Like Mexico Costa Rica is a haven for American and Canadian retirees. Mexico has more American retirees and expats due to its more size. However, Costa Rica has more American residents (estimated unofficially at 50,000) proportionately than any other country outside of the United States. We do have had our share of “Ugly American” expats , but fortunately nothing has happened here like is going on in Mexico at present. In general we are getting a more high quality type of retiree.

No, this blog isn’t about the drug wars but a bunch of gringos misbehaving on Mexican soil. An invasion of misguided foreigners is creating problems for Mexican citizens and authorities who, without warning, are confronting an invasion that resembles a plague of locusts. Consider recent developments in Merida, a peaceful and sophisticated city of a million people in the Yucatan peninsula, far removed from the drama of the border region. Hundreds of thousands of Spring Breakers who descend on Cancun each year, flashing their breasts Mardi Gras style for beads, or licking whipped cream off each others’ bodies on stages set up on beaches and broadcast on MTV. But adolescent misbehavior is one thing, and adult criminal behavior is another.

Mexicans here are stunned at the disclosure that:

• Accused scam artists from Texas have collected hundreds of thousands of dollars through Brazos Abiertos, Inc., an AIDS charity that apparently has never been authorized by Mexican officials to do business in Mexico, according to records provided by the country’s tax authority,

* An “unofficial” library has operated for years, soliciting donations. The so-called Merida English Library has boasted that it is a member of the prestigious American Library Association, when its membership lapsed in 2007. It has presented itself as bona fide “Mexican nonprofit organization” — but it has never met the requirements established by Mexico’s tax authority to solicit donations from the public or issue tax-deductible receipts.

• Gringo Zapatistas running amok have unnerved residents. Of equal concern has been the disclosure that a husband-and-wife team of aging Gringo Zapatistas have been aiding and abetting the Zapatistas uprising and their supporters

• More ominously, U.S. authorities has identified two Americans — Mario E. Lopez and Jose Auais Dogre — as the masterminds of an international ring trafficking in stolen luxury boats and yachts.

* To compound these scams are two alarming trends: Americans fleeing “Obamanomics” and the beginnings of “doomsday” expats who believe that the world will end in 2012 — or that there’s money to be made from those who believe the world will end then. A growing number of Americans in Mexico are disaffected with the U.S. and life under Barack Obama. Some, now labeled “Refugiados de Obamanomics,” are intent on escaping to a country where there is the sense of greater personal freedoms. “I can smoke in restaurants and no femi-Nazi take umbrage if I call someone a babe,” an Old Gringo, who wanted to remain anonymous, said.

* As if the local authorities don’t have enough to deal with on their hands, more doomsday-believing Americans are flocking to the Yucatan as 2012 approaches. Recently, two groups of these expats have arrived — one has bought up extensive tracts of land in the Yucatan near the Maya town of Oxkutzcab, where members have gone about building “bunker-style” strongholds. These “settlers” claim to be building a new “Noah’s Ark,” but Mexican authorities fear this could be the scene of a Jim Jones-style mass suicide.

One expat, originally from Seattle and a Mexican resident for a quarter century, has been so taken aback by the influx of these unsavory and unbalanced Americans, she wrote a novel about them, 2012: Deadly Awakening. “Thousands of spiritual tourists have descended upon this once-peaceful city, creating chaos.”

Gracias a dios (Thank god!) we are not being overrun by these types of ugly American retirees in Costa Rica.

* Excerpts from New American Media

It’s always a good idea to rent before you buy, especially for the people who are going to be relocating permanently.

To start your search for a rental property, check most of the same places online as you would searching for property to buy. If you must arrange a rental sight unseen prior to your arrival to the country, opt for a short-term apartotel. An apartotel is a cross between an apartment and a hotel room, that’s equipped like the latter, but rents at rates closer to the former. That will give you a month or two to get your bearings and find a more permanent place to rent. Once you get to Costa Rica, start asking around in the area where you would like to live.

Try to talk to as many retirees and other English-speaking foreigners as you can. I found several good apartments that way before I bought my first home. There is lots of good stuff in the published classified ads, in fact there’s a lot more available that never gets published, so searching an area you like for rental signs (se alquila) is highly advisable.

Rentals in Costa Rica are different than rentals in developed countries. For instance, “unfurnished” means without anything: Not even kitchen appliances. “Hot water” might mean a contraption bolted on to the shower head to heat the water with electric coils as it runs through. On the positive side, most apartments and houses in Costa Rica have a so-called cuarto de pilas, or a laundry room. Others have maid’s quarters, which basically gives you an extra guest bedroom with its own bathroom.

