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A rich retirement in Costa Rica

By FRANK KAISER
Published September 27, 2005

GOVERNMENT REQUIREMENTS: You must prove an income of $600 a month. You must be a "legal resident" to be eligible for its generous health care plan.

HEALTHCARE: $25-$50 a couple for all doctor visits, prescriptions and hospitalization. Physicians are excellent, most trained in the United States.

GETTING ACQUAINTED: Even old hands tourists who have visited Costa Rica recommend Caravan Tours. Call toll-free 1-800-227-2826 for information or www.caravantours.com We paid $995 for 10 days, which included meals, activities, hotels transfers, transportation, excursions, even tips.

MONEY: The almighty greenback is still powerful in Costa Rica and accepted almost everywhere; so are most credit cards. ATMs are found in major cities.

EATING AND DRINKING:Caravan provides purified water at all meals and free bottled water on the motorcoach. Water is safe to drink in most tourist areas. Breakfasts are usually buffet-style featuring many fresh fruits and eggs cooked to taste. Lunches and dinners generally provide a choice of beef, fish and chicken with local side dishes.

LANGUAGE: Spanish is the official language, but we found that English is spoken in all stores we shopped in.

PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP: U.S. citizens need only a current passport valid for six months after date of entry.

After a lifetime of hard work, harsh winters and possibly being hard up for money, how about retiring to a relatively safe place where the temperature is always in the 70s, health care costs could run you less than $100 a month for two and where a two-bedroom, two-bath house rents for about $300?

Got your attention?

I speak of Costa Rica. It's that little piece of paradise lying between Nicaragua and Panama in which democracy and political stability flourish and violent crime is virtually unknown. Living there for American retirees is cheap, easy and fun.

About 40,000 Americans live in Costa Rica full-time, at least 11,000 of them on Social Security. When Carolyn and I were there in June, we spoke with some of them.

Many said they wouldn't trade their lives in Costa Rica for anything.

"Why would I want to leave this?" asks George Lundquist, 66, a former Texan. He and his wife have lived just outside the capital of San Jose for about five years. With the exception of not seeing their grandkids more often, they couldn't be happier.

Lundquist, who offers a four-day, three-night "Relocation and Retirement" tour, sweeps his pointed finger at the flowering gardens everywhere and says, "We have incredible weather, 73 degrees - plus or minus five - 365 days a year (in the Central Highlands). Excellent, inexpensive health care. Excellent, downright cheap fresh food, including the basic food groups of ice cream, beer, bread, vegetables, eggs, chicken and pork. And you can buy a nice home for fifty grand."

Lundquist's only regret is that he didn't get to Costa Rica sooner.

Most everyone with whom we spoke claimed that a retired couple could live well in Costa Rica on $2,000 a month or less. Many find they can live on Social Security alone. A single gentleman we met said he lives well within his $1,200 monthly check.

But where?

With gorgeous beaches on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the country, mist-shrouded waterfalls, breathtaking park systems and classy suburbs with fine dining and golf, the choice is wide.

A huge help in deciding where to put your real estate dollar is Scott Oliver's How to Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa (Shirt). When you're buying property in Costa Rica, where laws and procedures differ from those in the states, Oliver's guide is excellent. This Brit, former Wall Street and wealth-management type, fell in love with the "stunning scenery, sunshine and smiles" of Costa Rica, and has been telling it like it is ever since.

Oliver's WeLoveCostaRica.com newsletter keeps readers up to date on current trends, ideas and prices. A recent issue featured:

Earn $80K per year tax-free living in Costa Rica?

How To Easily Find Your New Home in Costa Rica.

The main thing to remember: Go slowly.

To see a lot in a short time, I suggest you take a tour; once you have a feel for the place, spend time in and around San Jose. Rent a car. Go back to places that interested you. Most important: Keep your eyes open and talk to people.

We stayed at the Hotel Don Carlos in San Jose. The staff is extremely helpful, and when we were there, about half the guests were Americans investigating retirement to Costa Rica.

Most retirees we spoke with recommended renting first. Give yourself ample opportunity to look around for that perfect place.

Learn some Spanish. Although many Ticos (colloquial name for the natives of Costa Rica) speak English, a little language effort goes a long way to smooth a path to great relationships.

There are at least two Costa Rican English language newspapers. The Tico Times, published every Friday, keeps you up-to-date with local, national and news from the United States. Costa Rica Today is a free paper for tourists.

Mexico, Belize, Panama and others lure retiring Americans too. Each has its good points but, in my book, there's no safer, friendlier, more comfortable place to live anywhere outside the United States than Costa Rica.

Not to say there aren't problems. Just fewer in Costa Rica.

Once there, you'll probably agree with George Lundquist: "Nothing could get us to move back North!"

-- Frank Kaiser is a nationally syndicated columnist who lives in Clearwater. His Web site, www.suddenlysenior.com includes nostalgia, trivia, senior humor and 111 Best Senior Links. Write Frank c/o Seniority, the St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or e-mail features@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 26, 2005, 20:38:37]