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[quote=”debiruns”]We just moved to Sarchi from the US and are wondering what to do about TV. We’ve heard many complaints about the lack of variety of channels on Sky and so are considering Dish but we know of no one who has it. It seems expensive but perhaps worth it. Is there anything else, apart from getting into technie stuff that my husband and I are incapable of understanding? Any help would be very much appreciated.[/quote]
OMG, each one has the good, bad and the ugly. It all depends on what you want and how much you want to spend. You can spend $35 a month and watch 15% English speaking channels or $95/month and see 80% English speaking channels. One friend brought an North American satalite dish with her and was paying around $120/month but she wanted her football. We are still looking at the computer option but have another year on our SKY contract.
Also think about pay as you go for cell phone service since you don’t have to sign up for two years and only have pay for your minutes used. You can add card minutes at almost any store and the phones are cheaper. Make sure you get a 3G phone for reception since they are dropping the 2G and receptions sucks. There are two new cell companies coming to CR but they are still building towers in remote areas and getting fight back from smaller towns and neighborhoods.
Good Luck!
Brian[quote=”fsfields”]My husband and I are considering a real estate purchase near Ojochal. Before I found this forum, I contacted attorney Casimiro Vargas, who was recommended in the book “From Gringo to Tico.” From his correspondence, he seems knowledgable, but I’d really appreciate feedback from folks who’ve used his services for real estate purchases. Thanks much. Felicita Fields[/quote]
We used his firm and they were extremely thorough. That is what you want with Costa Rica realestate. He also married us 12 years ago so we highly reccomend him.
[quote=”Logsdon”][quote=”larrythehat”][quote=”Logsdon”]My wife and I have looked almost all over the world for that perfect retirement place. We’re trying to plan a visit to Costa Rica, but would like to find a great tour group to see possible areas. Does anyone know of a good, reputable, reasonably priced group?[/quote]
If you are looking for somewhere “perfect”, Costa Rica is not for you.[/quote]Perfect is, of course, relative. We’re looking for what fits us “perfectly” That may not be perfect for you. I’ll wait to find that perfect place when my pulse reaches Zero.[/quote]
Love your attitude and it is right on target! We have not traveled the world like you have but chose Costa Rica because of the environment. We enjoy House Hunters International but we always are pleased we selected Costa Rica. Most group tours have an agenda and a favorite area. We have traveled most of Costa Rica except the east coast and chose an area in the southern pacific side. We did not want to live in a cage so we stayed away from the big cities. Everything depends on what “You Want” and need. If you need future medical assistance then stay near a good hospital but most doctors actually make house calls. If you want to be on the beach stay away from the big towns and there are plenty of incredible locations. Just don’t get to far away from a town for supplies. We live in an area around 1600 feet (500 meters) above sea level so we don’t need air conditioning. Fresh air is always the best! The water here is also the best if you like fresh spring water without all of the chemicals.
With all of that said, I can reccomend a couple of tour guides that have no agenda except to show you this incredible country. It all depends on your likes and dislikes and what you are looking for. If you are interested just let me know and I will give you their email addresses so you can talk to them direct. It is best that you interview them yourself so you can get a feel for them. I hope that you choose Costa Rica and love it as much as we do! Good Luck!
[quote=”Disabled Veteran”]Can anyone give me addition insight into Costa Rican bank debit cards? We merely need a debit card for expenses, as opposed to paying cash for everything; each time we return to Costa Rica, and once we live there full time. Our current bank offers insurance for the debit card they issue, would this be essential for debit cards in Costa Rica? I currently have a U.S. credit card, with 0% foreign transaction fees. Would my use of this card, trump having a CR bank debit card? Any insight would greatly be appreciated.[/quote]
Thanks to the US you have to put up your first born to open a CR bank account. They did not appreciate we only had a canine kid. It is a nightmare to open a CR bank account so keep your US bank account. You can pull cash out with a cap of $600 but you can work around it and can charge your groceries. You will need to pull money from an actual bank office ATM otherwise you can only withdraw $100 at a time with additional bank fees from a remote ATM. You can get your US card recharged from SS and a bunch of other sources but forget about wire transfers down here. The US makes sure that you prove the source of every transfer. So the .005% of the illegal total transfers create havock on the rest of 99.095 legal transfers. A good Visa bank card rocks down here.
