By Claude Dugas in Atenas

I was born in Quebec, Canada and I lived there for more than fifty years. I knew from a previous winter spent in Amazonia of Peru that living in a warmer environment could contain its charms. Indeed, I have been suffering from the winter cold ever since.

So by the end of January 1993, I decided to come to visit Costa Rica to look at the possibility of making it my place of living.

I drove through USA and Central America and had the chance to live many adventures that could be the set for some very long and interesting blogs by itself. I still could speak some Spanish that I had so easily learnt in Peru so many years before.

by Ivo Henfling

In all my years as a Costa Rica real estate agent, I have had very few clients ask for Costa Rica title insurance. North American buyers are used to take title insurance when they purchase a property but a European or Costarican client don’t even know what title insurance is.

When you purchase a home or land in Costa Rica, you should be purchasing land that is free and clear from any claims, debts or other impediments. Costa Rica's national registry operates under the Torrens system, so with the proper steps you can be certain that your title is free and clear. For sure you don't want the headache of a bad title, so make sure you are informed about your options.

By Ivo Henfling

I have been struggling with bad pain in my feet for years and no doctor could find what the problem was. Thank God for the internet (not of Facebook this time), that made it possible for me to find out that I have a neurological problem. A Costa Rica real estate agent who cannot walk is no good, so I decided to do something about it.

In Costa Rica, the advantage is that if you have a medical problem, you do not need to be referred by any doctor. You just find a doctor in the phone book and make the appointment.

That is how simple it was for me to make an appointment with a neurologist in CIMA hospital in Escazu, a private hospital in Costa Rica. The doctor had me do a neurological electrogram and confirmed that I have a painful neuropathy and I won’t bother you with the rest of the mile long name. What I had also found on the web was that my problem is something that is mostly suffered by diabetics and I am not one.

By Ivo Henfling

When in school, you might have learned about yards, inches, square feet and acres. Well, in Costa Rica, all that is no good and you will have to learn about the metric system. Unless you have found a real estate agent you trust.

If you are buying property in Costa Rica, you will find the measurements will normally be in the metric system, though many real estate companies list the size of the house for sale in square feet and the size of the land in acres as well as in hectares.

I know, you do it different back home but just like you have to learn the Spanish language to make your new life easier, you will also need to understand how we measure properties in Costa Rica.

by Shell Johanson

I would like to tell you all about this incredibly beautiful older home I just listed right on the Cariari golf course. This 6,600 square feet Spanish colonial was one of the first homes built in Cariari and has been continiously updated.

This almost 1/2 an acre property overlooks the length of the 8th fairway and its green and also the tee-off at the ninth hole of the Cariari Golf and Country Club. Very few Cariari homes for sale offer this kind of luxury setting.

The home is one of the finest golf properties availables in Costa Rica and offers five bedrooms and 4 bedrooms on the 2nd floor, all spaciously set up for the luxury lifestyle you are looking for, plus a second floor patio with a gorgeous veranda overlooking the golf course.

By Shell Johanson

How much is my Cariari home worth? That’s a question I’ve been asked so many times. Usually a seller already has a price in mind and their expectations are at times quite dead-on; at times too low, but in most cases they want way too much money.

I’ve heard all the reasoning, “But I paid so much for it”, “I really need that much to buy what I want”, “But I’ve put so much money into renovations”, etc. I always tell them the same thing, “You can choose the paint, the curtains, the lamps, the home, but you can’t choose the price of your own home.” As unpalatable as it might seem to the seller, the price is decided by the market place, and the market is a slave to supply and demand.

by Ivo Henfling

Our neighborhood gang used to play baseball in some construction site near my home when I was 12 years old. The owner of the building under construction invited us to keep visiting after the building would be done.

That was when I was first introduced to 10 pin bowling, the first one in Holland (Europe). When I moved to Costa Rica, I was soon invited to play the American League in the Boliche Dent in San Pedro, the only bowling alley in Costa Rica at the time.

That was before the only terrorist act in Costarican history took place. Tico terrorists (can you believe that?) placed a car bomb against the American embassy downtown San Jose. Since most playing in the American League were US marines, people working at the US embassy and a few teachers who worked at Country Day School and The Costa Rica Academy (now International School), we were not allowed to play for the rest of the year. This was in the beginning of the 80’s.

By Ivo Henfling

To a lot of people I know, Costa Rica is hell, they tell me all the time: Hell, its beautiful here - hell, the food is great here - hell, the women are beautiful here - hell, I’m having a great time, Costa Rica is paradise.

Young people and senior citizens alike come here on vacation and are sold to the country; they come back again and again until they take the big step: moving to Costa Rica. People from all over the world retire in Costa Rica, some love it here and some don't find that happy life they expect to find. But if you do all the right things, your chances to succeed are much better than if you start off with the wrong foot.

The wrong foot is where the disaster startes and 8 GoDutch Realty agents, all ex-pats who have made Costa Rica their paradise, are there to help you. To give you the Ultimate Costa Rica Real Estate Experience, for FREE, at no cost. Is Costa Rica paradise or hell? Find out in this blog how to make it paradise.