Scott Oliver — WeLoveCostaRica

The first six months of 2010 are already behind us and since this has been an extraordinarily good year for publicity about Costa Rica, I wanted to take a quick look back over the last six months to remind ourselves how bloody lucky we are to be living in Costa Rica:

In case you missed it, New York Times op-ed columnist Nicolas Kristoff wrote a terrific article in early January about Costa Rica entitled: The Happiest People. The first paragraph gives you all you need when Kristoff says: “Hmmm. You think it’s a coincidence? Costa Rica is one of the very few countries to have abolished its army, and it’s also arguably the happiest nation on earth.”

Kristoff adds that: “What sets Costa Rica apart is its remarkable decision in 1949 to dissolve its armed forces and invest instead in education. Increased schooling created a more stable society, less prone to the conflicts that have raged elsewhere in Central America. Education also boosted the economy, enabling the country to become a major exporter of computer chips and improving English-language skills so as to attract American eco-tourists.”

The title of Deloitte’s April 2010 report about business in Costa Rica is ‘Excellent prospects for the future of business’ and when Deloitte says Costa Rica’s business prospects are “excellent”, isn’t that great news?

Moth with it’s own fur coat..

Costa Rica was also ranked the 8th Most Stable Country in the world by The Economist, the 5th Cleanest Country in the world by Yale’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) and the first country to be designated a “BioGem” by the Natural Resource Defense Counsel.

When the President of Intel, Paul Otellini says the education system in Costa Rica is “outstanding”, and speaks of his “…incredible engineering team” in Costa Rica and raves about the: “…caliber and quality of the people who work here”, that’s not just great news for entrepreneurs thinking about setting up new businesses in Costa Rica, having a polite, well educated, multi-lingual society is good for everyone living in Costa Rica, including retired people, right?

Can you believe these red legs and transparent wings?

The 2010 Global Peace Index was published by the Sydney, Australia-based Institute for Economics and Peace and rankes Costa Rica was #1 in all of Central America and in July 2010 Costa Rica was recognized as the Greenest and Happiest country on the Planet by the British independent research group New Economics Foundation. “Costa Ricans report the highest life satisfaction in the world and have the second-highest average life expectancy of the new world (second to Canada),” the organization said in a statement.

None of these accolades mention the perfect Spring-like weather all year round and the very amiable and attractive Costa Rican people – the Ticos – however, all of this confirms what we already know, that Costa Rica is the wealthiest, safest and most peaceful country in Central America, that Costa Rica has “excellent prospects” and is the greenest and happiest place on earth so it’s not so much of a secret anymore but maybe, just maybe there’s space enough for you…

The Violet Sabrewing hummingbird

One of our VIP Members wrote to me saying: “Scott, what you write about the cost of living in Costa Rica is too true to be tolerated. Please withdraw this article immediately or we’ll be awash in the unwashed of the Northern Hemisphere looking for a place they can survive and thrive. Can’t we just keep Costa Rica our little secret?”

Sunset from my San Jose apartment…

While the United States may still be the richest nation on Earth, it can’t claim to be as happy as Denmark or Finland. In fact, according to a new analysis of data provided by the Gallup World Poll, the relationship between overall life satisfaction and wealth may not be as straightforward as previously thought.

Looking at data collected across 132 countries, the Gallup Organization based their marks — released this month in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology — on representative samples of more than 136,000 people in each country. Respondents were asked how they would rate their lives on a scale from zero (worst possible) to 10 (best possible), as well as answering a series of questions on positive or negative emotions.

See Gallup’s top 15 countries, each with a mean score between 7.0 and 7.7, HERE

Poverty Does Not Mean Unhappiness

Inside Costa Rica

Money boosts life satisfaction, but not necessarily positive feelings, study finds. A list of rankings of selected nations on types of prosperity, Costa Rica placed 4th in “positive feelings” while placing 41st in GDP/Capita.

In contrast countries like the United States, Italy and Japan, who ranked 1st, 18th and 14th, respectively in GDP/Capita, ranked 26th, 67th and 44th, respectively, in positive feelings.

An analysis of the findings from a study of 136.000 people in 132 countries suggests there is no single prescription for happiness, which depends on many factors, including local culture and expectations.

The findings from the data, gathered in the first Gallup World Poll, are published in the July issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

“The public always wonders: Does money make you happy?” Ed Diener, PhD, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Illinois and a senior scientist with the Gallup Organization, says in a news release. “This study shows that it all depends on how you define happiness, because if you look at life satisfaction, how you evaluate your life as a whole, you see a pretty strong correlation around the world between income and happiness.”

The pollsters asked people questions on a wide range of topics, including whether their basic needs were met, what kinds of conveniences they owned, and whether their psychological needs were met.

