By Ivo Henfling

I really enjoy my time off and my vacations. My wife Dany and I love to travel and get to know new destinations and when we like one very much we might repeat, once. This time, we went to Las Vegas and really enjoyed it. Impressive city, great shows, lots to do. We even went to see Rod Stewart, who still sings and dances. The food is fantastic, and while we’re not big eaters, Dany and I enjoy the Jumbo shrimp as big as two fingers, Oysters Rockefeller, New England Clam Chowder, Steamed Clams in White Wine & Garlic, King Crab Salad Sandwich, all under $15. Or the all you can eat dinner for $25 each, where you can eat yourself silly with crab legs, all kinds of sea food, Asian, Italian and a ridiculous amount of desserts. You're right, we are both seafood lovers. Meat we can eat in Costa Rica.

Excelent service and great roads

The service is awesome everywhere, people are nice and say good morning when you walk into the store. They’re always so positive and helpful, ready to assist you with anything and so well trained. The neighborhoods are so clean with nice sidewalks, beautiful highways that are always under construction but without obstructing the traffic, while my GPS (I wouldn’t drive without it) leads my way. It is all so well organized.

Easy shopping

If you buy something in a store, take it home and it doesn’t fit right or you don’t like it, you just return it and they will give you your money back. They don’t even ask why. On my last trip to Atlanta, I had had bought a watch at Macy’s which turned out not to be working very well. I just returned it in Macy’s in Las Vegas and got my money back immediately. Amazing!

Las Vegas real estate

Of course, even though I am on vacation, I really had to check on the real estate in Las Vegas. I picked up some flyers on the way: 2,000 ft2 3/2 homes for $94,000 and 1,600 ft2 2/2 apartments with security for $64,000. Wherever I look are all these empty homes and apartments, developers desperate to get rid of the homes. Buyers finding out they are paying the bank more than the value is. Neighboring houses are selling for less than half of what they owe on their own.

Crazy?

Now I see you wondering, what the heck is going on with Ivo, what is he talking about now? Is he moving to Vegas? Is GoDutch Realty opening up a new office in Las Vegas or Boulder City?

No way José, that won’t happen, not for anything in the world. I realize two things:

1.    I really love Costa Rica and its people, I wouldn’t live is such an organized, perfect and plastic society anymore. I left that over-organized world behind 30 years. Too many rules, too many laws, too much hassle to get anything done. If I want to paint my front door red, I just paint it. If I want to plant tomatoes in my front yard, I can do it without the city telling me I have to grow a lawn. If I want to park on the left side of the street, I can do so. And if I want to drive slower than the maximum speed and watch the views while doing it, I can also do so. in short, I live a much happier life in Costa Rica.

2.    Costa Rica real estate is stable and nobody is giving anything away. Developers in Costa Rica ore not trying to get rid of inventory, they’re actually selling at normal prices. Costa Rican banks are not trying to make deals with the property owners who can’t make their payments. Costa Rica has a strong economy, with more jobs being available every day. Banks are happy to give new mortgages to the young, just married executives buying their first home.

Home

Honestly, I enjoy my vacations to larger cities and other countries a lot, but I see them as leisure and, like my friend Rick says “I’m glad to be back at the farm”. So if you like to get rid of that organized life and live a happy life like I do, you should contact me NOW.

If you have any comments, I appreciate them, good or bad and you can add them below. Unfortunately, hackers have gotten into the root of my website too many times, so I need to ask you to register to leave any comments.

Ivo Henfling is a leading real estate broker on the west side of San Jose, with offices in Escazu, Cariari, Atenas, Grecia and Los Santos. If you are looking to buy a condo, a 2nd home, a building lot or a family home, you should contact him now as his knowledge of the local market and having relocated ex-pats for over 15 years will give you the best options possible.