[quote=”Laurellye”][u][b]Hi Costa Ricans,[/b][/u]
I’m needing your advice and opinions regarding moving to Costa Rica…Primarily…Bejuco and or Outside Manuel Antonio beach area.. I need to know if I’m dreaming or is it truly possible to own 2 to 3 acres of land w/ fruit trees near the ocean without being in a fenced development..
I used to live in Costa Rica 20 years ago when it was cheap to live!! You could build a 3 bedroom rancher w/ stone front and stone fireplace w/ Costa Rican beautiful front doors for only 23,000.00!!!!! We used to fly into Playa de Manuel Antonio area thru the banana fields on a dirt run-way! and had shrimp right out of the ocean, cooked on the spot!! the locals lived on 15.00 per month and I had a maid and gardener for a 1.00 per day!!!My Ex was an Engineer for Phillip Morris International.. we bribed local
Police w/ cartons of cigarettes….. Is this still going on…especially w/ Customs???Yes, from what I’ve been reading Costa Rica, I’m shell shocked with the land prices…These foreign developers are truly are asking premium prices over there!! I’ve shopped on
3 to 4 Websites for land… and it’s expensive. Can you help me find land or a source to find land that is not inflated near these areas?? Back here,(USA) houses have fallen dramatically, we are loosing our money here! I currently do not have any HOA fees and the avg. house here in MD is 165,000 w/ 4 bedrooms. even though people bought these homes for 310,000.00… taxes are craaazy.. 3800.00 year w/ no jobs in sight!Costa Rican laborers, correct me if I’m wrong is 2.00 colones… inexpensive laborers..is it still possible to build w/out the developers getting rich on me? and I plan on building my own home with the locals….is this possible now? Is there a better place to find land and what source can I go to.. The Internet when I search for Costa Rican land is outrageous in price!!! I don’t need HOA fees… Please let me know. I would like to build a 4 bedroom house.. reasonably.
Thanks for you active forum writers that live there!! I really appreciate your wisdom in buying land!!!!
ANYTHING YOU KNOW IS GREAT INFORMATION FOR MY FAMILY.
Laurel Kahn
PS:
In the USA, we are expecting our dollar bill to be de-valued to .20 to.25 cents when hyperinflation hits, that’s not including when our enemies (Iran and N. Korea)
plan on a full blown EMP Attack..It’s coming!![/quote]Good luck on land prices near the beach especially Manuel Antonio. You will have to go way south for good land prices but you will need to buy it from a Tico. Then you really have to make sure to cover all of your bases and hire a good lawyer that knows what he is doing.
Depending on the size of house you can build it on your own. I heard a max of 50 square meters but that has been up for debate. Anything larger you will need to get drawings done and submitted. If you build out of concrete and block I would suggest that you do talk to at least an engineer since earthquake standards have really changed in the past few years. If you are thinking about wood be prepared to pay dearly. We did both and know first hand. If you keep it simple and do some of the work yourself you could probably build for under $50 square foot. Otherwise look at between $100-200 sf for existing homes.
If you can be a few minutes from the beach and up in the mountains they have several self-sustainable communities where there is always fresh fruits and veggies on hand. This way you won’t have to wait for trees to mature. I just visited one the other day and it was truly amazing.
Labor wise you can still higher a housekeeper for around 1,000 colones ($2)/hour a laborer or gardener for 1,200 colones but a skilled worker will run about 2,400 and a handyman 2,000. You do have to pay them for holiday’s if you work them full time and let me tell you that there are a lot of holiday’s. If they are working on your house then you will need to supply insurance for them while they are working. This is to cover your fanny.
