Recently I had a couple of well-to-do gentleman from Malibu and Newport Beach on a private relocation/retirement tour. They represent a new breed of person with money who wants to leave the madness of United States and move to Costa Rica.

Both of the men are millionaires, live in very exclusive areas and have good incomes. However, they are tired of the upscale life they are leading and want to downsize so they can have more time to enjoy what is important instead of being caught up in the rat race.

One of my clients told me that he was having trouble living on $15,000 per month. I almost choked when I heard this. I gave him a sample budget of what he would have to spend here to maintain his current lifestyle and still meet his financial obligations in the States. Even living in an expensive area like Escazú, my client can live on less than half of what he does now. He was amazed at the numbers.

Most people who move here do not have the income that my client does but can also reduce their expenses significantly and not give up their lifestyle by moving here. In fact, they will probably have a much better lifestyle here and enjoy themselves more.