Finally, be sure to get your rental contract translated into English.

The answer is yes and no, depending on your lifestyle and the amount of your monthly Social Security check.

The maximum Social Security benefit depends on the age a worker chooses to retire. For a worker retiring at age 66 in 2010, the amount is $2,346. This figure is based on earnings at the maximum taxable amount for every year after age 21. If you fall into this category as a single person you can live very well here. If you are a couple with each person making the maximum amount, indeed you live like a king and queen.

Unfortunately, not everyone receives the maximum benefit from Social Security. According to Social Security the average monthly benefit for a retired worker was about $1,164 at the beginning of 2010. This amount changes monthly based upon the total amount of all benefits paid and the total number of people receiving benefits. If you are single and receiving an amount around the average benefit or less you may find it very hard to get by in Costa Rica. There are some people I have met who have survived here on less than $1,000 monthly but they really have to watch every penny. I know one gringo who got by on $600 a month but had to work under the table (which is illegal) to make ends meet. You CANNOT work here as a retired person or pensionado under any circumstances unless you have residency with permission to work. This is called Residencia Libre de Condiciones. If you are caught working illegally, you can be deported. With the new stricter immigration laws going into effect, it is not worth the risk.

To make matters worse for those receiving close to the average amount of Social Security, there hasn’t been a cost of living increase for a couple of years. Given the fact that the cost of living has risen here and the dollar has lost its value against the colón (Costa Rica’s currency), it is very hard to get by on $1,164 per month. The dollar was valued at around 585 colones at one time but in the past year has hovered around 500 colones to a dollar. Despite what other so-called retirement experts are saying on line, these numbers don’t lie.

A single person can live cheaply in Costa Rica on Social Security and here is an example of how to do it. I know a couple of single men and women in the Heredia area who have mastered the art of living on less than $1500 monthly. They don’t live in luxury nor do they live like paupers. Typically, they do not own an automobile but rely exclusively on public transportation which is very affordable. They don’t own a home and rent small apartments. They do part of their shopping at the local weekend farmers’ markets or ferias where they can stock up on a lot of fruits and vegetables like many Costa Ricans do. Some buy their clothes at second-hand clothing stores called, Ropa Americana. When they eat out they tend to eat breakfast and lunch at one of the small cafes or sodas in Heredia’s Central Market. They go to bargain matinees and seek other inexpensive forms of entertainment. They use Internet cafés at less than a dollar an hour instead of owning a computer. For health care they belong to the Caja, the public health care system which costs them $50 dollars or less monthly for complete health coverage.

Most of these people are very happy with their simple lifestyle which they could never have in the States for the same price. When you take into consideration that most Costa Ricans earn far less than $1000 monthly and get by easily you can see that with $1500 monthly you will be able to live well. In the States or Canada a person would be below the poverty line with that income.

Here is an example of a budget for a single person who has no more than $1500.
Rent $200 to $300
Electricity and water $20
Cable TV $25
Monthly Transportation $50
Monthly public health insurance (medicines included) $50
Food $200
Entertainment $100 -$150
Misc. $200

The article below paints a bleak picture for baby boomer retirees. With the present situation the way it is, many boomers face the prospect of working the rest of their lives, living without dignity or outliving their money. One viable solution is to move abroad to a country like Costa Rica where boomers can save money on: medical expenses, public transportation, an apartment can be rented for well under $1000, utility bills are because you don’t need heat or air condition in Costa Rica’s Central Valley, hired help is less than $20 per day, and a movie costs $3, to name a few things. A $2,000 Social Security check is a almost a millionaire’s salary here. Moving here definitely deserves consideration given the serious situation in the U.S.

Here is the situation in a nutshell.
“The economy’s finally bouncing back, and many Americans are starting to feel a bit more optimistic. But the nation’s biggest population group remains in a recessionary funk.”

“The first of the baby boomers–the post-war Americans born between 1946 and 1965–start to hit retirement age in 2011. And they’re not coasting gracefully into the golden years. The entire nation, of course, lost its spunk during the recession that lasted from 2007 to 2009. But the once-upbeat baby boomers seem to be taking the longest to shake off the blues. According to surveys by the Pew Research Center, 80 percent of boomers say they’re dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country, a higher proportion than any other age group, younger or older.”

