Relocation Advantages

Welcome to the tropical paradise of Costa Rica, where you can enjoy life and nature in a peaceful land with all the necessary advantages required by an excellent lifestyle.

Thinking about Relocating | starting a new life

If you think in starting a new life, Costa Rica is the right place for you. Investment opportunities are around the corner at affordable prices and with all the necessary rights on your side like in no other country.

If you are planning to move to Costa Rica for business or plan to retire and live in Costa Rica, the question is why to choose this little country. The answer is simple: Costa Rica has everything you need to live well and enjoy life. There are many reasons for living in the tropics.

Among the different advantages you can find in Costa Rica when relocating, there is a reasonable living cost, a wonderful climate, a good medical service, a high-quality educational system, good transportation; and above all peace and democracy.

Cost of living | coast of living with a reasonable lifestyle is not a problem

Many foreigners see Costa Rica as a bargain. If you control your money, have a simple but fine lifestyle and like to have some luxuries from time to time, Costa Rica is the best option for your following years.

As example, home prices range from $40,000 to $80,000 or more if you think in real opulence. But you can manage living in a standard home as well. Price of public services (electricity, telephone and water) is relatively cheap and there are many more services for making your life more pleasurable, like cable or satellite TV, Internet and of course maid service.

Food is delicious and you can eat in several restaurants, or if you prefer to cook yourself, prices of groceries are cheap too. You can go to many of the big American-style supermarkets around popular cities, or if you prefer go to markets and grocery stores found in every town.

Going out at night, going to the beautiful beaches and enjoying the different activities that this country offers you is not expensive. Just make up your mind to live well in the little but peaceful country in Central America.

What else? Cost of living with a reasonable lifestyle is not a problem in Costa Rica.

Always a good weather | always sunshine

Costa Rica has two seasons, dry and rainy. Climate is warm, ranging from 70 degrees in the Central Plateau to 90 degrees in the coasts. There is almost always sunshine and some rainfalls depending on the geographical zone where you are. But if you are thinking in a permanent getaway from a cold and snowy winter to sunny conditions Costa Rica is the right location. There is no need to heating and rarely air conditioning, so there is one thing less to think of.

Medical Services | Costa Rican medical system is one of the best in Latin America

Don’t worry about the medical service in Costa Rica, with a 75-80-year life expectancy, this guarantees that Costa Rican medical system is one of the best in Latin America. Besides the good medical treatment offered by the state, there is the affordable service in private clinics and hospitals. Health care is twice cheaper or less than in the U.S. and Canada, so take advantage of this special characteristic. Among the fine hospitals located in San José, you can choose the Clínica Católica, Hospital Cima, Clínica Bíblica, Clínica Santa Rita and Clínica Americana. Just to compare, the average cost for a room is around $100 and $150 per day, depending on the hospital and kind of service, and common surgeries range between $1,000 and $3,000. So, to sum up service is excellent, food in hospitals is magnificent and prices are cheaper.

Educational System | many options from elementary to university education

Education is not a problem in Costa Rica, just to mention that this country has one of the highest rates in literacy in Latin America. If you or your children think about studying in the country, there are many options from elementary to university education, including public and private schools. The best news is that education is high quality and again it’s cheaper than schooling in the U.S. You have a wide variety of options, basically for your children, but for adults too.

Among the best schools you can find the Lincoln School with a monthly fee of $350, the American International School with an annual tuition of $3,130, the Country Day School for $6,510 per scholar year. But if you have a low budget there are many more schools at affordable prices such as the Anglo American School, the Blue Valley School, the Canadian School, Colegio Bilingüe Santa Cecilia, Colegio Metodista, Escuela Británica, Saint Clare, and Saint Francis; just to mention some, with prices ranging from $70 to $150 a month.

College education offers many options as well. There are four public universities with a high standard in superior education with different careers and with a high prestige. Also there is the private option of around fifty universities with a huge range of careers.

Finally, if your interest is in learning Spanish, don’t worry; there are many institutions that teach it, and offer not only the instruction in the language, but special packages including trips and activities to make your learning process a new and interesting experience.

Transportation | within a few hours you can go from coast to coast

There are many ways to travel around Costa Rica; besides, this is a little country and within a few hours you can go from coast to coast. We have airports in the main tourist places, so you can choose domestic airlines to visit some remote beaches with the advantage of gaining some hours at very affordable prices. Apart from that, you have many other options for traveling in the country: you can rent a car at the many car-rentals agencies in the country, most of them recognized international companies; you can take a cab, if your destination is not too far away; and of course, you can travel by bus to as many destinations as you can dream up. All this services are extremely cheap as compared with some prices in the U.S.

It’s important to mention that in Costa Rica there are buses to almost every corner of the country, and it’s a wonderful way to experience and share with the local people. You can find bus service to the main beaches and national parks, and you can find local bus service in small cities and towns, so don’t miss the chance to know Costa Rica from a closer point of view. As mentioned before, taxi or cab service is good in the country, it’s cheap and most taxi drives are polite people. Just remember to ask for the meter (or maría as they called it in Costa Rica) so they won’t charge you more of the right amount of money.

Driving in the country is another option but remember that you may use your current’s driver’s license while you are a tourist for up to 90 days. But if your plan is to stay in the country you have the option to get the Costa Rican driver’s license with an easy procedure at one of the MOPT (Ministry of Public Works) offices. Please have in mind that you’re no longer in the super highways back in the U.S. or Canada because here in Costa Rica the speed limit is lower and of course be careful with potholes which there are many of them in some sectors.

Investment | one of the most important activities

One of the most important activities you can do in the country is investment. There are many options for you to buy land or to set up a new business in this peaceful country, so don’t miss the chance to start a new life in the tropics.

Among the advantages you can find to invest here are: the political stability, which is unique in the region; a democratic government; good banking system, public and private; the possibility of starting the NAFTA, and the inherent benefits of doing so; the geographical location, with easy access from all parts of the world; good telecommunication system; incentives to foreigners investing in the country and fewer taxes.

Going deeper in the matter, some other reasons for investing in the country are that investors have the same rights, laws and regulations for doing business as locals but with a few restrictions. A piece of advice is to understand and learn first a little of Costa Rican law. Of course if you plan to invest, buy or start a business it’s recommended to look for help from people specialized in the topic, such as an English-speaking attorney for you to get better your negotiations, look for one that is recommended by friends or ask at your embassy for some names of attorneys with good reputation. Some of the procedures are slow, so be patient, knowing that at the end you’ll succeed in your investment activity.

Land is a good investment with the advantage of choosing from properties near the beach to properties in other rural areas or cities. The advantage is that Costa Rica doesn’t restrict the buying of properties, if you have the money go for it. Good luck!