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My partner here in the U.S. is 69 and has a supplemental policy that in effect takes over your Medicade. She has a series of drugs she takes that cost her nothing through the system and are sent to her by mail (this COULD be sent to a forwarder – one of those Miami mail boxes).
I recently had some issues that I paid for CASH and would have probably done so in Costa Rica even if on the Caja. I had an infection that needed immediate attention (not tomorrow or the next day). But 3 visits to the doctor, the minor “surgery” (lancing the infection), the lab work and consultation cost about $800 US, which is more than annual Caja payments. But this would have cost MUCH less in CR at a private practice. And you always have that choice.
OBTW – The places that took CASH payments in the US, gave a 20% discount. This is their known cost of doing business with the insurance companies. . .
I think the important points have been missed.
A car was shipped hoping to achieve some savings despite what most people advise (buy it in CR).
The savings were minimal or not worth the hassle. However, there MIGHT be some question about differences in the vehicles compared to make the savings determination. But the evidence and experience is enough to help others make a decision. IT was a GOOD report.
There were issues with small items being missing from the car. I have heard the same from others that shipped themselves or used other companies. Everyone agrees the problems are in the port and customs, NOT the shippers. This is a Costa Rica bureaucracy and security issue that affects ALL shippers.
Lack of insurance is a serious issue. Containers are just big boxes and things happen to them. They get tilted, toppled, dropped and occasionally fall off the ship. Your insurance company probably would not replace or repair the vehicle once it left the U.S. This could be a financial disaster for many people.
My point about locking wheel lugs and the problems with them is based on a decade of working in the auto industry. I would not have them on any vehicle.
If you are really worried about your health look up Dr. Joel Fuhrman. Get his books and read them. If you think the government is screwed up already, you won’t be surprised how bad the USDA nutritional guidelines are for you. The food pyramid, RDA’s and “basic food groups” are all based on what people eat and what lobbyists for the beef and dairy industry want NOT science or medicine. IF you eat what the U.S. government recommends (and taught US and still forces schools to teach to children) you WILL have high blood pressure, probably be over weight AND probably end up with diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
Eat a good high nutrition diet low on salt, meat and processed foods and you MAY be able to avoid most of the so called “diseases of old age”. Costa Rica with all its fresh produce is the perfect place for it.
So you saved about $2,000 but did not include the cost to drive to South Florida (and travel back?). Then there is the aggravation and unfinished business. Sounds like minimal if any savings.
I’ve heard of folks having similar minor problems transporting cars to CR and is probably the same anywhere. Things like missing auto emblems, knobs, gas caps anything small that could walk off in someones pocket. There are lots of little critical things that also could walk off. I’ve seen cars (in the U.S.) where oil filler caps, dip sticks and sun visors had been stolen. On late model cars a stupid plastic oil filler cap can be a $50 item that you can only get from the dealer (or not at all). Thus the thievery.
I’ve also seen the anti-theft lug problem many times in the U.S. (I once ran a service station). I think they are a hazard to you YOUR personal safety. If you can’t easily change a flat (and often the special tools do not work properly) you could find yourself stuck in a place you don’t want to be. Thieves are just as likely to take the whole vehicle as the wheels. . . Cutting the lugs off is a primitive process that often damages the wheels as well.
SO, maybe the next person will learn from your experience and not leave more than the minimum key (never one of the fancy electronic ones) and carry the special (often irreplaceable) wheel tools in their luggage.
[quote=”DavidCMurray”]guru, who told your friends that they’d have to remain in Costa Rica for six continuous months each year as residents? This is the very first I’ve heard of such a requirement.[/quote]
My friends residency was based on investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a reforestation project. They planted a former coffee plantation with a mixture of indigenous tree species (not a bunch of crummy import lumber varieties as is often the case). Apparently since the language for this type of residency is vague there is leeway in the the rules for an “investeasta” (sp?) immigration can set the rules any way they want as well as change the rules. My friends had been staying in CR during the hottest and coldest weather in the US and the other time (6 months or more) in Costa Rica. They worked construction during good weather in the U.S. and invested everything they made back into the property in Costa Rica. It was a great deal for Costa Rica. Then the authorities just changed the “deal” on a whim and said their stay had to be contiguous.
