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Many of our most recent VIP Members are from Florida where some are fleeing from the highest property insurance rates in the USA.
According to a recent New York Times article; “… owners of 1,500-square-foot homes there were typically seeing premiums double to $10,000 or more for wind-storm insurance.
They are facing a total home insurance cost of more than $13,000 a year on average, Ms. Johnston said, or about US$1,100 per month.”
According to David Garrett of Garrett Insurance in San Jose, Costa Rica if you owned the same home here, your ‘Home, Fire & Natural Disaster for the exact same sized home would cost only US$216 per year including tax!
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comAll homeowners’ insurance in Costa Rica is sold by INS, the governmentally-annointed insurance monopoly. If memory serves, they charge a flat rate of $276 per $100,000 of coverage on the structure. In some cases, if the house is in a precarious place, they will either surcharge or exclude certain risks. You may have to have your home appraised.
Contents insurance is another matter. It is only available if every window and door is protected by bars. Then, they exclude all the high-value stuff — all electronics, cameras, money, jewelery, etc (the stuff the burglars want).
Unbelievable! I live in Miami and today am paying out $5700 insurance on a 1412 foot home which was appraised at $370,000 recently..and that is with a huge deductible amount. And here comes hurricane season again. The taxes are over $3000 and that is counting a $25000 homestead reduction in the home’s value.’
My attorney tells me the taxes on my Costa Rican property are less than $150…PER YEAR. If this insurance info is correct, Costa Rican insurance and taxes will be under $1000 per year. That is an additional seven grand and change in my pocket every year!Edited on Jun 15, 2007 08:00
Edited on Jun 15, 2007 08:03
Even “if” our home in Costa Rica was legitimately appraised at $370,000 since property taxes here are only .25% then you would pay no more than $925 per year.
Since homes rarely pay property taxes based on the real value of the home and pay instead on the recorded value then $150 would probably be more like it…
Quite a science eh? 🙂
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comI pay just over $600 per year for our house which has a value of about $175,000 for rebuild value. This covers theft as well, which, if I remember correctly is a separate policy. Still, this is much less than what we paid in Tampa…all of the hurricane prone areas of Florida have really seen an incredible hike in Insurance, which is really dissapointing.
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