Do you think you will miss your customary delicacies after moving to Costa Rica? If you are going to reside in Costa Rica, there is one adjustment you are probably going to be required to make. It is learning to find or invent substitutes for delicacies that don’t exist here. Other delicacies are so obscure…
When buying a condo, you might not realize it, but the condominium might have an underfunded HOA, or it’s almost broke. The problem is that you won’t find out until the HOA sends out a notice about an upcoming extraordinary assessment. With 30 years of selling properties in Costa Rica under my belt, I’ve hardly…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes I couldn’t connect with a recommended English-speaking specialist for a medical appointment. You’ll see, I’ve learned to have patience. I was having a troubling medical situation. So now my Plan B is to attempt to see a GP in the town next to mine. I called and the receptionist connected…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes When moving to Costa Rica you’ll need medical attention. So what’s available when you retire here? While we’re still waiting for our “cedula de residencia” as “pensionados” we’ve kept our MediCare in the States. Just in case there is a real medical necessity. So, if something major required a return…
IVO HENFLING | APRIL 17, 2014 This week, because its Easter week, I had a real hard time coming up with a topic for a blog. But I was saved by the bell. Thank God for emails, what would I do without them? I received a request on a property for sale in Tamarindo that…
When you are living in Costa Rica, you soon might miss your countrymen, your own customs and traditions. Sometimes, it’s also fun to be able to speak your own language again. Some nationalities are well presented in Costa Rica and some are not. And they all have their own traditions. There might be certain food…
Estimated Reading Time: 7 Minutes I’ve found out how to pay my utility bills. But I’ll start this blog with a disclaimer. My chosen topic for today’s blog, paying utility bills in Costa Rica, is a bit like an unfinished symphony: the final stanza has yet to be written. It also reflects my own personal…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Here are some housewarming party ideas for when you purchase a house in Costa Rica. A couple of months ago, TicoNuevo was planning his housewarming party. He asked me where to find musicians to turn this into a real happening. Who else to ask than your Costa Rica real estate…
It is tourist visa stamp time for my wife and me. Our 90-day visa was expiring and we needed to make a border run. Therefore, we had to leave Costa Rica and re-enter to renew our visa. That was the only way to keep our U.S. driver’s license and Costa Rican driver’s insurance in force.…
Estimated Reading Time: 8 Minutes I hate winter, don’t you? But, unfortunately, it seems never to stop being cold up north, even the realtors on Google+ complain about it almost every day, and we’re almost in May! It never rains in Southern California is a lie because it does. Although we get hail once every…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes Did you know there are two tennis outfits Grecia? When showing property with clients a while ago, I saw a couple of tennis rackets and a basket full of tennis balls in the garage of the Grecia home for sale. We were way up in the mountains of Grecia and…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes How can you legally drive when you have just moved to Costa Rica? Can you legally drive on a pending residency? Have you decided to settle down and start living in Costa Rica? Maybe giving it an extended tryout? Then you’re going to have to leave the country every 90…