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JASON HOLLAND
ParticipantHi James,
I don’t know anybody personally. But I would recommend you join the Facebook group for Arenal expats (it’s okay if you don’t live there yet) and ask that community. They’re very helpful and somebody there should have a connection or suggestion.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/lakearenal/
Jason
ParticipantHi Teresa,
Some breaking news concerning the Nicaraguan border. Currently, there are hundreds of Cuban immigrants trying to enter Nicaragua from Costa Rica, on their way to the United States. But the Nicaraguan government isn’t letting them in. Many of the Cubans are at the border. And I’m not sure how this is all affecting the border crossing, let alone border runs. At the very least there will be significant delays. Details here: http://news.yahoo.com/cuban-migrants-paralyze-nicaragua-costa-rica-border-115320250.html
If you plan to travel to this border or into Nicaragua I would recommend you check with the tour company about the latest status. It could be that these types of shuttles are getting through okay.
As an alternative you could do the border run to Panama or fly into Nicaragua instead.
ParticipantGreat! You are well situated to have a short border run.
This company has vans and offers border runs and tours into Nicaragua: http://www.tamarindotransferandtours.com
You can also check out TicaBus, which is a major bus company that can pick you up in Liberia (sometimes Flamingo) and take you across the border and on to San Juan del Sur, Granada, and Managua.
As far as bus ticket vs plane ticket, a bus ticket – with a specific date within 90 days – should be fine. And you can buy them at offices at the border. But…. I have heard of some cases where the border officials didn’t accept the bus ticket. So just to be safe you might want to get a plane ticket. You can buy a one way plane ticket out of Costa Rica right before the run and then call the airline within 24 hours for a full refund. It is important to call the airline and not rely on canceling the ticket online as often that gives you a credit with that airline instead of a refund.
I realize that this is all sort of confusing and a hassle. But it’s a great example of the many “gray areas” and workarounds common in Latin America. 🙂
ParticipantHi Teresa,
Yes, you can return right away. Of course, sometimes the border officials get upset if you do this and they might say you have to wait an hour before they’ll stamp your passport. That’s rare though. The 72 hour thing is something that’s widely posted online but is not correct. It relates to a being able to import up to $500 worth of goods tax-free as long as you’ve been outside of Costa Rica for 72 hours.
There are private shuttles that will provide the round trip to the border. Where are you located? I might be able to provide with some contacts that run shuttles.
ParticipantHi Val,
The best way, at least for your first place, is to go through a real estate agent. You tell them your needs and they’ll be able to show you several properties. For the Central Valley you might contact http://www.american-european.net. Once you’re on the ground you can start asking around, often you get better deals through networking with expats and locals. The layout of towns and the countryside in the Central Valley is quite spread out, mountainous, and rural, which makes it hard to taxi or bus around looking for rentals.
There are always rumors the the govt. will crack down on perpetual tourists but so far nothing has happened. There is no law against leaving the country and re-entering to renew your tourist visa. It’s true that sometimes the border officials will give you a stern look or a talking to. Sometimes they might even tell you to wait three hours before you can re-enter. But as long as you have proof of onward travel out of Costa Rica (plane or bus ticket) within 90 days they legally have to let you in. Also, if you’ve only been there for a year, they usually don’t hassle you. It’s more people who have been in CR several years but have not sought residence.
ParticipantHi Paul,
I don’t know of any specific celebrations this year. But if you’re in Jaco I would start asking around. Usually groups of friends do gather in communities like Jaco for holidays. Also, many hotels and restaurants will offer a Thanksgiving dinner. If you’re lucky they might even have football on TV!
ParticipantHi Paul,
There are 3 or 4 hardware stores in Jaco, as well as, I think, a paint store called Sur. They won’t have the selection of Home Depot or Lowe’s but you can probably find what you need. You could also try going up to San Jose, about 1.5 hours away. Lots of big hardware stores and paint stores with more selection. EPA is basically like Home Depot.
ParticipantHi Val,
Renting while you explore the country is a great idea!
I’ve rented several houses long-term and the only documents I ever needed to provide was my passport – I just gave a copy of the picture page to the landlord. I did also sign a lease that outlined the monthly payment, what furnishings were provided, the deposit, and other terms. It’s also standard to give one month’s rent as a deposit when you move in, refundable when you move out.
ParticipantHi Mark,
With a rental home, the best practice is to own it in the name of a corporation instead of your individual name because it limits liability. In that case you pay an annual corporate tax at the following rates:
$0 – $97,000 in income – 10%
$97,000 – $195,000 – 20%
$195,000+ – 30%If you have a vacation rental, then you also have to collect a 13% sales tax from each guest and send that to the CR government as well.
ParticipantHi Garry,
If you have no income coming from Costa Rica you do not have to pay taxes to the Costa Rican government, nor do you have to file. For tax questions, I would also refer you to Nick Hodges, a tax expert who speaks at IL conferences about these issues:
ParticipantHi Paul,
The water is safe to drink in just about all of Costa Rica. I’ve never had any issues.
October 28, 2015 at 7:24 am in reply to: shipping my car from the states (n.y.). What is the procedure and total cost #629301ParticipantHonda CRVs are very popular cars in Costa Rica, Jennifer, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a mechanic. Be sure to contact Barry Wilson here http://shipcostarica.com and he should be able to give you a rough estimate of the coast of shipping.
October 23, 2015 at 9:06 am in reply to: Retiring to a small fishing village in South America #629165ParticipantHi Luke,
There is a ton of great fishing in Costa Rica. It’s perhaps best known for offshore sport fishing for marlin, sailfish, tuna, etc.
But there are also tarpon (near shore and in the estuary) on the northern Caribbean coast on the Rio Colorado. There are fishing lodges there but not really any places to live full time. Lake Arenal has the guapote, a rainbow bass, that is said to be a lot like bass fishing in the U.S. There is even some trout fishing high in the mountains in some spots. Not native, they were introduced 50 years ago. So all those could be spots for trips if you live here.
When it comes to Limon city itself, it’s not an attractive place. A somewhat gritty port that takes in the majority of the country’s container traffic. But the rest of the coast is beautiful, with the area north of Limon mostly inaccessible because it’s a wetland and jungle. The area south, see below.
As far as your needs and budget, I can think of a few places for further research:
Puerto Viejo de Talamanca (southern Caribbean coast) has a small local fishing collective and is also a low key tourism destination. Mostly near shore fishing.
Quepos (central Pacific coast) is one of the country’s major fishing ports for local fisherman, as well as tourist/expat offshore sport fisherman.
Golfito (southern Pacific coast) is another fishing hotspot. It’s on the Golfo Dulce, a body of water between the mainland and the wild Osa Peninsula.
ParticipantHi Colleen,
Hopefully, some Canadians with direct experience in this will chime in. But in the meantime, I found this link from the Canadian govt about receiving CPP abroad.
http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/services/pensions/international/payments-outside.shtml
You might also contact this agency directly with your questions, as well as the Canadian Embassy in Costa Rica.
http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/costa_rica/index.aspx?lang=eng
You can also contact an attorney in Costa Rica experience in expat matters exactly like this. This firm speaks at IL events:
Petersen and Philps. Mr Philps is from Canada. http://www.plawcr.com
ParticipantHi Jim,
I’ve had no problem getting modems from my Internet service providers. They usually provide one when you start service. I’ve used the major services like Tigo (nationwide) and some smaller local providers. But it’s possible some companies don’t provide them. So just to be sure, you might bring one down. You will definitely need a WiFi router. Some companies even provide these but most don’t.
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