Costa Rica Build Your Own Home – What Lessons Have You Learned?

VIP Members Bob Silaghi and his lady wife are building their own home in Costa Rica and they were kind enough to answer a few of our questions…

What lessons have you learned so far about Costa Rica?

I spent 15 years researching a retirement environment, establishing requirements and identifying a country which met my requirements. I followed Costa Rica for about 10 years to measure change against my list of requirement.

I brought my wife down and we spent 15 days touring the country with professional, organized tours to determine if we could live in this culture, and if so, what part of Costa Rica would most closely meet our current and perceived future requirements. The second trip was again a tour led by George Lundquist of the Central Valley which we determined would be our home in Costa Rica.

About the Costa Rican people?

We have been residents of Costa Rica for nearly 9 months and have not met a Costa Rican that we did not like. The culture is family oriented, non-confrontational (which sometimes is a small problem. Gringos expect a direct answer to a direct question and you sometimes have to work with the Tica or interpolate the answer.)

By treating Ticos with respect, we have received respect in return. We have been adopted by the family of the folks from whom we bought our land. They have found a family member who will keep the coffee crop in production for us, and have told us that they still consider the land as theirs and will protect it when we are away because we are “family.”

About Costa Rican real estate professionals?

I have heard many horror stories from other Gringos we have met here about their real estate experience. We have met many real estate agents here and heard their pitch (all BS). The only true Professional we met, worked with, and consider a continuing friend is Terry Mills who was referred by you.

About the construction process?

Only do business with referrals from those who have used their services, and which you can visually inspect. So far, my Architect was a referral from George Lundquist who has been here in Costa Rica for a number of years. We are meeting with an Interior Designer who is a referral and we have personally inspected her work.

Our prospective building team are local Grecia folks who live a few miles from us and have an outstanding reputation for quality, fairness, and personal pride. We have also inspected their work and they are a referral from two Gringo families who have used them for construction.

I would advise anyone who intends to build to rent for a period of time as near to the building site as they can so they can experience both weather seasons as well as the local living before they build. By doing so, we have reoriented our house on the lot to deflect prevailing rainy season winds and prevent direct sunlight from entering the interior.

[custom_script adID=97]

Written by Bob Silaghi. Grecia, Costa Rica

If you have a serious interest in buying real estate and would like a highly recommended and trustworthy Costa Rica Realtor to help you, please choose from the two options below:

1. Our free Help-U-Search service has helped thousands of VIP Members to find their dream home in Costa Rica. The only people recommended are people who are personally known and trusted by Scott Oliver, author of How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa. If you would like Scott to recommend one of our preferred Costa Rica Realtors to you now, please visit Help-U-Search. Or…
2. You can also read about the ‘Costa Rica Realtors – The Most Recommended 100‘ here.

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.