As Albert Einstein once said about filling out tax returns, “This is too difficult for a mathematician. It takes a philosopher.” But philosopher or not, everybody knows it’s that swell season of the year again, with only a month to go before the United States IRS tax filing deadline of April 15th. And yes, even [...]
When North Americans face the realities of a reduced income after retirement, many of them look abroad for places to move that offer a lower cost of living in order to stretch those limited resources. Developing countries around the world offer such a promise, from Central American republics like Mexico or Nicaragua, South American expat [...]
One of the many great things about retirement in Costa Rica is the quality and affordability of domestic help and other manual labor. Maids, cooks, gardeners, childcare workers or property caretakers are all a bargain compared to North American rates for such services. In our two years here, my husband Layne and I have had [...]
A few nights ago when friends were over for dinner, we were relaxing and talking over glasses of wine in our back patio “dining room” when one of us looked up toward the ceiling and spied a large black tarantula slowly cruising along the top edge of the wall. As we gazed at the unwelcome [...]
If you are considering retirement in Costa Rica, you may well ask yourself: What about golf? While it’s not a universal interest, it is amazing how well golf and retirement seem to go together. With the luxury of leisure time and the desire to stay active, expats who once managed only an occasional weekend game [...]
For a nation that prides itself on the beauty of its environment and the diversity of its ecological heritage, Costa Rica has been remarkably slow in joining the “green” movement, which for several decades has been taking root around the world. Although this small country has set aside some 27% of its landmass in national [...]
If I needed any reminder why it’s important for retirees to learn Spanish, today was an object lesson: trying to communicate by phone with medical personnel to request results of some routine lab work be emailed to me. Not only is it difficult to understand Spanish at the fast pace most Ticos speak but on [...]
With Halloween behind us and the December holidays and New Year’s festivities just ahead, it seems like a good time to talk about días feriados (national holidays) here in Costa Rica. For retirees who decide to move to this tropical Central American country, there may be a concern that you are leaving all those familiar [...]
Let’s pick up where we left off in my last column on the importance of a “due diligence” tour of Costa Rica before zeroing in on a retirement target of moving here. So let’s say you have made a few trips down, found a community that suits your lifestyle and pocketbook and located a cadre [...]
The question of housing looms large for potential retirees to Costa Rica. Deciding whether to rent, buy or build is probably one of the most vexing issues you will face as you consider relocating here. As regular readers of this column have learned, I am a strong advocate of renting for at least six months [...]
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