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I am bothered by the fact that an entire nation would elect a man like Bush, whether afflicted with a disease, or not, TWO times to the office of president. I am further concerned that they will do it again by electing McCain. I do not understand my countrymen and I do not want to be a part of this circus any longer either.

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Don’t costs vary significantly region to region?

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Just a guess but the dollar has been strengthening against all currencies in the last week. Watch oil prices. In the past, the dollar has always mirrored oil since that is the currency which is used to trade oil. However, lately, the opposite has been the case. As oil drops in price, the dollar has strengthened. Economists have all kinds of speculative reasons for this; a perceived halt in the dropping of the Fed rates, a stronger U.S. economy than had been anticipated,… but who knows for sure? Oil dropped Monday and that may be a big part of the cause for the dollar’s rise against the Colon. Aren’t floating currencies fun?

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Of course increasing crime is an issue in CR. How MUCH of an issue is what I am interested in resolving. I get the sense that this is a case of too many Chicken Littles clucking about the end of the peaceful life in Costa Rica. I am no expert on CR, but I think I have enough common sense and experience in life in general to make a determination that Costa Rica is still a wonderful place. I don’t believe there is any place which is perfect.

And of course, crime will be lower in rural areas of other countries than in urban areas of CR. But that is also the case for rural Costa Rica. Poverty in itself is not a guarantee of an increase in crime. Where ever wealth begins to be concentrated in a poor, urban area, there will be more crime than in rural areas where some wealth is more dispersed. The San Ramon, Palmares, Naranjo area in Costa Rica is, to my experience and sensibilities so far, quite acceptable as far as the perceived crime rate.
Good hunting to you in your search for greener pastures.

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I think Costa Rica IS STILL a “truly wonderful place” even with the sad increase in crime. This is why I emphasize putting this matter into proper perspective. There is always a price to pay. Where else would you consider buying that is superior to Costa Rica? Do you have any other options that you have fully investigated?

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You may be right about future decreasing values along the coastal areas. But I am no authority on real estate investment so I would just be guessing. Jaco is a place I avoid anyway because I have also heard stories about crime there. Another good reason to avoid American enclaves is that concentrated relative wealth may be the reason for the crime. This may explain my attitude towards crime in Costa Rica….I just don’t see it where I spend my time. Hearing about it is not the same as experiencing it. Out of sight, out of mind.

Where and how do you spend your time in CR that you are so astonished and frightened by the increase in crime? And where are you coming from that the current Costa Rican experience has soured you?

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The original post indicated a future date for a build. If the cost right now for a luxury home is about $85 per square foot in the Central Valley, I think it is safe to assume that cost will go up dramatically over the next several to five years. From a North American perspective (me), the combination of the falling dollar and increasing costs for building materials guarantees this. David’s estimate sounds reasonably on target to this layman. (And I am pretty confident the dollar will resume its downward trend soon).

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According to articles on THIS site, crime has not had much of an effect on Costa Rican real estate. And according to recent tourism statistics, crime seems to not be much of an issue since visits were up dramatically. Costa Rica is still as popular as ever for these things despite an increase in crime. It begs the question; how much of a real increase in crime is there if tourism and real estate business are both up?

Edited on May 11, 2008 12:30

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Nez,
No offense taken at all. I visit CR 4 times a year and spend a few weeks each time. It is always in the same area and I have yet to visit San Jose or spend any time with expats so I come to this message board to read what is on their minds. It feels like I am visiting a different country than the one being described here. Perhaps there are countries within countries? Gated communities come to mind.

Obviously, I am not knowledgeable about Costa Rica beyond what my limited experience gives me. I am fluent in Spanish and talk with Ticos including friends, the neighbors in the little farming community and others in the two larger towns nearby. I have never set foot in a “gated community” and in the last two years have only had one conversation with an expat who was visiting CR from Panama. In as much as one can rely on casual conversations with the locals and on one’s own sense of the local situation, I am still just as comfortable in CR as I am in Miami regarding crime. There are places here in Miami where I would NOT get out of my car at any time of the day and San Jose is a place I am not eager to see either.

