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well marv all more reason to renounce your citzenship, but you come up with a lame reason to keep it… it is just too much trouble… rip up your US passport, that will be a good start.
“english was the third or fourth language my family spoke” – you aren’t sure? sounds like a lie when you don’t even know your own family. you should know exactly how many languages were spoken in the home. it matters none though, because it is very difficult to pass those language on to offspring when parents know English. kids cling to what is spoken around them the most. there is little need for so many language in one home, i live in California so i know lots of immigrants and always, never just sometimes, only TWO languages dominate the household. if the parents know english, the parents usually speak to each other in their mative language and the kids usually speak in english to each other…. if the parent are lucky, their kids will be able to understand their parent’s language when heard, however the kids rarely are able to speak in the parent’s language when their parents know english.
maravilla said: “i’m with you on all of those points, and i also do not consider myself an american except for the fact i happened to have been born there”
haha, well give up your citizenship…. it is easy to do. until then, you shouldn’t be broadcasting such garbage until you have the backbone to match you words with action! hey, then you can apply for a tourist visa to come back and hey, they just might not give you one.
yeah, i bet you don’t act like a gringa in costa rica.
Brad said: “While the US sends a minimum of about $6.8 million per day to Israel, it sends 0.3 million per day to the Palestinians – Do you notice any difference between those two numbers?”
Prove it. Write all the numbers want, but until you send fact, I won’t believe a word or a number. Please talk like this at the bar where someone can take you outside and kick your butt.
oh and it is the jews fought that we are up to our eyes in debt? hmmm, that’s a new one on me. hmmm, what percent of GDP do we send the jews? hmmm, what percent of the annual budget do we send the jews?
hey, while you are at it, check on how much we send to the palestinians too. is it more or less than we send the jews? heck, don’t forget, we forgave all of Costa Rica’s debt to us. how much was that?
i think we give to panama too and a bunch of other countries like the philippines and thailand and even NORTH KOREA.
oh and i think we give to Germany and Japan and Spain and England and South Korea too… our Military populates these countries and that’s the short list.
SO WHY ARE YOU COMPLAINING ABOUT JEWS, hmmmmm?
Stephenf – great voice of reason! I liked 99% of what I read.
“scott runs a website called we love costa rica and makes money with the real estate market there….”
The above part is still bugging me, because Scott uses the cover that he does not sell real estate and because of this, his advice on the subject isn’t biased (he is implying that he makes no income from sales). It is pretty obvious that he is cashing in indirectly so like I said in my other post folks, beware!!!
“it called bias and its inevitable and NOT objective
not that he is dishonest or deceiving…..hes stating his opinion”I just saw this one… ut oh, what if his opinion is always the same? buy buy buy!!!
I guess these questions will go ignored.
Valid questions about kick backs go ignored, but that is okay, because I think everyone knows that no one would involve themselves so much for nothing.
Right Scott?
Sprite said: “there is NO PLACE in the US that has the climate of the Central Valley of Costa Rica. To the extent that climate is important, Costa Rica simply cannot be bested by any other place with a similarly friendly culture and beautiful scenery.”
Friendly culture that speaks Spanish… that does a retiree a lot of good. For those retirees that have passports, few are motivated to learn a foreign language so that they can communicate with that friendly culture. And no matter what they heard about good health care in Costa Rica, most still will not trust. Health care is a huge issue.
As for the weather in CR, it sure is a long way to go for weather. Go to CR and isolate yourself from family, friends, an English speaking community and much much more for the weather? Turn on the heat… the air conditioner.. easy. Yeah, they’ll be in doors, but it isn’t likely retiree will be going to the community center in Costa Rica where everyone speaks Spanish (yeah, I know, everyone know ONE retire that is adventurous, but we are talking about the majority, not those adventurous lone rangers).
Many places one can retire in the USA without resorting to Costa Rica. Places that actually have stores who employ English speaking associates.