Participants were also asked about positive and negative emotions experienced the previous day, whether they felt respected, had family and friends they could count on in an emergency, and how free they felt to choose their daily activities.

Diener says positive feelings are much more associated with factors such as whether they feel respected, have autonomy, and if their jobs are fulfilling.

“Everybody has been looking at just life satisfaction and income,” he says. “And while it is true that getting richer will make you more satisfied with your life, it may not have the big impact we thought on enjoying life.”

Among findings:

* The United States had the highest income but ranked 16th in life satisfaction and 26th on positive feelings.

* Some nations such as Costa Rica and New Zealand are happier than their income levels would suggest. Costa Rica ranks 41st in income but fourth in positive feelings, while New Zealand ranks 22nd in incomes but first in positive feelings.

* Some mid-level countries such as Costa Rica do well and some like South Korea less well “in part because of the quality of social relationships,” Diener says in emailed responses to questions from WebMD.

* Denmark ranks high across categories. The country ranked No. 1 on life satisfaction, seventh on positive feelings, and fifth in income.

* Extremely impoverished countries in Africa generally scored low on various categories, but no nation came in lowest in all types of happiness.

* Self-esteem is more important to happiness in the U.S. than in “traditional” cultures.

Also, factors that influence feelings of well-being vary from country to country, Deiner says, adding that the study “clearly shows” that there is no single prescription for happiness.

Money, he says, no more guarantees happiness than cigarette smoking guarantees cancer, but they increase the chances.

In studies of poor people, researchers find that some are happy, in part because their needs are met.

“We have interviewed happy people in the slums of Calcutta and they can be relatively happy, although dissatisfied with their poverty, because they are rich in family and friends,” he says.

Money makes a bigger difference to happiness among poor people, but it takes a lot more additional money to change the happiness of a person who is well-off, Diener says.

Inside Costa Rica

Get ready for lightning speed internet service in the coming year as the Radiográfica Costarricense (RACSA) retools, investing some us$360 million dollars in infrastructure that will increase connection speed up to 100 times that of today.

Alberto Bermúdez, RACSA’s general manage, says the state institution will offer connections up to 1GB and at an economical price, starting at us$30 a month for the basic service.

Currently, RACSA and ICE offer connection speeds from 128kB to 4Mbps at prices ranging from us$11 to us$30, by way of dial up, cable modem (in conjunction with the cable companies) and ADSL.

The new high speed RACSA connection will first be introduced in the Gran Área Metropolitana (San José), from Rohrmoser to San Pedro.

In Costa Rica, 45% of the population (some 2 million) is connected to the internet.

Currently RACSA competes with its parent company, ICE which provides mobile internet and ADSL and AMNET with its cable internet.

The move by RACSA will force competitors, including ICE, to ajust their prices downward and increase connections speeds as well.

Retire to this “turnkey” fully-furnished 1930sf home with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms situated on a 2 ½-acre property located only minutes from Atenas central. It has amazing mountain views from inside the house or while lounging in the pool.

The small tranquil coffee town of Atenas claims the best climate in the world. Located about halfway between San Jose and the central Pacific beaches, Atenas is peaceful to live in but convenient to the popular shopping and touristy activities.

This home features an open-concept kitchen and living room with high ceilings making it perfect for entertaining. The kitchen has plenty of cupboard space and overlooks the pool.

The living room has plenty of large windows to take in the amazing mountain views and the inviting pool. The newly tiled pool is just what you need to cool off and take in the daily sun that Atenas offers.

The master bedroom has a king size bed and a beautiful en-suite with and attached washroom. The other 2 bedrooms are equipped with double beds and have amazing views. The laundry room has an outside entrance and has plenty of storage space. The large covered terrace has plenty of room for outdoor dining with table and chairs plus the outdoor grill.

Two wooden swing sets offer you the choice of relaxing while taking in the view of the pool or the mountains. The house has a hard-to-get telephone line and is equipped with an ADT alarm system and high-speed internet.

The home currently draws an income as a vacation rental home. Being fully furnished with air conditioning, the home is a very popular short-term rental.

The sale price includes everything including fridge, stove, washing machine, couch, both sofa chairs, dining room table and 6 chairs, outside table and 4 chairs, King size bed, 2 double beds, both wooden swing sets, pots, pans, microwave, dishes, coffee machine, toaster, glasses, and cutlery.

The sale also includes the website that promotes this Atenas home as a rental.

This property is one of the best values in all of Atenas, modern home with big mountain views, fully “turnkey”, on 2 ½ acres, only 2 minutes from Atenas central for $284K.

