From a very early age I was fascinated with foreign languages. As a child we had a family friend, Elizabeth, who was Mexican-American.

Sometimes durning our visits to her house, her mother would call from Texas and I would eavesdrop, loving to hearing her conversations in Spanish. I would hang on to every word, dying to know what she was saying.

Durning my high school years, I opted to study French and spent six years (four years in high school and two years with the Alliance Francaise), studying this beautiful ‘language of love’.

Then, while at the University of South Florida I tried my ‘tongue’ at German. If you thought that having masculine and feminine nouns in latin based languages was strange and difficult, Germanic languages throw in one more twist, neuter or neutral nouns. Was sagen Sie?

I believe that language is something we all take for granted. I think this is especially true when we speak only one language. How we learn and process language as children is far different than as when we are adults. However, without language, communication is very limited and can even be paralyzing, especially when doing business in a foreign country.

As a Realtor living and owning a business in an international destination such as Costa Rica, being multilingual is not only important, it is vital. Even though our little town of Atenas is small, there are people from all over the world living here including: Belgium, Brazil, Canada, England, France, Germany, Holland, Japan, Norway, Peru, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and Venezuela, just to name a few!

In recent months, I have had to dig deep into the far corners of my mind to start speaking French again. In the past 6 months we have had a minimum of two French clients per month looking for property in Atenas making expressions like ‘Bonjour’, ‘Comment allez-vous’, “Voici la cuisine’ and ‘ La vue est magnifique’ common place. Gerardo and I are currently taking private ‘refresher’ lessons so that we can better serve our French speaking clients.

In all honesty, I understand 90% of what my clients are saying to me but the frustrating part is trying to return the dialog and carry on a full conversation. These are the same frustrations I had when I was learning to speak Spanish. However, my new dilemma is that after speaking Spanish for 10 years, French comes out of my mouth with a Spanish pronunciation! C’est la vie!

If you are considering moving to a foreign country, especially if you are making a major purchase or starting a business, it is imperative that you understand everything that you are getting into. Laws, rules, regulations and customs can often be complicated and are easier to understand when conveyed through a language that you understand. If you don’t speak the language, make sure those that you work with speak the language OR hire a good translator.

In turn, as a real estate professional, I feel it is my duty to make sure my clients understand everything that is involved with-in the transactions they will be making. Even though there are not many major differences with purchasing real estate in Costa Rica than other parts of the world, it can be the details of the transaction that are vital for the client to understand.

A perfect example, this past week it was necessary to explain the use and reasons for using corporations (Socidad Anonima, or SA) in Costa Rica. This was a completely new concept to our French clients because in France, corporations are almost exclusively reserved and used for operating a business. If we had not been able to explain this to our clients, they could have missed out on the use of a very powerful tool here in Costa Rica.

Living and working abroad can be very rewarding, although sometimes challenging. It will often test a person to their limits, pushing them to go beyond what they thought was possible.

If you are going to live or work in a foreign country, it is imperative that you speak the language of your new host country. If your business is one that also involves an international clientele, then learning a third or fourth language could go a long way in setting you apart in your field of expertise.

Even if you can only communicate on a basic level, this will show your potential clients that they and their culture are important to you, giving you an instant leg up on the competition and creating a common ground with your new client.

As they say in New Orleans “Laissez le bon temps rouler.” or “Let the good times roll.” Good luck and safe travels. Bonne chance et bon voyage. Viel Glück und sicheres reisen. Buena suerte y buen viaje!

[custom_script adID=97]

 

The AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) ranks Atenas as one of “The Best Places to Retire Abroad.” For more information about homes and land for sale in the area please telephone our Recommended Realtors in Atenas Dennis Easters and Gerardo Gonzalez-Porras on (506) 8571-7183 or contact him using the simple form below:

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.