Evaluating only PropTek CR’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Regulation as the #1 likely cause. That’s exactly how it died.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
Alejandro Mora founds PropTek CR to digitize Costa Rican property rentals.
PRODUCT LAUNCH
Platform launches; 90% of landlords refuse to list without personal broker relationships.
New 13% IVA tax on short-term rentals destroys unit economics; company shuts down within 90 days.
Full Analysis
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Documented cause
PropTek CR, a San José proptech founded by Alejandro Mora in 2017, raised $550K to digitize property rental transactions in Costa Rica. The platform launched in 2018 but faced entrenched realtor resistance; 90% of landlords refused to list without a personal broker relationship. After pivoting to short-term vacation rentals in 2020 to exploit remote-work tourism, the market collapsed when new AirBnB regulations imposed 13% IVA taxes on rentals in 2022, destroying unit economics overnight.
Lesson
“Pivoting into regulated markets without stress-testing regulatory risk trades one problem for another.”