My friends still travel back and forth but they have given up on permanent residency for the time being. They still continue to invest in Costa Rica. But I don’t think they feel like they can trust the government and the reforestation project is now being looked at more like a tree farm since the “rules” no longer apply.
1) The seemingly illogical changes in the rules that effect “residents” (such as the new laws that may or may not be completely enforced. . ). Friends of mine dropped their resident application when they were told their necessary 6 months a year in CR had to be in one continuous block of time after having made several hundred thousands of dollars investment and many years work toward permanent resident status. I would have been ready to strangle someone. . .
2) Security bothers me a little. We happily live in part of the US where we don’t lock our doors and probably could not find the keys at this point. . . as well as having no doors on a work shop building. I KNOW this will not fly in CR.
3) Rising costs. A limited budget can quickly become an an insufficient budget when costs rise too much. But we are seeing that in the U.S. as well.
4) How property will be handled when I die. With my children in the U.S. I am not sure how well the property transfer or sale if necessary will go when the time comes. I suppose some serious lawyering and planning is necessary.
Bugs, snakes and pests are almost everywhere on the planet. In rural Virginia and North Carolina I’ve been in places where the flies, mosquitoes and wasps were MUCH worse than in Costa Rica. We have a dozen types of mud daubers here that clog hoses, vents and oil ports on tools, machinery and automobiles if they hold still too long. . . I’ve had snakes in the shop on a regular basis and Copperheads are fairly common. We may not have the variety of snakes as Costa Rica but they are more common than folks think. The bugs that bothered ME in Costa Rica were the little noseeums that eat you up at night without notice and can bight through the holes in mosquito netting.
Where things get tricky is with live in help. There are official rates for that as well but the perks provided also have a value that MAY be taken into account.
A live-in caretaker of a friend had the perks of a place for the entire family to live, PLUS as much space as they wanted to garden or farm, PLUS a small truck or automobile for 6 months of the year. The employment people claimed the worker was being underpaid until they learned what the “perks” were.
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I see a LOT of the Costa Rica government web sites fall into disrepair and disappear. I wonder how much money the developers got and then left. . .While it is “cheaper” in some places and may work a little better just plain old table salt works to make ice cream. I’ve used it in hand crank and motorized machines.
COST OF LIVING:
During my lifetime I have had significant financial ups and downs. At one time it was not unusual to charter a small jet to take the family to an event or buy a new car every few years. Paying bills was never a problem. But today I drive 15 year old cars and save all year to visit friends in CR. I carefully juggle the bill paying. I currently live on less in the U.S. than what I will get in Social Security. If someone told me 25 years years ago that I would have to live on 1/5 of what I was making then I would have said NO WAY!
If you need $5000/month to live in the U.S. and you don’t change your life style it may cost the same or more in CR. But if you can afford to live on less than $1000/month in the U.S. you can probably do the same in CR, especially if you own your home and do not pay rent.
Here in the U.S. we eat out about once a week and costs about $20 for a couple including tip ($35 if we splurge on a special occasion and get a bottle of California wine). But you know we could easily spend $100 or more at a pricier place (and probably not get better food). That is a five to one difference. It is no different in CR. There are some very nice small places where the Ticos go and $20 would be a pricey tab for dinner for two. But in San Jose you could just as easily drop $100 or more just the same as in the U.S.
No matter how much money folks have they tend to use it all up. Some live within their means, some do not. Give the same folks that can live on $1000/month double or triple that amount and they will find a way to spend it all. This is true no matter where you live.
Attitude and expectations are a big part of making it a success story.
My friends in CR whom I’ve visited numerous times live in a rural area in the North far (well, relatively) from the Tourist areas. You see a much different Costa Rica here. Most of the people are farmers or work for the big corporate farms. There is a lot of poverty but also a lot of plain hard working folk. Almost nobody lives in a grandiose McMansionm there are no high rise appartments and it is more common to see houses without glass or screens in windows than with. This is the REAL Costa Rica.