Good Luck
[quote=”SeanD”]We would be relocating as ‘Pensioners’ I guess thats what we would be classified as. We collect SS and a pension for income.
We are planning to visit around the end of January 2011 to look around and see if we like Costa Rica.
A Realtor-person has been showing us pictures of property’s available around the Pejivaye area/region.
So My few questions are:
#1. I have to bring my dog, he is a mobility assistant. How do I go about the easiest way for him (and Me) to get him in the country safely with out too much stress.
#2.We will be visiting Pejivaye where we will be looking at places to rent or maybe one day purchase. Can anyone give me info on this area? What should we expect and how can we prepare?
Thank you for any info, tips and hints…
Sean
I have edited this post after reading more of the forums.[/quote]
Hi Sean,
We brought two large dogs down with us and it cost a small fortune. Your dog is a service animal so I think that the airlines must accomidate it but there might be a fee. You will need to have a vet that can do the international paperwork that is required. Then you will need to take that to the USDA for there stamp of approval. It will need certain shots within 30 days of departure so I would start looking soon for the right vet. The vets down here are great and actually make house calls.
I would shop around with realtors and definetly rent at first. You might want to talk to Jimmy Drews and Coldwell Banker in Dominical and Columbia (Juan) at J&J Properties in Platanillo. Your realtor is very new to the area and I don’t know that much about them. The other comments are right about realtors in CR and it is not like back in the states. The nice thing is that you can rent and check out all areas of this incredible country. Just make sure that they allow dogs. I know yours is a service dog but they don’t always recognize that down here.
Where you are talking about is a beautiful area but quite a distance from San Isidro. That is the capital of Perez Zeledon which is great for supplies, the farmers market and a PO Box. We go once a week for everything that we need. You will have a couple of grocery and hardware stores and a few places to eat but it will be limited. You might want to think about the Platanillo area but stay away from the main road due to the truck traffic and their jake brakes.
The weather around 1,200-1,500 feet above sea level is pleasent year round. Days are around 80 and nights around 70. We don’t need AC or heat. Don’t let the rain scare you since the incredible flora is worth it. Ten inches of rain in the states is major flooding where in CR is just a good rain. The rainy season is when you plant everyting and it grows all by itself.
Hope to see you in January,
Brian[quote=”funmind”]We want to fill a container full of used household items and ship them from California to Costa Rica.
Seeking advise and contacts to do so. Has anyone done this, and what was your experience.
We understand that one needs a broker to help with the paperwork here in CR.
Does anyone know of a broker who is reliable and fair priced?
How does one determine what the import taxes here in CR will be?
What shipping companies are the best, cheapest, and safest?
Who to contact to have the container delivered once it arrives and clears customs?
We are in Guanacaste, and assume Caldera will be the port of arrival as it is closest, but is Liberia better or more practical?[/quote]I would go with Charley Zeller who operates out of Florida (lives in CR) but can do anywhere in the US. The trouble is that there is an imposter Charley that will screw you. If you choose to use him make sure that he can email Brian Anthony and copy me so I can assure that it is him. He gives you a price up front and has been doing it for 34 years. He did our container and everything went perfectly. He is as honest as you get and the price he gives you is the price you pay. Look up shiptocostarica . com. Let me know if you are going to bring your canine kids and I can help you save half the price with a lot less headaches!
[quote=”costaricafinca”]The problem of planting coffee on the slopes, is when trying to pick it! You really need to terrace the slope to allow for easier walking.
And the cost to plant and maintain your coffee will be more than you will receive, if and when you sell the beans.