Scott, I still have no idea why anyone would want to invest in real estate in CR. I had a rental once in another state and never ever again will I own a property far away.
There are plenty of opportunities in the local market to invest. I gave up on investing in property and resorted to ETFs. I don’t want my cash tied up for so long either.
Lotus, you make a point without really saying it directly. I can’t tell if you bought land or a house and land, but it sounds like you bought a home or a place where you plan to build a home. I never buy a “home” while thinking I’m going to sell it for a profit in however many years – I buy a home to live in it until I want another home to actually live in.
Buying an “investment” property is a lot different. It is mostly about profit so it is important to buy low. As an investors, I would not be buying now. I would wait at least another year for attitudes to change and for some developers to go bust. If developers don’t go bust, fine, I can still buy for less in a year. By the way, I’m not any investor. I have no idea why anyone would want to “invest” in Costa Rica real estate so far from home. There are always enough opportunities at home without the hassles associated with a foreign country, plus, the more you own, the more it owns you! There are better ways to “invest.” If I bought real estate abroad, I’d be buying a home.
It actually doesn’t matter who I am, because all of my question were valid. I’ve never been ban from this website. I have absolutely nothing against you “except” that I believe you are promoting real estate in decline.
You constantly tell us that you don’t sell real estate, however you are very involved as you, yourself, have let us know. You actually seem more like a real estate broker. This website and your book provides you the ability to obtain a lot of leads that as a real estate agent, you would not be able to handle, however as a broker you would. I’m wondering, are you working for charity or cash, because that makes a huge difference as to whether you are biased and to what degree. If you are working for cash, you may as well say that you are selling real estate at least indirectly. I think it is disingenuous and misleading to have as a cover “I don’t sell real estate” if, in fact, you are getting kick backs from the leads that you provide to realtors and developers.
I noticed that you prefer not to answer the questions I posed, but would rather deflect to “who is dockers?”
Who am I? Okay, even though I don’t think this is important. I live in San Francisco, California and I’ve been to Costa Rica 4 times. I am married and have 2 kids. I have no websites. I do not know any developers in Costa Rica, however while there we did walked into a few sales offices to scope things out. I have always looked deeply at any source of advice and what the source has to gain from such advice. “Dockers” and the headquarters of Levi Strauss is in SF.
I honestly don’t see why who I am matters if my questions are valid. How could my questions not be valid when they are directly based on your own words.
Please, don’t deflect, just let us know to what degree are you involved.
Edited on Sep 01, 2008 21:54
Edited on Sep 02, 2008 01:11
Scott said: Lastly, I do NOT personally sell real estate but certainly recommend people that do so nobody is giving me their life savings and as I have stated repeatedly, buyers need to do their own homework!
Sorry, I didn’t mean to suggest anyone was giving you their life savings, I was suggesting that they would be giving it to someone else based on your recommendation. I know you don’t sell real estate, however by your own admission, you are in the inner MOST circle it seems to me, you own real estate too so people need to be careful.
Scott said: “Lastly, I do NOT personally sell real estate”
You might not sell real estate, but you could be getting kick backs. Is your involvement with developers and realtors purely for charity and to add chapters to your book?
Scott said: “We have plenty of clients that do make real estate investments (multiple investments) based on my recommendation”
What is a client to you? Are these paying clients? In the above quote, can you tell us who “we” are? I thought this website was just “you.”
Scott said: “our VIP Members have purchased about 60 apartments in one project alone in Santa Ana through our Recommended Realtor”
When you said “through our Recommended Realtor” it begs a question. You recommended with absolutely no kick back at all? Zero? Just a matter of charity?
Scott said: “our VIP Members have purchased about 60 apartments in one project alone”
You are giving developers free leads? Very nice of you!!!! A lot nicer than many other people I might add. The realtor gets a 5 percent commission and Scott gets a thank you?
