Buying a lot and building vs. buying something exieting.

[JOHN J.]

Hi Jason. Loved you at the recent IL Conference!
We’ll be making our third trip to CR in late September. We’re interested in the San Ramon, Naranjo and Grecia areas, the highest elevation and coolest “micro-climate” possible. Please give me the pros and cons of either buying a lot/property and building vs. buying something existing. Budget it $200-$250K.
Also, we don’t plan on taking a lot of our furniture, but I’m a collector of everything from a few pieces of antique furniture to art glass so we’ll probably need a small container from Chicago to areas mentioned. Any thoughts and idea of costs and what to take, or leave?
Best regards,
John

[JASON HOLLAND]

Hi John,

Thanks for the kind words. Excellent questions. Whether you buy a lot and build or buy an existing home I think really depends on you and your needs… location of either the house or lot… whether you find a house you like… lots of variables in there. You could visit, look at a house and say – “it’s perfect!” Or you could find a lot in the perfect spot, with the perfect view… and you haven’t found the house that has exactly what you’re looking for, and say “Let’s build!”

But I would say there are some general pros and cons either way.

Buying a lot and building
Pros – Build your dream home to your specs
Cons – While Costa Rican contractors are experienced, it can be a long process and a lot of work for you too as you pick materials and monitor progress.

Buying a home
Pros – Move in right away. You can often get great deals
Cons – You might need to renovate to get things just right

What you bring down as far as household goods is also down to personal preference. Some people start over when they get here and really pare down to the basics. Others bring everything. I would recommend a middle ground. Bring down electronics like computers and TVs because they are expensive here. Also, any items with sentimental value. But I think most people feel they brought too many clothes… too much random stuff in general… and that they didn’t need to keep all their books and DVDs (Netflix and Kindle take their place). Really think hard about what you’ll need. Don’t pack the container to the gills just because you have it.

As far as costs, it all depends on the value of the items and how they are taxed. I would recommend you speak with Barry Wilson, an experience customs broker here in CR: http://www.shipcostarica.com

One thing – hire your CR customs broker first and have them recommend a moving company. Don’t have a U.S.-based mover or relocation company do it as they will not be familiar enough with Costa Rican customs regulations and you’ll probably pay more.

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