by Ivo Henfling The first time I was standing in line in a hardware store in Escazu, the attendant asked me “Y vos macho, en que te puedo servir”? And you “Macho”, what can I do for you. I didn’t realize I was being called blondy. (I was far from blond, I used to be…
Have you heard of Blooms Ladies Club Costa Rica? I love following Irina and Jim Just’s blog, called “Just Costa Rica, living la Pura Vida” because they both always have interesting things to say in their blog. In all my years selling property in Costa Rica, I rarely saw a couple retire in Costa Rica…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes How much help can you get from a database that you should build before moving to Costa Rica? Once you are committed to moving to Costa Rica, there is a huge amount of information to read and absorb. So, my advice again: be detailed, be methodical (even if it’s hard…
The pulpería and the polaco are two typical ways of purchasing for Costa Rica’s working class. Every week, “El Polaco” visits a poor neighborhood of Costa Rica, with a car full of merchandise. The Polaco is a department store on wheels and he sells on credit. He offers mainly clothing, women’s, men’s, and children’s. But…
Estimated Reading Time: 7 Minutes More properties have a title problem than you imagine. Property owners just trust that their attorney does his job when they purchase. Unfortunately, very few real estate agents check the property title before they list the property. At GoDutch, as well as on the American European MLS, this is a…
Have you heard the story about the gringo and the fisherman? I’ve seen several versions, now that I Googled it. But it’s an interesting story, that I heard back in the ’80s. It shows the mindset of the average gringo and the mindset of the average Tico. Understanding both, is a fantastic assistance to anyone…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutos Costa Rica retirement vacation properties and bird watching go together well, the reason so many have decided to retire or buy a vacation home in Costa Rica. When you retire to a country like Costa Rica, you must love nature and in particular birds. If you don’t, why even bother…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes Some might think otherwise but there is great music and entertainment in Costa Rica. A client told me he met a gringo in the hotel who was complaining there was nothing to do in San Jose and he was bored to death. In less than half an hour, I showed…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Who is responsible for the security of your car while staying in a hotel or shopping at the mall? Well, you of course! That’s not the legal truth, but the reason for this blog. Last week, my clients were staying at the Best Western Irazu Hotel and while waiting for…
Many found another reason to retire in Atenas and in other locations in Costa Rica after my post a couple of weeks ago with pictures takes by our ex-pat and I’ve received a lot of emails from readers asking for more quality photos of birdlife and views in Paradise. In February this year, I already…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes I decided to create a blog page so you can easily find great blogs about moving to Costa Rica and retire in Costa Rica written by people who are going through the experience of becoming and being an expat in Costa Rica. Just last week, at a party, I heard…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes As real estate agents, we have housewarming parties all the time. A month ago, we received an invitation by email from Irina. The invitation said “Jim and I have moved into our house in El Cajón (the one we bought from Joan & Sally). We would like to invite you…
by Ivo Henfling If you have a Costarican driver’s license, no matter if you have legal residency or not, you should read the following information. In the past, when the Costarican transit police would write out a ticket, it would go to the tag of the car. In December, when you’d pay your road taxes,…
A lo Tico is a Spanish dictionary with words used in Costa Rica. A week or so ago, in another blog, I asked you to learn Spanish and told you how the Ticos will respect you if you make an effort to learn their language. Today, I’ll make it even more interesting for you. You…
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes Our hobby photographer Peter Boyer shows off with his photos of birdlife and sunsets in Atenas. That’s because he can! Peter and Edie Boyer moved into their new home in Vista Mar Estates in Desmonte in October 2012 and are enjoying the marvelous wonders of living in Atenas. Desmonte…
Did I learn Spanish before moving here? No, I didn’t. And that was stupid. Before I moved to Costa Rica there was so much to do and there was no time to take Spanish classes nor did I realize how important it was to learn at least the basics. As soon as I started to…