Scott said: “I do speak with dozens of Realtors on a weekly basis and have been a part of about 100 real estate transactions over the last 12-18 months”
I’m not sure how you have time to speak to so many realtors on a weekly basis, however when you say that you’ve “been a part of about 100 real transactions,” what does this mean? What is your “part?” Does the “part” you provide, provide you any income? To be honest, I wouldn’t be “part” of so much for nothing.
Scott said: “I know a lot more about them than just their Username so unless we already have an established, profitable relationship then you should do your own homework.”
Are you saying that you “profit” above? How do you profit?
To sum this up, I thought you were an operator of a website and an author of a book. Your words seem to suggest otherwise. I’ve not read too much on here lately (it has been a long time actually), but has your role changed?
Edited on Sep 01, 2008 18:38
Where do we get unbiased FACTS and DATA in Costa Rica, Scott?
From what I’ve read, much of the data isn’t collected and what is collected can’t be trusted.
Sccot said: “Prices ain’t going lower in the Costa Rica real estate that I’m investing in so maybe you should be spending more time on WeLoveCostaRica.com”
I’m not sure a site which promotes buying real estate in Costa Rica is where people should go for trusted information. Maybe you did invest, maybe you didn’t, instead of telling us to go research, maybe it would be wise to put forth some rock solid proof. If you did buy then you have a reason to say whatever is required to keep the prices high. You come across as a no nonsense, honest, trustworthy character, but few if any really know who you really are so why should anyone trust their life’s savings to what you claim? Just wondering.
I know this puts you on the defense, but think about it a little from a site visitor’s perspective. Bottom line is that we should take what everyone in cyberspace says as pure babble until proof is on the table in front of us.
Beware folks!
Here is the article:
“Faltering real estate market presents opportunities
By Garland M. Baker
Special to A.M. Costa RicaA personal trip to the Parrita-Quepos area to look at property and meet with real estate agents turned out to be an invaluable experience. The real estate slowdown is quite evident, but there is good news for well-informed investors. Today’s deep discounts are tomorrow’s profits.
For sale signs are everywhere. Property prices have dropped on some real estate 50 percent or more. Some people have walked away from the houses they were building before completion and assigned them to real estate agents with instructions to sell them for whatever they can get. Some condominium developers are selling their projects out using factional ownership so they can make some sales and bring in badly needed cash flow.
A.M. Costa Rica published articles cautioning about the coming weaknesses in the real estate market starting in January 2005 when property values were spiraling out-of-control. Later articles predicted that too many condominiums were under construction and this would cause an over supply.
In retrospect, 2005 surely was the topping out of the real estate market in Costa Rica and the beginning of the slowdown of real estate sales. This is true in most market situations. When prices are crazy and people are willing to spend almost anything on the upswing, the market is ready to burst and turn around.
The slowdown started to show its nasty head in 2006 when real estate agents complained of fewer sales and prices leveling off or declining. The events in the United States surrounding the subprime mess where consumers over borrowed on the equity in their home, perhaps to buy a vacation or retirement property in Costa Rica set the foundation for a turn around in real estate here.
This is not the first time this has happened in Costa Rica. Old timers remember Costa Rica went though a similar time in the 1970s. Property values were on the upswing and relative to those times, real estate was expensive and increasing in value rapidly. However, with the onset of the Nicaraguan conflict and the United States embargo against the country, real estate sales abruptly entered stagnation.
Values did not start to rise again until after the end of the United States embargo against Nicaragua in 1990. Costa Rica’s real estate values started to increase slowly at first but gained momentum rapidly in the late 1990s. This culminated into explosive growth and skyrocketing prices from 2000 to 2005.
Today, Costa Rica real estate prices are on the fast decline for several reasons. Here are a few:
North America is in serious financial distress. In the past, when the United States caught a cold, Costa Rica suffered financial pneumonia. This is not as true as it was in the past because Costa Rica is a destination and retirement option for many other types of foreigners not just North Americans. However, even today, when the United States is having troubles so does Costa Rica. Usually, there is a lag time of around a year before Costa Rica suffers from the happenings in the United States. This is also true during the recovery process. Costa Rica needs the same amount of time to begin recovery after the United States markets improve. This means the bottom of this slowdown is just beginning not ending.
