Need honest input on possible move ot Costa Rica

1. I congratulate you on thinking outside the box but please visit Costa Rica before you even think about making a decision as to whether this is right for you. Barbados is beautiful, bloody expensive compared to Costa Rica but this is a very different country and it’s not right for everyone.

2. Who would manage your business while you are living thousands of miles away? Who would make sure that your apartments are well maintained and your tenants are paying?

3. Buying a home here without a mortgage (why not?) will take up the majority of your savings so you will not have much of a cushion should something go wrong.

4. I have no idea what type of legal residency would be most suitable for you but that is obviously something that you would have to look into very seriously when you visit before you even think about making a decision as to whether this is right for you.

Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.com

You definitely need to visit the country. My wife and I tell people straight up, “it’s not for everyone”. It’s not Barbados, but there may be some similarities. It makes a difference moving from suburban America to a small fishing village in a foreign country, and some people ultimately can not make the adjustment. With that said, you might be one step ahead in this regard since you already live in a different setting than what the majority of the people moving here are coming from. Plan a visit soon, and ask a lot of questions. This site is one of your best resources.

I have been seriously looking into moving to CR for about 5 years and have friends there that live there half the year and work and live half the year in the US. I am no expert but I have done a lot of study on the subject.

1) Spanish is the primary language and you need to learn it well. You can get along as a tourist without it but not as a resident.

2) There are lots of beautiful affordable places out of the valley and away from the beaches. The valley is way to busy and polluted for this country boy (the entire valley smells of diesel fumes). Those that live there do not notice.

If you want inexpensive affordable REAL Coast Rica living get out of the valley and beaches.

The down side is that you may be 2 to 3 hours from a hospital or an hour or more from many goods. If you like fancy bars and restaurants there is not much outside the city and tourist areas.

3) There is SOME resentment of outsiders buying up CR (even in the sticks) and it is a favorite pastime to bait and goad the gringo until they go away leaving their property improvements up for grabs. It pays to learn the language and make Tico friends. I think SOME of this is brought on by the Gringos (classic ugly Americans) but I have seen it happen to wonderful honest friendly people. All it takes is ONE disgruntled Tico making it their business to denounce the Gringo to the authorities on every move they make to make life miserable. It happens, be aware of it.

4) Get a good local immigration attorney (get references). You may also need another for business and a local accountant (also sometimes your lawyer) to take care of the bills fees and keeping things legal (employment taxes. . ).

5) The rules for residency have changed, are changing and may change again. There are new laws but nobody knows how or if and when where they will be applied. My friends were told they could have residency based on living there half the year in as many parts of the year as necessary. THEN a few years later they were told that the 6 months would have to be in one continuous block of time. Study the situation with your lawyer.

6) The more you live like the Ticos the more you will be accepted and the less expensive your life style.

Costa Rica is a wonderful country stuck somewhere in the 1950’s trying to move into the 21st century. It IS DIFFERENT and you need to spend considerable time there to understand it. Ticos are generally friendly but they are also used to living in close spaces and publicly are quite noisy. It is THEIR country and they like to remind outsiders of it.

Their residency was based on a business investment (not retirement fund), and that is what they were told (That the time had to be in ONE block). Until they were ready for a permanent move they had been staying in CR for 3 months in the U.S. winter and 3 months in the U.S. summer for a total of six months. Sometimes they were there more. During the milder spring and fall weather they operate a construction business here in the U.S. which is funding their CR operations.

The most I know is that they were told this by the immigration officials and their lawyer said this was correct. . . I suspect the original “deal” was one of those negotiated amounts less than the flat $200,000. The Ticos changed the deal after 6 years. Since then they have given up on permanent residency and now they operate on the 90 day OR LESS rule. So the result is they are in CR less than in the past. They have been forced to be perpetual tourists.

Meanwhile they continue to invest in their reforestation and tourist business. The investment in both cash and labor has been significant. They have made improvements in their property working closely with MINUE (MINI?), employed Ticos on long term basis and have generally acted in the good of the environment, the country and the people. They were quite upset and depressed for a time after the news. But they continue on.

They know eventually it will work out due to the increasing investment and that they want to live in CR permanently. But for the time being their time in CR is on a 90 day deadline even when they would like to stay longer.

My point is the laws/rules do and HAVE changed. Personalities in the government change and apparently they do not always support actions of their predecessors. My friends assumed their deal was locked in as long as they met their part of the deal. They did more than they were required yet the CR government changed the deal and made it more restrictive.