San Vicente

About San Vicente:

San Vicente is the first district of Moravia and the canton’s city seat, sitting at 1,231 metres in the south of the canton. It borders La Trinidad to the north, Tibás to the west, Goicoechea to the south and east, and Vázquez de Coronado to the northeast. Ruta 102 is the canton’s spine: it starts on the west side of San Vicente, connects it with Tibás, and runs on through La Trinidad to the centre of San Jerónimo. Ruta 109 heads south through Los Colegios to Guadalupe in Goicoechea, the direct way towards central San José, and Lincoln Plaza stands on it.

Daily life here runs on services rather than farms. More than four in five working people in Moravia are employed in services, and almost the whole canton is urban. Lincoln Plaza opened in 2012 on the grounds of the former Lincoln School, with around 130 shops, seven cinema screens, four banks and a Hospital Metropolitano branch on its fourth level. The Universidad Católica de Costa Rica has its main campus in the district, and national bodies such as IFAM and INDER keep offices here. The old centre still has the parish church of San Vicente Ferrer, whose semi-Gothic metal structure was shipped from Germany for works begun in 1907, the Parque Abraham Lincoln with its heritage-listed kiosk, and the Calle de la Artesanía, a street of craft, leather and souvenir shops.

The district sits at the foot of the Cordillera Volcánica Central, where the trade winds from the Caribbean push through towards the Central Valley, so Moravia has a reputation for wind and damp. That matters more than any temperature figure when you view a house: look for damp on walls and ceilings, and ask how the rooms are ventilated. The built-up barrios include La Alondra, La Guaria, Los Colegios, San Blas, La Isla, Jardines de Moravia and Urbanización Corobicí. The exception to the solid grid is the river valleys that cut through the canton, which hold flood-prone stretches and protection strips where building is restricted.

San Vicente now has slightly fewer residents than in 2000, about 29,400 against 31,700, which tells you the district has stopped growing outward. New homes replace old ones or go into condominiums rather than onto open land. Most buyers are Costa Rican families who want the schools, the shopping and a short drive into San José, and in 2011 about one in twelve people in Moravia had been born abroad. Club La Guaria, a sports and social club with more than half a century behind it, anchors one of the district’s most sought-after barrios.

Houses in San Vicente:

Houses are what most people come here for. In Los Colegios, Los Colegios Sur and La Guaria the typical stock is a two-storey family home, often remodelled, sometimes with a separate apartment built onto the lot, and the bigger plots tend to sit near Club La Guaria. The houses for sale in San Vicente also include homes in horizontal condominiums, from older residenciales such as Corobicí to newer gated projects like Moravia Urbano, delivered with a pool, gym and clubhouse. In a condominium, ask for the monthly fee and the rules on extensions before you make an offer.

Apartments in San Vicente:

Apartments come in two forms. Some are units in condominiums around La Guaria and Los Colegios, with two or three bedrooms and private parking. Others sit in small buildings of three or four units that owners put up as an income property and now sell as a single package. With that second kind, find out whether each unit is registered separately or whether the whole building is one property, because that changes what you can later sell or mortgage.

Rentals in San Vicente:

The rental market is wide. At one end are one-bedroom apartments near Lincoln Plaza with water and electricity included, let to students and single tenants. At the other are three- and four-bedroom houses in Los Colegios rented to families who want to live near the schools. If you are comparing rentals in Moravia close to the mall, ask what the rent includes and whether parking comes with the unit before you weigh one price against another.

Commercial Property in San Vicente:

Commercial space follows the main roads. The Guadalupe–Moravia road carries heavy daily traffic and has buildings with shops and rooms for sale or rent, Los Colegios Norte has entire buildings offered for sale or rent, and the old centre around the church and the Calle de la Artesanía is lined with shopfronts. Before you sign for a business, confirm with the Municipalidad de Moravia that the activity is allowed at that address.

FAQ:

• What should I check before buying near one of San Vicente’s river valleys?

  Start with the ground itself. The valleys that cross the canton have flood-prone stretches and protection strips along the banks, and some of that land has been built on without permission. Ask the Municipalidad de Moravia for a land-use certificate under the plan regulador currently in force, which the municipality is updating, and compare the plano catastrado with the record at the Registro Nacional (Registro Inmobiliario) so you know the lot’s real boundaries.

• Which barrios of San Vicente suit families?

  Los Colegios sits along Ruta 109 beside Lincoln Plaza and is home to the Japanese school. La Guaria has Club La Guaria and some of the district’s larger houses on bigger lots. La Alondra and Jardines de Moravia are established residential barrios, and the centre puts you beside the church, the park and the craft street. Walk the street at school-run time before you decide.

• How do I get from San Vicente to San José and the rest of the metro area?

  Ruta 109 runs south to Guadalupe and on to central San José. Ruta 102 links the district west to Tibás and east through La Trinidad to San Jerónimo. Peak hours on the Guadalupe road are the main bottleneck, so try your commute at the time you would really drive it.

• Is San Vicente the same place as Moravia?

  In everyday speech, mostly yes: San Vicente is the city people mean when they say Moravia. The canton also has La Trinidad and San Jerónimo, and San Jerónimo climbs towards the mountains with a more rural setting. Addresses and listings often just say Moravia, so confirm the district on the cadastral plan.

• Who rents in San Vicente?

  Students at the Universidad Católica, people who work in the district’s offices and shops, and families who want a house near the schools. Rents for the small units are usually quoted in colones, so compare like with like.