Planting the Mani or the peanut grass is much simpler.[/quote]That is why I see that they are planted a few feet apart and stagered. This way you can use the base of the plants as foot holds for easier picking. I don’t see much of an additional cost to maintain the slope since we already have a chopper that maintains it. We are going to plant it with small 12-18 inch tall plants or about 100 plants. We don’t plan on selling the coffee, just growing for us and maybe some friends in our valley. For about 50 cents a plant that will produce for years and be a great slope stabilizer I think that we are ahead.
[quote=”crltd”]dear geegee,
the “mani” plant with the yellow flowers is good but not for close to the house as it brings the leaf cutter ants.
take care,
bob[quote=”GEEGEE”]Thank you so much. I was begining to think I just was not
looking in the right place. What area do you live in?
Would that Tico grass come into the already acre of sod we
have put down and take over it?I have another question. Vetiver….( I think it is or the same family) I have seen beautiful curly green Vetiver and I have seen straight ragged Vetiver.
ARE THERE TWO KINDS? The land scaper says no only one kind.I have 3 terrices I need to plant to hold the ground.
HATE, HATE THAT CORN PLANT STRAGLY THING MOST PLANT TO
FENCE IN OR HOLD DIRT. ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS?THANKS,
GEEGEE
[quote=”baontheriver”][quote=”GEEGEE”]We just cleared 2 acres of land and building on half of it.
We have been looking for grass seed to do the other acre.
Like Bahia or simular. We are in Grecia. Does anyone have any
knowledge where to get the seed and what kind it best.Thank You,
GeeGee (Fla)[/quote]Good Luck,
I have only been able to find a kilo at a time and it is very expensive. The Tico’s and my Gringo friends tell me that it is darn near impossible to grow from seed since the ants and other insects take it all away. I can believe this since I have seen it first hand and wasted some good seed. The best thing is to get “Americano” sod and tear it into chunks and spread it throughout the yard and step it in. It grows very quickly and then you can cut up chunks of that and continue the process. We sodded the area outside our door 100% for our dogs paws but the yard is around 20%. It has doubled in size in about a month. The sod costs about $20 US for 12 square meters.
Your other choice is to go with Tico grass which is a weed that spreads very quickly and can be pulled from one area and thrown down in another. It literally grows like a weed and we covered our cabina yard in less than a month. The Tico’s know how to do do this so it is worth paying them for this work. I have been in landscaping for 35 years so can understand your frustration.[/quote][/quote][/quote]
There is also peanut grass for slopes that has yellow flowers and another purple flowering groundcover. The ants also like the purple flowering groundcover but you can get some poison bait to feed to them. Our gardener fed it to them and they were gone within two days. I am going to be planting coffee plants on one of our big slopes. They say that coffee plants can be great for stabilization and if you look around your area I would say that they are right. We are up the mountain from Dominical and several of our neighbors are doing the same. With coffee prices continuing to go up, why not. We also have a bunch of fruit trees planted on the slope and they are suppose to be able to grow well together.
[quote=”GEEGEE”]We just cleared 2 acres of land and building on half of it.
We have been looking for grass seed to do the other acre.
Like Bahia or simular. We are in Grecia. Does anyone have any
knowledge where to get the seed and what kind it best.Thank You,
GeeGee (Fla)[/quote]Good Luck,
I have only been able to find a kilo at a time and it is very expensive. The Tico’s and my Gringo friends tell me that it is darn near impossible to grow from seed since the ants and other insects take it all away. I can believe this since I have seen it first hand and wasted some good seed. The best thing is to get “Americano” sod and tear it into chunks and spread it throughout the yard and step it in. It grows very quickly and then you can cut up chunks of that and continue the process. We sodded the area outside our door 100% for our dogs paws but the yard is around 20%. It has doubled in size in about a month. The sod costs about $20 US for 12 square meters.
Your other choice is to go with Tico grass which is a weed that spreads very quickly and can be pulled from one area and thrown down in another. It literally grows like a weed and we covered our cabina yard in less than a month. The Tico’s know how to do do this so it is worth paying them for this work. I have been in landscaping for 35 years so can understand your frustration.