“The Great Recession clearly hit baby boomer retirees at a vulnerable time, when they were close to retirement or at least should have been preparing for it. They got hammered by the recession. More than any other age group, baby boomers feel their long-term prospects were damaged by the recession. More baby boomers, for instance, say they’ve lost money on investments and endured damage to their household finances than any other group. Household net worth is still down about $9 trillion from peak levels of 2007, thanks to huge losses in home equity and stock markets still down about 20 percent from the 2007 high.”

“Unemployment is lower among baby boomers than other groups, but it can be particularly grueling on the unlucky boomers who lost their jobs–especially those without a college education. Unemployment, on average, lasts about 45 weeks for those 55 and older, which is 12 weeks longer than for younger job seekers. And unemployed boomers in declining industries like manufacturing or construction may never find work again in the fields where they spent their careers. Younger workers in that kind of predicament have an easier time getting new training, moving if necessary, and convincing employers to hire them. Doing that when you’re 55 or 60 is daunting.”

“They’re poorly prepared for retirement. Many baby boomers thought rising home values would anchor their retirement plans, one reason the savings rate plummeted over the last decade. The housing bust–which has driven home values down by more than 30 percent nationwide–wrecked that idea. And far fewer boomers have a guaranteed pension plan than in prior generations, which is likely to leave millions of Americans on the cusp of retirement in a huge hole.”

“The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College estimates that 51 percent of people between 55 and 64 will face lower living standards once they retire, mainly because they lack the financial resources to maintain their current habits. Many boomers will keep working well past retirement age, if they can find jobs. About 60 percent of Americans between 50 and 61 say they plan to retire later than they planned. And 35 percent of those 62 and older say they’ve already delayed retirement.”

“They sense national decline. America was still on the rise when boomers came of age in the 1960s and ’70s. It doesn’t feel that way any more. Washington politicians mount loud arguments but seem incapable of solving big problems. The huge national debt looms like a black cloud over the nation’s economic future.”

“With real incomes stagnant over the last decade, 21 percent of boomers say their standard of living is already lower than their parents’ was at the same age. That’s a much higher proportion than among younger or older Americans. Boomers are more pessimistic about the future, as well, with just 35 percent of those 50 and older feeling their children will enjoy a higher standard of living than they do. And only 59 percent of those between 50 and 64 feel that America remains a “land of opportunity.” Among 18- to 29-year-olds–who suffered far higher unemployment during the recession than baby boomers–70 percent still regard America as a land of opportunity.”

“Boomers are well aware of the problems facing America, but they’re nervous about doing anything different, perhaps because they’ve got so much invested in the system the way it is.”

“Boomer bigger hit than other groups with less disposable income. But some of the nation’s biggest looming problems–like an underfunded Social Security system and a Medicare program that’s on track to run out of money–will also affect baby boomers directly if they’re not fixed. Something’s got to give. And the baby boomers know it.”

Retirees who are interested in Costa Rica can now make the move seamlessly. Like every place in the world connections and contacts are very important in determining one’s success in any field. Moving to another town or state in your home country can be a difficult task not to mention relocating to a foreign country. Fortunately, everything is in place here to help you make the move easy. The trail has been blazed. However, not having the right help at this end can mean the difference between success and failure.

I have personally helped 1000s of people achieve their retirement dreams for over twenty years with my bestselling travel guidebooks and award-winning relocation/retirement tours which are the perfect introduction to Costa Rica. You could not possibly do a tour like mine by yourself and gain the same knowledge, contacts and information about living or retiring in Costa Rica. Potential retirees could never explore the country on their own nor learn so much. The connections you get from a veteran retirement guide are invaluable. And best of all you can leave all of the headaches like finding lodging, transportation, viewing the inside of homes and looking for good restaurants to me. By the time you add up your valuable time and monetary and emotional costs of a self-guided tour, a guided retirement tour is a no-brainer.

Furthermore, the two-day seminar sponsored by the Association of Residents of Costa Rica (ARCR) provides additional tips and contacts for moving here. You are lucky have chosen Costa Rica for retirement because it is the only country in the world that has an organization like the ARCR which is dedicated solely to helping foreigners make the move. Combine this with what you will see and learn on my tour and you will have all of the tools to relocate successfully and enjoy a new and exciting lifestyle in one of the best countries in the world far away from the hustle and bustle, high prices and the other issues at home.