Christmas shopping season starts there. The name was not born in a shop but in the street: so says Joseph P. Barrett, one of the reporters who first put it in print.

1. 1
   Early 1960s, Philadelphia. The traffic police call the day after Thanksgiving “Black Friday”, the day of the worst traffic jams in the city centre.
2. 2
   The press adopts it. Reporters Joseph P. Barrett and Nathan Kleger, of the Evening Bulletin, use the term in a front-page story about that day's traffic.
3. 3
   Shops complain. Centre-city merchants protest to Police Commissioner Albert N. Brown, and the next year he calls the day “Big Friday” in a press release. The reporters keep saying “Black Friday”.
4. 4
   Television spreads it. According to Barrett, the term was used every year and then television picked it up.

In Costa Rica, the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Commerce (MEIC) inspects shops during Black Friday: it checks that they show the final price with taxes, the previous and the offer price, the validity and the restrictions, and that they honour the warranty. This is what it found in 2024 and 2025:

If the offer is a pre-sale house or lot

Article 44 of Law 7472 covers instalment sales of “real estate, flats and houses” offered to the public whose delivery depends on a future event in the seller's hands, such as finishing the works. For real-estate projects, the rules are in Decree 42995-MEIC, which does not apply to the sale of finished properties. What it sets out:

• Authorisation before offering. The project's sales plan must be authorised by the MEIC's Consumer Support Directorate before it is offered to the public (article 4).
• No authorisation, no reservation. Before approval, the developer may advertise the project but cannot take reservations, down payments or money of any kind (article 11).
• Your down payment is protected. The developer proves solvency with a trust holding the down payments or with a guarantee in favour of the MEIC; with a trust, the money is released in six instalments, at 10 %, 30 %, 50 %, 70 %, 90 % and 100 % of construction progress, according to an independent engineer's report (articles 2 and 25).
• 100 % refund. If the developer breaches the contract, you are entitled to a refund of 100 % of the down payment and extra payments (article 26); and the developer must order it returned if they propose changing the agreed terms and you do not accept (article 23).
• How to check. The MEIC publishes the list of authorised projects on its website and issues certificates on request within eight working days, through certificacionesventasaplazo@meic.go.cr (article 9).

The MEIC publishes two lists: projects authorised under Decree 42995, in force since 18 October 2021, and those authorised under the previous regulation, Decree 37899. The first, in its October 2026 version, lists 217 projects; the most recent resolution it includes is dated 28 September 2026.

If the offer is a housing loan

Since Law 9859 of 2020, article 36 bis of Law 7472 sets a maximum annual rate for “every kind of loan”, except microloans. The Central Bank calculates and publishes it in the first week of January and July, and it applies to contracts signed in the following half-year. For the second half of 2026 it is 36.48 % in colones and 30.11 % in dollars. Any charge, financial cost or fee counts as part of the rate, except a collection charge that cannot exceed 5 % of the overdue part of the principal payment or 12 dollars, and may only be charged from the fifth day of delay, once a month.

• Before signing. The lender must give you in writing, clearly, the mechanism for setting the interest rate, the balances subject to interest and the formula for calculating them (article 44 bis of Law 7472).
• After signing. The lender cannot change any condition of the loan unilaterally, and statements must show principal, interest, late interest, surcharges and fees separately (same article).
• Your record, before the bank's. You can request your report from SUGEF's Credit Information Centre at any supervised institution or on SUGEF's website, with a digital signature. It shows your current debt, your risk rating, the last four years' history and which institutions have looked it up; an error is first claimed with the institution that reported it.

The housing bonus for middle-income families

In 2026, the Mortgage Housing Bank (BANHVI) offers the loan bonus and the down-payment bonus to families with gross incomes of ₡485,019 to ₡1,940,076 a month: the bonus ranges from ₡5.8 million to ₡9.6 million, depending on income, and is added to a loan or applied to its down payment. It is granted only once, to Costa Ricans or permanent residents who do not own a home, and is requested at the 23 authorised institutions, such as mutual associations, state banks and cooperatives. The home must not exceed ₡76,500,000, the social-interest ceiling. By law, no bonus may exceed thirty minimum wages of an unskilled construction worker (article 50 of Law 7052).

