Costa Rica is the perfect place for retirees

From the sound of the title you’d think I don’t like Costa Rica. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I have lived here for 30 years and love the country. I even became a citizen over ten years ago. You couldn’t drag me back to the U.S. or pay me any amount of money to return there. I have had an incredible life here and consider every day a gift because I live in a wonderful place. In fact, for the last 15 years I have conducted monthly successful relocation/retirement tours (www.liveincostarica.com) to help those wanting to move here. The 16th edition of my bestseller, The New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica, is also a valuable tool for potential residents.

Unfortunately, there is information on some blogs , on-line chat groups and websites which is disseminated by those who talk negatively about the Costa Rica and its people. I admit there are things here which can get under your skin, but when you look at the positives versus the negatives, the former outweigh the latter by a mile. The country must be good because we have more Americans living here proportionately than any country outside the U.S. Furthermore, Costa Rica continues to be Latin America’s number one retirement haven and enjoys a stellar international reputation.

Things that can irritate you:
(1) The traffic around San José: The solution is to avoid driving during rush hour and not travel through the worst congested areas
(2) High prices: Once you get settled and know where to eat and buy things you can live inexpensively. If you try to live like most people back home, you will end up spending a lot of money
(3) A handful of gringos who really give us a bad reputation. Every place in the world has a few bad apples. Just avoid these people and don’t pay attention to what they say and do. Some of us tried to get away from these types by moving here. It seems like a lot more of these people have moved here over the last ten years.
(4) Negative foreigners who complain about everything. Obviously they don’t belong here and made a bad choice by moving to the country. They won’t be happy anywhere.
(5) Crime: Yes, crime has increased here as in most places in the world. Compared to some of the countries in the region it is low here. If you are careful, use your head and take the right precautions the chances are you will not be victimized. Fortunately, most violent crimes involve drugs and alcohol and the victims are not gringos. The chances of being burglarized can be reduced if you select the correct area to live and take the proper preventative measures. There is some white collar perpetrated mostly by foreign scam artists. Just because people speak English doesn’t mean that they are honest.
(6) Cultural differences: These can be frustrating for foreigners. According to the ARCR the differences between the U.S. cultural and Costa Rica’s culture are what often cause people to move back. If you are going to live here you have to try to adapt to the local cultural or you will be miserable.
(7) Starting a business: About three out of ten business started by foreigners succeed here. Most fail because people assume that what works at home will work here. Although the country is Americanized to a certain point and there are opportunities, some businesses just won’t work here. Often foreigners choose to start a business in which they have no prior experience. Most often this is a recipe for disaster. Also, the country has only 4.5 million people and a quarter of them do not have the purchasing power to by a lot of products which we take for granted at home. Also a lot of tico entrepreneurs have thriving businesses in many areas, so there is not much room for competition. Your best bet is to start some type of Internet-based business which depends on a foreign market. If you don’t have to work, then don’t. Try simplifying instead of complicating your life here by not getting involved in business.
(8) The language: A lot of people from the U.S. just can’t handle the language and find it extremely difficult. This can be very frustrating and make one feel isolated. The best thing to do is to make an effort to at least learn survival Spanish. What to I mean by survival Spanish? Learn enough to handle most daily situations like going to the super market or asking directions.
(9) Bureaucracy: It moves slowly all over the world. Patience is the key here.
(10) The lack of punctuality of many Costa Ricans: In Latin America life moves at a slower place. Unfortunately, this is very frustrating for foreigners who a use to getting things done quickly and have people arrive on time. The mañana syndrome is alive and kicking here. The best solution is to go with the flow and not let slow move things frustrate you.
(11) Locals who take advantage of foreigners: This happens everywhere. I hear a lot of people complaining that gringos are nothing more than a ‘dollar sign” for the ticos. In some cases this can be true. If you use your head, don’t associate with the wrong people, know what things really cost and don’t be overly generous you should be able to limit the chances of people taking advantage of you. ¡Póngase vivo! Be smart or wise!
(12) A two-tiered price system: this is similar to the last one. If you are really worried about this find a trustworthy local to do your shopping or bargain for you. If have a friend who uses a tico to take his cars to get repaired. He claims the Costa Rican front man can always get a better price and not be taken advantage of.
(13) Long lines: This can be very frustrating but there are solutions. For example, never go to the bank after a three-day weekend, a holiday, on pay day or Monday or Friday. For example, there are two branches of the Banco Nacional in San José which open at 7:30 am. If I go to San José by bus I can do my banking at either of these branches and most likely be back in Heredia before the Heredia branch opens. All that is involved is getting up early and knowing where to go.
(14) Dealing with the caja: The best solution is to have private insurance. A long wait for a test or procedure could be the difference between life and death in some cases. Bottom line,,,,”Penny wise, pound foolish.”

There are probably other situations and things that I have overlooked which give foreigners fits. My advice is to just accept things the way they are, don’t take anything too seriously like the locals do and have a good sense of humor.