Living in Costa Rica Retirement Relocation Tours.

Alonso the Handyman

Another question my clients often ask me on my monthly retirement tours is, “What do you do when you need home repairs  in Costa Rica?”

The answer is simple. What you need to do is ask other foreigners who have homes what the do when they need repairs. Anyone who has been here for a while has to have someone to take care of the problems that arise periodically with their homes. There is a service called Maridos de Alquiler (husbands for rent). It doesn’t mean what you think. The company offers handymen who do plumbing, carpentry, electrical work and about anything else that a home needs. The rates are a steal when compared what to what you might pay back home for similar services.

Luckily I found a great handyman about 11 years ago. His name is Alonso and he can virtually build fix anything. I had hired someone to build a small wall around my house and it turned out to be a complete disaster. Fortunately, I got Alonso’s contact information from a Costa Rican neighbor and my problems with the wall  were solved. Since then Alonso has built two additions onto my house, painted, built a barbeque area with a hot tub and done almost every imaginable repair to keep my house from falling apart due to normal wear and tear.

People who visit me remark what a beautiful home I have. It would be far from beautiful if it wasn’t for Alonso. His rates are reasonable and he provides me  with receipts for all of the materials he purchases.

I have grown very close to Alonso and his family over the last eleven years and even hired his wife as my maid. When my family and I travel I leave Alonso and his wife, Marcela, in charge of my house and taking care of my dogs. They always do an excellent job and are 100% trustworthy. I feel perfectly confident leaving my house in their care. They even have a set of keys to my home.

As you can see a good handyman is worth his weight in gold to keep your retirement dream home in good condition. Based on my personal experience you also see that it is possible to find trustowrhty hired help in Costa Rica.