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OK I don’t want to get up on a soap box and start preaching or start sounding like the crime sage. But let’s look at the facts. First of all All of Costa Rica including San Jose is no more dangerous than any other major city or Country when we talk about surburbs and country living. Second crime is rising accross Costa Rica and the rest of the world as a result of drug use expansion not a seporation of class. It is usually the poor that suffer as the largest group of crime victims. Costa Rica isn’t immune to the problems that face people all over the world. With all that said Costa Rica is also no more dangerous and in most areas a lot less dangerous then many other places. The chance of becoming a victim of a crime in Costa Rica depends on your use of common sense and the luck of the draw. I feel perfectly safe in Costa Rica yet I know I could become a statistic on any given day, I limit my chances by being aware and never looking like a target. Granted I am a big man with street smarts and also the look I learned growing up on the streets of Brooklyn. Is that what saved me all my years being out all night in the highest crime areas of NYC maybe but I am sure the fact I never left a bar drunk and I always new where my car was parked walked with my eyes knowing everything happening around me played a much larger role. All those things still play a major role in keeping safe today. However, drugs being the leading issue is causing violent crime will eliminate everything I wrote because an addict won’t see my size or care about it won’t stop him from shooting first and emptying my pockets as I lie in my own blood and bystanders watch in amazement. Drugs affect a persons thought process and their caring about anything but getting more drugs. The aforementioned can happen anywhere in the world and is less likely to happen in Costa Rica. So let’s all be safe enjoy life live your life and use common sense.
Thank you GringoTico for your information here and on all the other issues you assisted me with or just educated me to.
I would have to agree 100% with GringoTico and if you scroll down the forum you will se I was planning on bringing my vehicle from the US too and decided against it after all of the input I received here and doing a lot fo researching. Best of luck with your move.
OK Mr. scottbenson the time has come for me to break this all down for you. First marrying a Costa Rican doesn’t make you their spokes person. Second a country the size of Costa Rica with its diversity and separate regions is bound to have differences of opinions on every subject including Gringos and immigration. Next the key issue you missed in my initial post is it wasn’t part of any research about relocating to Costa Rica. What happened is I read the news paper as I do everyday and not just one paper but that is one of several I read to keep up on current events, to educate myself on what is happening in the entire world or sometimes just to relax. Now after reading that article in a Costa Rican Spanish written newspaper which is read mostly by Ticos I decided to share its English translation with the members of WLCR via this forum. I never made this a Gringo issue or a Tico vs. Gringo issue seems you did that as you do with many issues as you see yourself the Tico people’s spokesman. Judging by your continuing effort to cause strife between Tico and Gringo I am certain most if not all Ticos would prefer it if you would resign that position including your in-laws. I suggest that you evaluate your reasoning for living in Costa Rica and if you choose to remain what kind of lifestyle you would like to live. Unfortunately you never adopted this Tico lifestyle you write about and pretend to understand. I can relate to your wife’s family feelings about Gringos if they base them on their interactions with you. Since you are so close with them and they get a bird’s eye into your opinions and thoughts. As I wrote to you earlier if you were my in-law after listening to you I wouldn’t want you living in my country no matter what country it was.
scottbenson: you scare me more than anything on earth. Just as I defend you comes more of your pearls of wisdom off the keyboard. If I were an inlaw of your’s I wouldn’t want you living in my country either no matter what country it was. Ignorance is accepted by most where as very few people have a threshold for stupidity. It is equally as important to be able to understand what you are reading as it is to be able to read the words that is called reading comprehension I would suggest you might want to refresh yourself in that area. Maybe after that you might see things in this post from a different perspective. Your entire position might change you may understand what I am and others here are stating. You might even understand why I care about the violent crime that more than likely will never touch me personally. Take a step back enjoy a cold shower forget all that you have read and start at the begining and reread this entire post while enjoying a cup of coffee. Let me know if that helps you gain the understanding of the words here. If that doesn’t help get a highschool student to read it and explain it to you.
