Casey

Well, the tax will not apply to a home you have lived in for the last two years, modeled after the U.S. But, yeah, 15% on top of the high transfer fees, lawyers, notary, etc., it's going to take quite a bite. If it were a thriving real estate ... Read More

Josefbh, should have responded that even if one drives down, they will still be required to pay the import tax...and it must be paid within 90 days or the vehicle must leave Costa Rica and stay out for a specific length of time. You would need to ... Read More

Have you thought through the implications of rentista residency, esp. wrt the Caja? Caja premiums are based on your income on a sliding scale up to 13%. I believe you are required to withdraw $2500/month as colones and this is what they count as ... Read More

All those links are to sites selling CBD, so I didn't take their word for it. Instead, asked my doctor who is also my former legislator. It is legal, can be shipped here. Read More

More drugs are available at private farmacias than at Caja anyway. And, much of Caja's medicines are of dubious quality. They won't give you a choice of brands. Even when you have residency, you will need an appointment with a Caja doctor to ... Read More

SimCityAT's google search undoubtedly turned up dozens of links saying it is legal, but of course all those sites *sell* CBD so naturally they have no liability in selling it to you and they are hardly likely to know all the details of ... Read More

Nalini, I can't imagine anyone relocating to another country without feet on the ground first. Yes, it is mostly a very beautiful country, but it is probably very different from where you live now. Here are some pros/cons off the top of my head ... Read More

All those cool weather plants grow here somewhere, but it's best to use local varieties adapted to the climate and the constant length of daylight all year. For instance, most broccoli you'd bring from the States will grow like crazy here but never ... Read More

First I've heard of growing asparagus from seed. Cool! A Dull Roar Read More

labup, I don't think the gringos are going to add much to the large amount of pesticide, herbicide and chemical fertilizer use that the Ticos already engage in. We are a drop in that ocean, but I agree we shouldn't contribute to the situation. I ... Read More

I extol the virtue of renting over buying even though we did not. There were so many things that could have gone wrong, but which didn't fortunately. Just dumb luck in our case though we weren't totally in the dark. Another piece of good advice ... Read More

Just stay below 5000 feet elevation or you are going to be spending a lot of time in the clouds. You also need to ask about wind conditions wherever you are looking. It's not unusual to have a strong breeze come up in the afternoons in some places ... Read More

This ARRL blurb from a radio club in Ecuador is still the latest info: http://www.arrl.org/select-countries-e-h If you aren't adept at handling pile-ups already, start practicing now. You will be the DX and everyone is going to want to talk to you, ... Read More

Wow Jerry, those prices seem astronomical to us here in Pérez. The most I've heard of for a nice house on a bus line is under $500, 3 bd, 2 ba. Most are half or a third of that. We are a family of three and live on about $22,000/yr but we own our ... Read More

Sherry, Costa Rica is a beautiful place to retire, but do a lot of research on costs here. It is one of the more expensive, if not most expensive locales in Latin America. Housing is cheap, medical/dental is cheap, but that's about where it ends. ... Read More