Folks that want to succeed her need to ask themselves if they have ever had a conversation with an Hispanic (other than an employee) in the U.S in Spanish OR English? Have they tried SOME Spanish words when ordering in a Mexican restaurant? OR do they think they are above these hard working immigrants and never do more than place an order or make a complaint in English? While these immigrant folks are the hard working poor in the U.S. they are much better off financially than many Ticos. If you can’t converse or sympathize with these folks (due to fear, shyness, racism or social standing) then you are going to have a VERY difficult time in Costa Rica. In Costa Rica YOU will the funny talking immigrant, a minority and social outcast as far as the Tico’s are concerned. They are a polite people and will not voice this opinion but it will be what they are thinking.
I suspect this is the root of the problem. Making friends, establishing working relationships at local businesses in order to adapt to the local way of life. Being willing to do so in Spanish or a mixture of languages is the important. Folks who can do that will overcome the other differences.
The number of folks with this attitude is probably less than half of those that retire to CR. If it were not so then you would not have all the real estate scams.
Besides prices, most computers sold in Costa Rica are setup with Spanish keyboards. Sometimes this is easy to change, other times not.
On the Spanish keyboards it requires an odd CTRL key combination to get an @ sign which can make it a pain to type in an email address. Some letters are in different places as well. Once you have learned the differences it may not be a bother but until then. . .
Note that this is from the perspective of someone who has only visited friends, albeit numerous times, and had to try to use their computer, WHICH every time it is serviced for some reason the techs change to the Spanish settings. . . I was also carrying my laptop but it would not work on the local network.
Things to haul to CR:
It depends on your lifestyle and interests. A good friend of mine has been looking for ways to go into business in CR. One area was the furniture business taking advantage of the wonderful hardwoods available locally. Machinery is expensive and rare in CR and unbelievably cheap in the US due to so much manufacturing moving off shore. He bought several container loads of woodworking machinery here at 10th of new and shipped it to CR. Machine tools are the same. AND equipment that is in not so perfect condition can be economically repaired in CR due to the low labor costs and ingenuity of the local work force.
He has also imported heavy machinery and trucks but says automobiles are not a good deal to bring in.
One caveat about CR hardwood furniture. It holds up well in CR but when imported to the US and our very dry year round heating and cooling it has problems with splitting and warping. A major consideration if you are a manufacturer or exporter.
If your hobby or art requires machines of some type I would bring them with me. I am a blacksmith. I no longer produce product in the field but write a great deal of articles and teach on the subject. This is a tool heavy business weather its your occupation, hobby or even if you just write about it. I have a fully equipped shop that gets used to demonstrate methods and photograph or film the processes. Unless the focus of my life changes I plan to move at least a container full of nothing but tools when I make my move. I would probably do a lot of ironwork for my home in CR but like other businesses in CR the local wages are too low for me to want to be in the trade locally.
Otherwise, except for personal items including my library I would plan on purchasing most things in CR.
One note on tools in general. An acquaintance from Chile who now lives in the US said that when he first moved here he was invited to a weekend barbecue at a new Notrh American friend’s home. While there he wandered around and noticed the open garage door so he looked in. On the walls were the typical middle class U.S. citizen collection of tools including mechanics tools, carpenters tools and others. He was quite impressed at the collection and asked his host what business he was in that he used all those tools. The host was confused and could not answer as they were just his collection that he occasionally used OR thought he needed. .
My Chilean friend said it was years later that he understood his hosts confusion. While such collections of tools are common in many U.S. homes they would be very unusual in Chile. In his native Chile his family ran a Ferreteria (hardware store) and were better off than the average. But at home they had a hammer, pliers, two types of screw drivers, a shovel and a machette. That was it. The collection in that suburban garage was sufficient to operate a sizable business with numerous employees in Chile.
It is both a cultural and economic difference. How much you take with you may be determined by how much culture shock you are ready for AND how much of a target you are willing to be for thieves. While a small box of tools may be a common thing to you, they may be just another sign of being a rich gringo. Since you may not use them daily, their liberation might just be considered putting a wasted resource to good use. . . It is a quandary that I have no answer for.
Besides color and general finish, tiles come in some wonderful textures. There are many with organic patterns such as shallow leaf textures and such that are an interesting design and reduce slipperiness.
I noticed a lot of tile in CR is imported from Spain.