I suspect what is happening here is that we are each looking at the situation with different points of references and very different expectations. If you have been living in CR for the last ten years, then the crime increase, which is happening everywhere, will seem horrific to you relative to what you were used to. But I am telling you that this is the case in many other places on the planet as well.
If you have moved to San Jose from a small, mid west town, then I can also understand your fears. But again, I think you might also have had such concerns had you moved to New York City or Miami Los Angeles.

I am not doubting for one second that there has been a change in the crime climate in CR for the worse. How much worse and what is the proper attitude to take is what I am questioning. Perspective is essential.

Edited on May 11, 2008 01:46

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As usual, this topic has degenerated into story telling. Everybody has some anecdotal evidence in the form of a crime horror story that either happened to him or to someone he knows or he has heard about. This is evidence of human nature which tends to dramatize and exaggerate a kernel of truth to the point of scandalizing others rather than hard evidence of an intolerable crime wave.

The problem is that in CR, hard stats are difficult to come by if at all. Everyone is left to rely upon word of mouth as to whether crime is overtaking the country or not. It sounds much more believable to me that what is really happening is not a fierce increase in crime, but rather a substantial increase relative to the past and that word of mouth hearsay about this increase is running through the society like a scalded monkey. Go and sit at the bus station with a lap top if you want to. When you are robbed, you can then accuse the entire Costa Rican society of being lost to crime. Meanwhile, intelligent onlookers will draw another conclusion entirely.

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Crime is on the increase EVERYWHERE. No major exceptions of any significance. There is no reason Costa Rica would be exempt from world trends. Nothing is going to befall Costa Rica that does not overtake the rest of the general world population in this matter. I do NOT see Costa Rica as some kind o world exception in the increase of crime. In fact, if anything, it may be an exception in relative crime in its world region. You must put everything in perspective. You should not isolate Costa Rica from the rest of the world, then compare the country today with what it was 30 years ago. Or worse, compare Costa Rica to a country like Jamaica. There are just too many differences between these two countries and cultures. That is an alarmist comparison and not valid.

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Could be that higher real estate prices out that way elicit more press on the subject of tourism. Just a long shot theory of mine, but it could also be that North American vacation home investors in that region have more bucks and may be more closely connected to the press AND more engaged in generating buzz about that area.
I have not yet been there but from what I have read and heard about the area, it is a bit too dry and brown in the higher elevations and too hot on the coast for my tastes….and definitely too rich for my budget.

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Culturally segregated neighborhoods of immigrants are common everywhere on the planet. I have a problem, though, with “GATED” communities. The walls and gates are not there to define a cultural boundry, which I find contradictory to the immigrant spirit and somewhat insulting to the host country in the first place. They are there for protection from a perceived and perhaps real threat of violent and petty crime.

The existence of these communities speaks to a high degree of insecurity and unpreparedness on the part of its residents to successfully assimilate into Costa Rican culture. It makes me wonder why people would immigrate to a place where they find it necessary to wall themselves in and insulate themselves from the experience of the culture they chose to live with.

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SJM,

There are many places right here in the U.S. where doing what you suggest as an experiment would get the same results…or worse. I amalso aware that leaving unattended property, whether in your home or in public, invites petty theft and even grand larceny more in certain places in Costa Rica than in others.
I am not a puppy, though. I have been around for almost 6 decades and have kicked around in some big cities in the States, the Caribbean and in the U.K. I have never been assaulted or robbed while traveling. People who DO become victims of crime are usually first victims of their own lack of situational awareness. What is the purpose of the experiment? To see what happens to people who practice unwise behavior in Costa Rica? I know what happens to those people. They get ripped off and then warn everybody that Costa Rica is a crime ridden third world country. As far as I can tell, Costa Rica seems to have less petty crime than any other country south of the border

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SJM1580,

Can you name another place on THIS planet you have visited where there has been no substantial change for the worse in this matter?

I think it is well to remember that Costa Rica is located on planet Earth. As such, it subject to the normal resulting consequences of the characteristics that our species display whenever we form civil groups larger than what used to constitute a primitive tribe. The exponential explosion of population on the planet was bound to cause some exponential changes in behavior. It does no good to moan about the changing times. Either we change the conditions or adapt to them. Period.
My limited personal experience in Costa Rica has been all positive so far.

Edited on May 08, 2008 10:12

Edited on May 08, 2008 10:14

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