jneiman: I agree with your words 100% and thankfully so do most on this Forum. I have learned so much through the years reading posts on here as well as articles on the entire site. I am not sure there are enough words to thank Scott the founder of this site for the knowledge he has shared. Not just Scott however, while posting on here I have been introduced to another Gringo on here who is married to a Tica who has offered to rent me or sell me 1 of his condos. Whether I purchase it or not he has also offered to meet me with his Tica wife and the oppertunity to become friends. Others have assisted me in making the proper decission about bringing my leased vehicle with their open and honest assesment through their own experiences. Another poster writes many times about the pain he went through being burglerized and his belief that living in a guard gated community is the best option unless you can afford a private security or are willing to be a prisoner to your home. So J. I like you believe this forum is very valuable and a place to openly discuss all the positives and negatives so we can benifit from the experiences of those who already went through it and we don’t have to reivent the wheel or suffer a mistake. Now with all that said I also believe Scottbenson’s posts are equally valuable, while many of us may have only experienced positive experiences with the Ticos we have met he is sharing about a family he is intimate with. They may be the minority or the majority with their feelings about Gringos it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter because he address’ a point through his experience and it’s just another learning experience. While I disagree with much of what he says in this string scottbenson has brought intelligent input in other strings. I personally believe this is a very sore subject for Mr Benson or his Tico inlaws thus his strong arguments. I must state if I believed that the majority of the Tico population was as he described I wouldn’t want to live in Costa Rica yet my experiences leave with a different opinion and that is why I am purchasing my new home in my adopted country. I believe I am moving to Costa Rica with the right information and the correct attitude which is Costa Rica is my country and I will live by the rules and lifestyle of a Tico lifestyle, I will also do everything in my power to make my new home a safe and successful place. I will speak spanish, befriend my neighbors assist in charitable events be a good citizen and live my life in peace.
Edited on Jan 06, 2007 18:50
Scottbenson:
It’s not the drug trafficing that has caused the violence it is the drug use that has risen that has caused it. ALso I feel safe where ever I am including any part of Costa Rica. So to answer your question I feel 100% safe in Vegas and in Costa Rica. I am not about to protest in Costa Rica or in Vegas because there is a crime issue I am going to keep my eyes open and if I see something out of place I am calling the police. If someone is being assaulted in front of me I am coming to assist the victim in either place. While I am disabled I am still able to stop an assault against me or some one else. After reading the balance of your last post it is clear that your so called poll is nothing more then some people you know or that know your Tico family stating what they want you to hear. Maybe they like teasing the Gringo in the family about his heritage and about all the other Gringos they truly do like. Have you ever thought about it from that perspective? In any event Pura Vida and happy new year
Editer I am a little confused when you state the article isn’t news to most WLCR members when it was published January 2007. While crime may not be a new issue the major increase in violent crime is. I am not a new memebr although I just started including my comments and questions on this board I have been reading it for quite some time. I will again state I am not knocking Costa Rica or slaming it in any manor by identifying an issue I believe is important for an open discussion. I resent any other member from telling me my input isn’t valid or important. If someone disagrees with my post they have several options one is to comment the another is to ignore it. When someone tries to dazzle facts with opinion they may be called on it as I did with my own sense of humor. If I hurt anyones feelings with my humor then I appologize to them. I had grown up in Brooklyn too and I still feel very safe in all parts of NYC because I know it and what to look out for. I worked Bedford Styvesant, Harlem, East New York, Brownsville, and I never had an issue. I have visited Costa Rica many times over the past 10 years as well and never had an issue. With all that said it doesn’t mean my next trip to NYC or Costa Rica I may not become a victim of a violent crime. I will not allow that to keep me from living or visiting any place or relocating to Costa Rica as I am within the next couple of months. While NYC has a very bad reputation for crime I find myself being more leary when I am in certain areas of Tampa Florida that I have visited. When I lived in Detroit MI while I was overseeing the construction of a Casino there I spent much of my time in the City of Detroit which also has a bad rep and yet I was fine and safe even at 2am. I also didn’t have any issues in the inner city of St Louis while I spent a year there building a Casino in St Charles MO. None of that changes the fact that violent crime is on the increase in Costa Rica, as such it deserves to be discussed on this board in my humble opinion. I agree with you totally Mr Editer that it is much better to be silent and thought the fool than speak and remove all doubt. Sometimes we should also listen to our own advise.
jneiman Very well writen
I guess I better keep my thoughts and opinions to myself NOT!!!
I guess we better not share negative information and only share positive stories about Costa Rica.
Thanks for all your replies. I don’t have a lot of leverage with GMAC since my lease is prepaid. I know I can purchase the vehicle and keep or sell it but that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. It isn’t worth the effort. My best option seems to be returning the car to GMAC and making a settlement for an early termination. While I only have 3,000 miles on the car I am not looking to own this type of vehicle in Costa Rica. I will find a car when I get to Costa Rica and purchase it there. If it weren’t such an ordeal I thought I would keep the car till the lease end and then turn it in, but the information I was able to obtain from the lender, the CR Consulate and on here I decided to take the easy road and enjoy my life with the fewest complications. For the record GMAC would have given me the title in their name and a letter to bring to the CR consulate giving me permission to bring the car into Costa Rica, but I would have to return the car at the lease end to a GM dealer back in the US. Too much work and thinking involved.