If you are looking to rent

Rentals are governed by Law 7527, the General Law on Urban and Suburban Leases. The rights it gives tenants cannot be waived: a clause that removes them is void, without affecting the rest of the contract (article 3). The rules that matter most when signing:

• Three years minimum. A contract cannot last less than three years; if less is agreed, it is taken as three (article 70). If the landlord does not give notice at least three months before expiry that it will not be renewed, it is extended for another three years (article 71).
• One month in advance. In a home rental, the landlord cannot demand advance payment of more than one month's rent (article 58). In social-interest housing, nor a deposit larger than one month's rent (article 92).
• Seven days to pay. Rent is paid monthly, unless otherwise agreed, and may be paid within the seven calendar days after the due date; you are entitled to a receipt (articles 56 and 58).
• Adjustment in colones. At the end of each year of the contract, if inflation over the previous twelve months did not exceed 10 %, the rent may rise at most by that percentage, measured with INEC's consumer price index. If inflation exceeded 10 %, the Ministry of Housing sets the additional percentage, which can be no lower than 10 % and no higher than the year's inflation. It applies from the payment after notice, which must come with INEC's certification or an authentic copy of the publication in the official gazette. A larger increase is void (article 67, reformed by Law 9354 of 2016).
• Rent in dollars. The agreed amount stays the same for the whole term of the contract, with no adjustment (article 67), and you may pay it in colones at the Central Bank's selling rate on the day of payment (article 57).

Curious facts

• The name was born from the traffic, not from sales: so says one of the two reporters who put it in print.
• This half-year's cap comes from the previous twelve months' interest rates: the Central Bank used those from July 2025 to June 2026.
• In October 2022, the Housing Ministry reminded the public that the maximum yearly home rent adjustment for September that year was 10.07 %.
• In 2024 and 2025 the MEIC's overall Black Friday result was identical: 38 % of the shops visited complied with everything.

Frequently asked questions

Is Black Friday a public holiday in Costa Rica?

No. It is not among the public holidays of article 148 of the Labour Code, according to the Ministry of Labour's official 2026 calendar. It is an ordinary working day; in 2026 it falls on 27 November.

Can I be charged a reservation for a project the MEIC has not yet authorised?

No. Under article 11 of Decree 42995-MEIC, before approval the developer may advertise but cannot take reservations, down payments or sums of money of any kind. If the project is not on the MEIC's list, you can ask for a certificate.

Does the interest rate cap apply to housing loans?

Yes. Article 36 bis of Law 7472 sets it for every kind of loan, except microloans, which have their own cap. In the second half of 2026 it is 36.48 % in colones and 30.11 % in dollars. According to the MEIC, charging more is usury and is reported through the criminal courts.

Where can a misleading offer be reported?

The MEIC takes questions and complaints on the toll-free line 800-CONSUMO (800-266-7866) and by WhatsApp at 6140 9657, according to its Black Friday releases of 2024 and 2025. For real-estate projects, its address is autorizacionesinmobiliario@meic.go.cr or the phone 2549-1400.

Sources

• The Philadelphia Inquirer: “Philly's role in the naming of 'Black Friday' started with Center City traffic”, by Joseph P. Barrett (22 November 2022; first in the Daily News, 25 November 1994).
• MEIC: Black Friday press releases of 29 November 2024 and 28 November 2025.
• SINALEVI: Law 7472, on Competition and Effective Consumer Protection, text in force (articles 36 bis, 44 and 44 bis).
• SINALEVI: Executive Decree 42995-MEIC, regulation on future-delivery instalment sales of real-estate projects, text in force.
• MEIC: “Inmobiliario” page and list of projects authorised under DE-42995-MEIC (October 2026); “Usura” page.
• Central Bank of Costa Rica: press release CP-BCCR-017-2026 (3 July 2026) and table of maximum annual interest rates.
• SUGEF: frequently asked questions on the Credit Information Centre (February 2023).
• BANHVI: press releases on middle-class bonuses (6 March and 10 August 2026); SINALEVI: Law 7052, articles 50 and 51.
• SINALEVI: Law 7527, General Law on Urban and Suburban Leases, text in force, with the note on resolution DMVAH-0014-2022-MIVAH.
• Ministry of Labour and Social Security: 2026 holiday calendar (4 December 2025).