Short term rental housing advice

For your protection, I would look at AirBnB or VRBO.

some of us Long term residents maybe able to help PM me  AirBnB is fine if yu do not mind the price

For the San Vito area try contacting Expat Dave on this forum. I know he's very busy these days with his parrot rescue projects so he may or may not see this thread or even a pm but try a pm (private message).

One aspect of living here as opposed to just vacationing here is doing things like dealing with government bureaucracy, which as a visitor, even for a month, you may not get a good taste of. These government bureaucratic requirements (residency and res. renewals; RTV car inspections, getting a drivers license, paying marchamo (car registration each year, etc) are some of the things that drive some gringos crazy.

So as much as you can, use the banks, maybe apply for a bank account via BCR where you do not have to be a resident last time I checked, and shopping for household items like washers, refrigerators etc may help you get a handle on living here vs. visiting here.

Some things are getting easier but then again some things are not. Applying for or renewing one's CAJA health insurance or getting dr. appointments are things that are still very bureaucratic, way too time consuming and a challenge to deal with. This may vary depending on where you live. Or not...

Talk to expats while here... about the things that are CHALLENGING to them, things they don't like... in order to get a clear picture of what you will have to learn to accept.  The USA has it's bureaucracy but here its generally more of a challenge to fulfill the bureaucratic requirements, whether it be health insurance, car inspection, or opening an account for internet service, etc.

Also drive enough to get an idea of how the roads are, how Ticos drive, etc.

These are all things that will help you see some of the challenges of acclimatizing yourself to living in Costa Rica.

Also, depending on where YOU live, you may experience internet outages, electricity outages, even water outages for a few hours. It's not unheard of. In some areas people end up moving, or going back to their home country because of these problems or others.

In my opinion, after living here several years, none of these things are deal breakers in and of themselves, but I know people for whom some of these types of things are deal breakers. And if not deal breakers, at least challenges they have to accept and deal with.