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I’d just go with a new Atlas. They’re made there, not very expensive to buy, and cheap to fix. I don’t know about range hoods, but that might be a good item to take down with you if it’s too expensive there. Menards has them for $30.
The problem with buying used in Costa Rica is it’s not a disposable society like in the U.S. New items are expensive, as well as borrowing money to pay for them. Labor, on the other hand, is cheap. This is why you only see Gringos having garage sales. I held one 7 years ago and people thought I was insane to sell so low. It was a mob scene an hour before starting, and after 90 minutes there was nothing left.
Ticos buy, hold onto, and repair when necessary. They also don’t move around very much, like we do in the States. As such, 2nd hand items are not nearly as inexpensive in CR, and most times it’s worth a few colones more to buy new. Unless, of course, you can find another insane Gringo. We advertise in the Tico Times.
Just remember to elevate the appliance on some wood planks to retard corrosion.
Hello Scott, didn’t mean to talk about you behind your back (ok, I guess I did).
You’re absolutely right that we all need to watch our tongue when we’re away from our home country. I think that most people on this forum recognize that we can’t expect things to be done the “American Way” outside the U.S., but it’s not a bad thing to continually point this out.
However, when you have a stake in something, you gain the right to have a say in it as well. When you own a home, you pay taxes and utility bills, and your quality of life and the value of your investment depend upon what happens in the neighborhood around you, as well as the country as a whole. It would be silly to think that you should never voice your concern just because you’re foreign-born. Arnold Schwarzenegger certainly would beg to differ.
When you own a business in Costa Rica, or have Tico children, you have even greater reason to become more “politically” involved.
Your idea of a band of demonstrating Gringos is funny though. That certainly wouldn’t do. However, there are plenty of formal organizations made up of ExPats which quietly work to influence life in Tiquicia, such as the Association of Residents, as well as the many foreign Chambers of Commerce.
There are many ways of doing things in CR that we can learn from here in the U.S. to our great benefit. The reverse is also true. It would be a crime to try to halt this process.
Be humble and respectful, yes. Sit idly by and watch bad things happen to your home, family and business without raising a finger, I don’t think so.
Every town in Costa Rica has at least one, if not several, barbers and/or cosmetologists working out of their home. Ask your Tico neighbors or simply drive around looking for the sign “se corta pelo” in the windows. One of the best haircuts I ever had was in the living room of one of these fine establishments. She was a cosmetologist (IMHO much better than barbers), and it was also the fastest cut ever. I was 5th in line, but only waited about 10 minutes for my turn. It was like watching the bionic woman.
Pips,
According to the CIA fact book, the Infant Mortality Rate is 4.51 in Denmark (16th lowest in the world), 6.43 in the U.S. (42nd) and 9.7 in Costa Rica (64th). Not that I always believe what the CIA tells me, but their fact book is usually pretty reliable.
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/rankorder/2091rank.html
Almost all the Ticos I know survived childhood, although like myself, I guess the jury’s still out on some of them…
We moved there when our first child was 6 months old, and several years later our second child was born there. No problems, although we lived in and around San Jose where there are plenty of doctors, pharmacies and medical facilities.
I remember we always used to take them for a drive to help then go to sleep. Worked like a charm. That all ended when we moved back to the U.S. – either the roads were too smooth, or the kids were too big…
Your post begs the question – Why would you seriously think of relocating to some place you’ve never been to? You can read and research all you want, but you’ll never know if it’s the right place for you until you see it with your own eyes. It seems to me you’re getting ahead of yourself.
BTW, Pavones is in a very remote and rural part of the country, southwest of Golfito. I think Scott Benson is thinking of Pavas, a neighborhood west of San Jose. Yes Scott, it does have its upscale side, but keep going and you’ll discover some real downscale elements as well.
The United Fruit Company was a huge employer in Pavones, but closed its doors in 1985 after a series of labor strikes. Since then it has been extremely economically depressed, and the center of several big squatter episodes. This is all old news though, and I’m sure things have calmed down quite a bit since then. Still, it’ll be decades until the coastal road makes it that far south. In the mean time the only terrestrial access from San Jose is the Pan American Highway which slithers its way south from Cartage on top of the mountain ranges, one of which is aptly named “El Cerro de la Muerte”. It’s an 8 hour trek from San Jose, more if you get run off the road by one of those evil death wish truckers with balding tires and no breaks.
While I agree we should all try to minimize our vitriols, if we refrain from expressing the negatives, we turn this forum into a travel site. There are already plenty of those.