How about a drink called “The Volcano” with fresh fruits blended with rum and ice until it can be peaked in a glass and grenadine poured over the top.
[quote=”DENISEINSD”]we are thinking of driving a motorhome from Calif to CR and putting it on our lot in Nosara
what do your think?
we have plentiy of time to travel south…the whole summer but wonder if it is allowable to put your motor home on property
do they sell motorhomes in CR? i don’t think i have ever seen one[/quote]
We have some friends that drove from New York with a 5th wheeler and have it parked on their property while they are building their house. They have been living in it for two years and loving it. They said that it was a pain going across many of the borders. They did have two large dogs so many of the border guards did not even think twice about entering the RV. They do speak Spanish so that also helped a lot. Mexico is a much scarier place today than it was even two years ago so you might want to think hard about it. They were in their late 30’s when they did it so they were feerless.
If you would like a pretty drive down the coast to Uvita they have Webers behind the Golden Dome. Plus the burritos at the Dome are to die for. He is from the states and speaks English but anywhere in CR is very expensive. The best deal I have seen so far is PriceSmart but that might be a temporary deal. They have some regular stock ones but sticker price might shock you. Stick with real stainless if you want it to last. Or go down to Panama for a 3 day vacation and bring one back with you for under $500.
[quote=”maravilla”]hey, you, watch who you’re calling an old woman!!! jejeje
i was held up at gunpoint in manhattan, had my house in jersey broken into twice (despite bars and grates on all doors and windows), and i was burglarized once in CR. so based on those stats alone, i am twice as safe here as i was THERE!![/quote]
I really don’t know who sent you all of the emails portraying CR as the wild west or whatever they said. We have been coming down here for 13 years and moved permanetly about 6 months ago. We live in between San Isidro and Dominical and I go to San Isidro frequently for supplies for our new casa and cabina. I have never felt safer but if you ever lived in Memphis Tennessee you would understand. Yes there is petty theft but you can have that in a town of a 1000 in the states. There are some bad apples but a heck of a lot less anywhere back home. All major grocery and hardware stores, malls, banks and a lot of restaurants have armed (or unarmed) security watching over the lots and businesses. You wouldn’t leave your wallet or camera sitting on the dash board back home would you? You don’t do it down here either. A neighbor leaves his house frequently for trips and has never had a problem for over 5 years. I don’t know why people spread untruths unless they really just don’t know what they are talking about.
Pure Vida!
[quote=”lavemder”]We have a golden too.
Airport B&B or it is called Margarita B& B are dog friendly.
WE have used their place 5-6 times.It is in La Garita.
alajuela.[/quote]Are you looking for long term rentals or B&B’s. B&B’s can be pretty costly if you plan on spending some time at each locale. Are you are thinking about staying a month or a week at each stop? What areas are you thinking about? We are building a house and rental cabins between Dominical and San Isidro de General. The first cabin should be ready by the end of March and we are very dog friendly. We have two Goldendoodles and they love meeting new friends. It will be a totally furnished one bedroom with a wonderful view and cool nights to sleep well. I am guessing that you are moving permanently since you are bringing your dog. Shipping dogs is very costly so if you are just planning on staying a while and going back you might want to leave your dog with a family member or friend. You can do it on your own and save a lot and we can put you in contact with a lady that has done it frequently. To rent a house most Tico’s require a minimum of 3 months rental and they come only minimally furnished. The other thing that you might want to check out is VRBO ( vacation rentals by owner) or local real estate agents. Jimmy Drews at Caldwell Banker in Dominical can help you find a place to rent short term or long term in the southern pacific area. He can also get you better deals on rental cars than you can get on your own. Roca Verde Hotel in Dominical is also dog friendly and the owner has two Goldens himself. You just need to tell him that you are bringing one with you. We stayed there for 10 days when we first got here back in October. We have been dreaming about our move to CR for the past 12 years and have finally made our dream come true.
Brian