Besides the standard tiling I like many of the relatively gaudy patterns used in Mexico but are also seen in Spain. You do not see it much in CR but it gives a very colorful Hispanic touch. These include diagonal checker patterns on stair risers and trim or covering of various surfaces such as columns or archways with bright patterns.
Colored borders and trim lines cost very little to add and are a distinctive touch. Grout can also be many colors from white, to cream, or red and even black. Unless the tiles is brilliant white a cream color is better than white as it does not show dirt or stain as easily as white.
Tile trim can also be applied to block walls that are going to be parged with concrete. The tile would be installed first and the surrounding area parged level to the tiles.
Tile can also be used for mosaics, particularly on masonry walls and it is not hard to do. You also see tile on tables and other surfaces. If you do not want a permanent wall mosaic they can be done on framed plywood and hung. Wall mosaics can give your home a very “Old World” or Mediterranean touch.
You start by collecting as many colors of tile as you can. Leftovers or broken boxes from the tile stores are the best source. I’ve even collected sample cards that had unusual colors. Draw your design on the clean prepared surface, break the tiles to fit, glue the tiles on with mastic or liquid nails then grout when finished. Its a colorful durable art.
I do not recommend this type mosaic for floors. The broken edges of tiles can be very sharp and be a hazard if walked on barefoot. The small varied pieces often do not sit perfectly level adding to the problem. If used on floors you need to carefully dress the edges of each broken piece. This adds a lot of labor to the project.
Tile as art work can be either high art or folk art.
Besides hand made mosaics there are now companies that water jet cut artistic pieces in multiple colors at reasonable cost. However, I so not know a source for this in CR. You might have to import such work.
I don’t know about flour but I have carried and my friends there regularly bring in various food stuffs that they cannot readily find in CR in their luggage.
We’ve “imported” without question:
20 Mule Team Borax (5 lb boxes for welding flux).
Protien powder for smoothies.
Breakfast Cereals (some are hard to find in CR).
Favorite soap and hair products.
And many other sundries. . .This is different than shipped packages going through customs. I think customs at the airport are only looking for serious contraband. I worry more about US customs but have never had a problem. Just be sure such things are well packed and do not leak.
Any time we visit CR we ask “What can we bring?”
We always bring some type of gift, books, tools, embroidered towels. . . This leaves us space to bring back crafts, coffee and such for our friends at home.But I would learn to just use common wheat flour. “Bread Flour” is a relatively new consumer item and not mentioned in the vast majority of (older) cook books.
People go nuts over this subject but the truth is that it is more what we eat rather than the quality of what we eat. Diets high in meat, processed oils, white flour or rice, sugar and salt have been shown in global studies to be the leading causes of heart disease, cancer and osteoporosis. The less meat, dairy and processed grains and the more fresh green vegetables, fruit and nuts eaten the lower (down to nearly zero) of these diseases are seen.
Recent cadaver studies of young children in the United States have shown noticeable plaque build up in their arteries. Ten year olds on the way to a heart attack due to eating large amounts of processed and fried foods (list most “fast” foods)! Several common cancers have been linked to early onset of puberty and this due to a diet with a lot of meat (its not the hormones fed the cattle, its just the amount of meat and fat eaten. . .). If you have children the results of these studies should make you cry.
When folks learn the truth about what they should eat and do the best to eat right, then organically grown adds just a little more benefit. Yes, I agree organically grown is better and probably safer but there is no actual evidence of being safer. Its the low nutrient per calorie food we eat that is what is killing us.
For those living in Costa Rica with its varied year round
agriculture and fresh food markets eating well is much easier than in many other places.Few if any of the things we SHOULD eat are in the genetically modified category. These include mostly the high yield grains and field crops.
I’ve recently had a health crisis and was pointed in the right direction by good friends who have tried every health food guru there was. It is a hard lesson and hard change to drop the killer things that we eat. For details and the hard truths about what we eat google Dr. Joel Fuhrman. If you want to change your life for the better, lose weight and live longer, read his book “Eat to Live”.
I have not become a “moral vegetarian” or vegan. I am trying to be a “nutritarian” to improve the quality of my life.
Remember, “The Salad is the Main Course.”