In WeLoveCostaRica Scott Oliver has allowed us to offer real education to its visitors, helping them to make much more informed choices, as well as to avoid the many pitfalls which can turn a life-long dream into a never-ending nightmare.
It is exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, to properly explain life as it is in Costa Rica to a newbie without comparing it to that with which they are already familiar. Such comparisons inevitably involve the words “better” or “worse”. As such, to not bash is to not properly inform.
We’re all big enough to know when an educational comparison morphs into a political rant. We don’t need Scott to shield us from this “damaging” content (like TASS did, oops! Oh well, not too many Russians on this site I imagine).
Furthermore, for some people the choice to move to Costa Rica may be a profoundly political one. Even if it’s not, simply living there for any period of time, or anywhere outside your country of birth for that matter, inevitably results in some political reflection. This is a good thing.
To put it in simple terms, if you never leave your house, you’ll never know what color it’s painted. When you live overseas, you are given a chance to view your own country in a different light. If you remove the political implications, you dumb down.
A typical example is when I wrote that attorneys had cornered the market in Costa Rica. Scott replied with a post, later removed, that talked about how legal liability cases have contorted our way of life in the U.S. I think he is absolutely correct, and is properly pointing out that “Lawsuits Gone Wild” is a greater evil than having to pay legal fees when you sell a car. We both bashed, and we both came away from it with a greater appreciation of the big picture.
Wherever you hail from, I’m sure you believe in the benefits of freedom of speech. If you don’t like the content or the author, you can choose not to read it.
Bolsa Nacional de Valores. Literal translation (with a dash of poetic license): “National Goody Bag”. In English: “Stock Market”.
At the risk of raising the ire of ScottBenson who thinks that no foreigner should butt into CR internal affairs, I would have to agree with Diego that many reforms are needed. Attorneys have essentially “cornered the market” in Costa Rica. You can’t sell a car without an attorney, and you have to be an attorney to be a notary. None of these requirements seem to decrease fraud.
This is why many people recommend you use two attorneys, one to do the work, and that other to watch over him or her. Just make sure they didn’t go to school together.
This is not to say that there aren’t honest attorneys in CR, there are many. But the Códogos are so full of contradictory terms and loopholes that it is easy for those “in the know” to maneuver around them, sometimes in a malicious fashion.
However, many of the reforms needed are constitutional in nature, and amending the Constitution is quite a bit more difficult than changing a Código, or an administrative rule.
Don José,
Thank you for your posting. Nice to have an Tico attorney online to rebut us Gringos when we get too presumptuous.
As you stated, it is not illegal for a non-resident to own a Costa Rican S.A. (or property in your own name for that matter). While some banks may give you a hard time when you try to open a corporate account where a non-resident is a signatory, it is by no means impossible. The fact remains that many non-residents are signatories for their own Costa Rican S.A.
Given this, I would definitely recommend becoming a resident if you wish to have a business, or even own a home (which may or may not be in an S.A.). If you wish to establish yourself as a permanent fixture in the country, it would be cumbersome to do so on a tourist visa.
Furthermore, I have never heard of a foreigner, resident or otherwise, being punished, reprimanded or fined in any way for “volunteering” at his/her own business. In fact, I cannot imagine owning a business in Costa Rica without taking an active role in running it. As I stated however, unless you are authorized to work, you cannot draw a salary. As owner, you don’t need to. You reap the profits (if there are any that is).
Costa Rica has many laws and regulations, and I have no reason to doubt that you are reciting them correctly. However, as an attorney, you also know that there are a lot of loopholes in the Códigos, of which many savvy Tico business people (and attorneys) take full advantage.
Please keep posting. I, and I’m sure many others on this forum, truly value your input. I’m certain it will also lead to new clientele for you as well!
Instead of a cd account, I’d open a checking or savings account so you can use internet banking from the U.S.
Lotus is obviously correct. The Constitution and Bill Of Rights of the United States apply only to the actions of the government. They do not apply to the private sector, and certainly not to WeLoveCostaRica.com, of which Scott is Czar.
UNIBE is relatively new. That said, the person listed as Dean of the Medical School is known to me, and very highly regarded.
The UCR has a much better reputation with regard to their medical school than La UACA, and paying twice the normal tuition is still probably a great deal compared to what you would pay in the U.S.
Paramedics services in CR are from the Cruz Roja (Red Cross). They seem to be everywhere. On one occasion my sister counted more than 15 on a drive from Puntarenas to San Jose.
I really don’t know if there’s an actual paramedic in each and every unit though.
