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View Full Version : @soelman re Costa Rica



billbenson
08-07-2011, 02:56 PM
This is actually my second thread to you on this. You disappeared for 9 months after the last one :)

I used to live in Panama and El Salvador. My wife is from El Salv and would like to go back there to live but its to dangerous right now. She looked into Costa Rica. What she found was it would be quite expensive relative to the US to live an work. My business is telephone and internet sales of products in the US primarily. Stuff is drop shipped from a US manufacturer.

All I really need to work is a good phone line and good internet. It could be from anywhere in the world. Costa Rica and Panama seem like the best options today. If we do it, might as well be near the beach, but city access as well.

Any thoughts on where, costs etc?

seolman
08-08-2011, 01:44 PM
Hi Bill,

You will find the cost of living similar to many places in the U.S. I live in Costa Rica for 2 reasons: my meds are much cheaper as are doctor visits + my wife is Costa Rican.

Quick experience: I had to rush to the hospital a while back (kidney stones). Two visits to emergency, at least 5 shots of morphine + a set of X-rays (with iodine shot). Total cost: <$500. I once spent 4 hours in the emergency room in California and it was $9,000.

If you plan to work on the Internet it is advisable to be near the capital (San Jose). The most popular suburbs for foreigners would be Escazu or the "Lindora" area of Santa Ana. You have ADSL, DSL and cable Internet connections available. A 4MB connection here would cost >$100/month. In the past couple years the local version of "Ma Bell" has lost it's monopoly and other Internet providers are moving in - but no real leader has emerged yet and personally I am wary of changing until I see some big name step in and offer real high quality connections at realistic prices.

There are a lot of call centers here now and I am sure if you use these types of services to support your online sales you would be able to manage many things from here.

I have heard good things about Panama re: quality of life but I honestly don't know if their Internet providers are any better.

billbenson
08-08-2011, 09:59 PM
Do you get the inexpensive medical because your wife is Cosa Rican or how does that work. Interesting ICE no longer has the monopoly. I tried to sell to them in a prior life as a field salesman. No sales.

I currently use Vonage which is a VoIP phone here. You just hook a router to the network and you have dial tone. It should work there and give me a us phone number which I want. Not sure how the connection would be though. VoIP quality really comes down to how many routers you go through. I'm sure things will keep getting more advanced in this area though. 4M of bandwidth is plenty for data. Actual download speeds through the network here are 1.2M max. Internet providers here offer 5M to 35M or more but that's just marketing hype. You get 35M to your local ISP pop but only up to 1.2 or so from the network.

Thanks for the info.

I'll have a look at the areas of Santa Ana you mentioned.

seolman
08-09-2011, 11:02 AM
I am a legal resident so, provided I pay the small monthly fee, I am entitled to use the national health care system. To be honest a Dr's visit here runs between $30 to $60 depending on the doctor so at times I simply go outside the system. However I recently had a serious heart issue and was rushed to the hospital. They kept me there about 12 hours under observation and all was covered under the health system. It is very good for emergencies but can be slow and inconvenient when waiting to see a physician.

VoIP works great here. Everyone has a Magic Jack or similar. I just use Skype.

Spider
08-09-2011, 11:44 AM
How good is the medical service generally? $30 - $60 per doctor visit is great - unless he's going to sprinkle you with coconut water and chant a few chants over your head! I'm being facetious but really, how would you rate the medical services of the country at large?)

seolman
08-09-2011, 12:12 PM
I am 100% happy with the quality of Costa Rican doctors & dentists. Many are educated in Europe & the US, however their own medical colleges here are superb. They routinely perform very complex surgery such as heart-lung transplants and many US based hospitals send patients here for treatment to save costs. Most major US insurance companies cover US citizens in Costa Rica. They actually love the lower costs.

Spider
08-09-2011, 12:39 PM
Thanks. I have been thinking about Costa Rica as a place to retire since my scuba diving days. Any comments about personal safety? So many of my old haunts in the Caribbean seem to have seriously worsening crime, these days. What's the story from Costa Rica on that score?

billbenson
08-09-2011, 01:35 PM
Spider - on doctors in most of central and south america: Most receive high quality schooling in the US or Europe. There are some good schools in Latin America and the Caribbean as Soelman said. Where the system breads down is equipment and support staff (nurses, x ray technicians etc). The wealthy in most countries have access to quality medical care. You would certainly qualify as one of the wealthy.

On safety, I'll let Soelman speak directly on Costa Rica. Costa Rica, and Panama are both still quite safe. Particularly in the areas where they are trying to attract tourists or retirees. Nicaragua has also been trying to attract retirees lately. Its an extremely poor country, but I hear the areas designed for retirees are beautiful and safe.

Many of the countries are hit hard by gang activity and quite dangerous. El Salvador where my wife goes a couple of times a year is about the worst. Its really to bad considering the places are absolutely beautiful.

Obviously I'm considering it and wouldn't do so with safety concerns.

seolman
08-09-2011, 05:06 PM
spider: ref- safety I suggest a read of this (http://www.trycostarica.com/p/costa-rica-safety-tips)

(apologies to VG for my self-indulgent link)

It is a sad fact that drug crime is increasing everywhere in Latin America, including Costa Rica. However, most crimes happen to people who go into risky areas at bad times or fail to follow common sense guidelines.

Spider
08-09-2011, 05:49 PM
It's a shame! But still CR doesn't sound any worse - and indeed somewhat better - than some Caribbean Islands.

seolman
08-09-2011, 06:10 PM
It's a shame! But still CR doesn't sound any worse - and indeed somewhat better - than some Caribbean Islands.

I have not traveled much in the Caribbean but I have been many other places and Costa Rica is head and shoulders above most as regards quality of life. The toughest thing for most to adjust to is the laid back culture here. No one is in a hurry and the harder you push the slower they go.

Patrysha
08-09-2011, 06:26 PM
No one is in a hurry and the harder you push the slower they go.

Sounds just like my children...

billbenson
08-09-2011, 10:34 PM
Every place has its "flavor". I've been to every business center in the Caribbean many times. You will find that some of the islands are much more dangerous than others. Also the people can range from friendly to very unfriendly. One place I really enjoy is the Dominican Republic. Its very poor. The people are nice and its dirt cheap and beautiful. It can be dangerous, but people will steal from you out of need, not hate. Then you can go to other places where people would just assume shoot you as talk to you. Lastly there are nice safe islands. There is a pretty big variety out there.

seolman
08-09-2011, 11:44 PM
@bill - yes I have heard good things about the Dominican Republic. Friends of ours lived there on a remote island for some time and loved it.