I am curious how many Ticos were included in your poll? Did you ask them this question “how would you feel about your gringo neighbors helping to eliminate or reduce the violent crime that is here now due to drugs”? Was your questioning of all these Ticos from the same local area or was this a national poll. Are your results based on scientific testing or just raw data? Or is all that you have written based on your own opinion? Are we dealing with facts or opinion? I have met with and spoken to many Ticos and I have found different views then you are portraying. I have had many Ticos tell me about homes for sale and new developments that are here. I have had many Ticos welcome me into their homes and introduce me to their family knowing I am relocating to their country. I have had many conversations about politics with these same Ticos and found we have very similar views. Now I am talking about people I have come in contact with and it is not a scientific poll so the results may vary. In my humble opinion you are entitled to your opinion and views but remember what they say about opinions, they are like ________ and everybody has one.
ScottB: By the math I learned in American schools 305 murders in a 365 day year is almost a murder a day too. With your question what would I do with this topic. I did what I think should be done with it I made it a topic of discussion I identified it exists. Hopefully people living and visiting this small country as you call it will be aware and do whatever they can to try avoid being the victim of the violence.
You made another statement I am curious about; if one relocates to Costa Rica are they now member’s of their adopted country or are they still just visitors. People who relocate here have the option of seeking permanant residency and even citizenship. Would you then say they have ownership in their new home country or are they just guests because they are part of a minority. With ownership comes responsability. While I agree this is a small country with limited resources and budgets doesn’t stop people from forming neighborhood watch groups with gringos and ticos side by side or gringos from reporting suspicious things they see from reporting them to authorities even if it may be difficult because of a language issue. There are a lot of things people can do to help stop crime where they live. The things that will never change it; is doing nothing, making believe it doesn’t exist, pretending there is nothing that can be done, leaving it up to just government (no matter what governement it is), or believe you are helpless because you are in the minority.
This is a drug problem that leads to a violent crime thing and no one is safe from it anywhere. We don’t stop living but we need to be careful, aware, and responsable.
While the article doesn’t state it clearly Ticos are the people that suffer the most as victim of this new violence which has come to this beautiful country. Most of the Tico victims are innocent victims also not drug deals gone bad. It is all of our problem though because we are all potential victims.
The way I would avoid paying import tax is easy and 100% legal. I would be bringing the automobile in under my visitation visa and not as a resident which I wouldn’t be at the time. I would keep the car there for as long as my visitation visa is good. Meaning I could leave and come back every 90 days renewing my tourist status during the < 18 months that I am responsible for my auto lease. I wouldn't have to take the car with me during my times out of the country. I would maintain my Nevada registration and insurance with an added ryder purchased to cover me in Costa Rica. As far as the cost of shipping the car I would drive to California to ship it and pick it up in Jaco the cost would be leass than 2,000 dollars I was told. It makes ecconomic is sense if I am allowed to do it by GM and I am able to give it back in Costa Rica to a GM authorized dealer because I would be able to have the use of the car for 18 or so months delaying having any other out of pocket expenses for the purchase of a car. When I lived in Michigan and had leased vehicles I was able to drive into Canada legally with my leased cars and also when I drive to Mexico I am able to take my leased car there but I always purchase Mexican temp. auto insurance to cover me while I am there. I couldn't find any legal argument against taking a leased automobile out of the country, the issue for me is will I be able to turn it back at the lease end in Costa Rica without additional cost or penalities.
Thank you Scott, I sent an eamil to GM asking them their regulations I am awaiting their response. I may just try to negotiate a purchase at this time if I am not allowed to bring it out of the country and if I will end up taking a major loss terminating the lease early. I am sure it would make the most sense to purchase a car in Costa Rica rather than transporting one and paying all the taxes and fees since this is an almost new car. But if I am allowed to bring it in on the lease I won’t have the taxes and fees due before I would return the car at the lease end so I think that would make a lot of sense.
Thank you GringoTico I agree with what you wrote and I am not concerned with my primary residence as an inverstment. I am purchasing a condo to live in and not make or lose great deals of money with. While my concern is a very far fetched idea it was an issue I chose to raise. I raised it with the premise that at some point the government could change and enact new laws that would allow them to take my home and say go home broke Gringo. As I stated it is a very far stretch of ones imagination that this would or could happen. If Castro or Chavez could have the influence they want I believe that would be their desired end result.
As far as crime or what the real estate market will do over the next 5-10 years I don’t believe anyone know’s. I believe past performance is the best predictor of future success. Thus I believe crime will surge and fall and rise again as will property values. I believe the Costa Rican people to be some of the best educated and politically active. So in the long run we are all safe here.
While I am disabled I am mobile although I sometimes travel via my motorized wheel chair. I have no misconceptions about the terrain or provisions for people with disabilities in Costa Rica. I am not thinking about relocating to a country that I don’t have close to full knowledge about. I have visited most of the country over the past 10 years spending months on some of my trips. I know what Costa Rica has to offer me and I love those things. I thank you and scottbenson for your concern with my disability and the issues I might have to face there. While some days it might be a struggle it is outweighed by the positives of enjoying the Tico lifestyle I wish to live.