As stated in the article “How high can skyrocketing land values go?” New found paradises go through a defined cycle: The phases to the cycle are exploration, involvement, development, consolidation, stagnation and, decline and/or rejuvenation. Given all the development over the past several years, Costa Rica is now ready for its consolidation and stagnation phase. The slow down in the United States has not helped and is probably nudging the country into these phases prematurely.
Today, Costa Rica is at war. It is at war with crime. Crime is everywhere. It runs the gambit from the highest echelons of government down to petty street crime. The problem is the street crime is not so petty any more. Many robberies are at gunpoint or worse, someone is killed. The Costa Rican press is full of stories of students being murdered over a cell phone while waiting for the bus. The problem is Costa Rica has not declared war on crime. The country is just too complacent letting the criminals run the show.
The country had better wake up sooner rather than later. In the past, Costa Rica’s proximity to Nicaragua made North Americans uneasy about traveling here during the Nicaraguan war. The United States’ embargo put the nail in the proverbial coffin. Most foreigners like to feel safe when they travel — especially North Americans — and when they do not feel safe they tend to avoid a destination in conflict. The increase in crime in Costa Rica and the increasing world’s perception that Costa Rica is not a safe place to visit will stagnate Costa Rica’s growth even if the United States recovers from its financial problems.
For these and other reasons, the bottom of this slowdown is in its beginning stages not at the bottom, as some real estate agents believe.
Now for the good news for savvy investors. Baron Rothschild, an 18th century British financier, is attributed with saying “The time to buy is when there’s blood in the streets — even if the blood is your own.”
This author is bullish on Costa Rica and feels the country will eventually get its act together — of course — in its own Tico time, but it will happen eventually.
There are some great real estate deals these days for investors and for those people looking to retire here in the future. There are even better deals for those with cash. Knowledgeable investors recognize bad times make for good buys. Even though Costa Rica has probably not hit bottom, it is the time to start looking for property. Real estate values have a positive trend over time and real estate values will sky-rocket again sometime in the future as it has done in the past. Markets always do.
Steve, are we suppose to take your word for it or do you have any rock solid, concrete, proof?
By the way Steve, selling is easy if the price is right. I have a house here in San Francisco, California that I’ll sell to you for just 100,000 dollars, okay? It is worth 1.6 million, but you can have it for 100,000.
Point is that “selling” means nothing. If owners are willing to reduce the price, properties will sell even in a downturn. Downturn is a 2 part event, the first thing that happens is that buyers disappear so few sales, next prices fall to meet what buyers are willing to pay. Between the 2 events, there absolutely has to be a period of far fewer sales…. market stagnation.
There are no data in CR to support what anyone says in CR. Perhaps Orosi Valley is “selling a farm or property per week” now, because prices have fallen to what buyers are willing to pay? Please don’t suggest that Orosi Valley didn’t go through a period of stagnation or you’ll lose credibility.
Adding that level of complication to condos that people were supposedly lining up to buy doesn’t make sense to me. I mean, think about it, you are a developer, all you want is your cash, if a line of qualified and willing buyers has formed at the door (this is the hype from what I’ve read), why offer to make your sales task much more complicate by having to deal with 4 buyers instead of one?
If the developer has the line at the door, he doesn’t have to make the deal more attractive. I mean, if there are buyers who can’t afford a condo and others buyers according to the hype are supposedly beating down the door, why cater to the poor? If I was the developer, I would tell those that couldn’t afford a condo on their own, tough luck. From my experience, developers aren’t usually out to help the poor saps who can’t afford a condo, but developers do stoop to anything when the market is in a downturn.
To me, it is just another sign that CR is no different than any other place in the world, however since there are no official sales records in CR, any claim can be made.