Editor’s Note:  the article below is an important one; it highlights just how misinformed many Americans are regarding crime.  Americans have been conditioned to be fearful of anything and everything . . . unless it is American, of course.  The statistics reveal a very different story.  Americans living in Costa Rica are living in a FAR safer country than the United States.  Please do your own research!

Deadly Crimes in Costa Rica. The safest country in Central America.

By Scott Oliver from WeLoveCostaRica FREE MEMBERSHIP — SIGN UP NOW

One of our VIP Members recently wrote that a very uninformed ‘friend’ told her that: “San Jose is the most dangerous city in Central America, first and foremost…” She added that: “Dont be surprised if you get mugged… Its kinda a part of life in Central America.”

To which I politely reply …

What a load of crap!

The numbers do vary a little depending on the source but no matter what statistics you look at, Costa Rica remains the safest country in all of Central America.

1. El Salvador has a homicide rate in 2009 of 76 per 100,000 inhabitants
2. Honduras has a homicide rate in 2009 of 66.8 per 100,000
3. Guatemala has a homicide rate in 2009 of 48 per 100,000
4. Panama has a homicide rate in 2009 of 24 per 100,000
5. Nicaragua has a homicide rate in 2009 of 13 per 100,000
6. Costa Rica has a homicide rate in 2009 of 11 per 100,000

Crimes in Costa Rica. The safest country in Central America.

Don’t take my word for it though, there are many different sources where you can find this information so please take a look for yourself.

When you do, you’ll see that Costa Rica’s homicide rate is lower than the rate for a few major cities you might recognize like Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Dallas, Detroit, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Columbus, Memphis, Baltimore, Washington DC, Atlanta, Kansas City, Cleveland, Miami, Oakland, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Newark, Buffalo and Mobile…

And do you think you will be singled out because you’re a Gringo living in Costa Rica?

How many US citizens were murdered in Costa Rica in 2009?

According to the Deaths of U.S. Citizens Abroad statistics compiled by the US Department of State, the answer is one person!

If you are genuinely fearful for your life in reading these statistics, don’t go to the mall, don’t go to a restaurant, don’t leave home! Lock all your doors and windows and stay exactly where you are! Please….

In over ten years of living here, I have never been mugged and none of my family have ever been mugged and yes! I walk in the city of San Jose practically every day and often at night.

Written by Scott Oliver, author of 1. Costa Rica Real Estate Scams & How To Avoid Them, 2. How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa, and 3. Costa Rica’s Guide To Making Money Offshore.

New recycling law passes unanimously

By Mike McDonald
Tico Times Staff | mmcdonald@ticotimes.net

Nearly two years after receiving unanimous approval from the Legislative Assembly’s Special Environment Commission, The Integrated Waste Management Bill (GIR) became law on Tuesday through a vote of 51 to zero.

The new law directs funds and resources to the Health Ministry and the Ministry of Education to help promote waste management and to launch public education campaigns. It mandates that municipalities create waste management plans and penalizes citizens, companies and local governments that litter.

Sanctions range from fines to up to 15 years in prison, although jail time is reserved for serious offenses, such as deliberately contaminating a river.

Under the new law, companies that produce hazardous waste must sign contracts with treatment facilities that safely dispose of products’ harmful leftovers.

A commission of representatives from the Institute for Municipal Development, The Health Ministry and the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications will be in charge of enforcing the new law.

Costa Rica produces 11,000 metric tons of solid waste every day. Roughly 30 percent of that trash ends up in streets, rivers and vacant lots, the introduction to the new law estimates.

Since 1991, when the Costa Rican government declared a national emergency over the problem of trash disposal, 15 different bills have been presented to the legislative assembly in an attempt to solve the dilemma. None of them had passed until Tuesday.

Nydia Rodríguez, director of the recycling group Terra Nostra, said the approval of the new waste manage law is an important step to a cleaner future in Costa Rica.

“This law legally regulates the responsible management of waste throughout the whole country,” Rodríguez said in a press release. “It involves the participation and the responsibility of all the actors that make up the Costa Rican population…and makes crucial the role of local governments in their communities.”

Costa Rica Business Prospects – “Excellent” According To New Deloitte Report

Scott Oliver – May 2010

Oh! No! Scott’s found even more positive news about retirement living and business in Costa Rica?

Deloitte is an audit, tax and advisory firm that has a global network of companies and members in 140 countries and, the title of their new April 2010 report about business in Costa Rica refers to: Excelentes perspectivas para el futuro empresarial or, Excellent prospects for the future of business.

Some of our VIP Members happily living here are now have giving me a tongue-in-cheek hard time saying things like: “Scott, what you write about the cost of living in Costa Rica is too true to be tolerated. Please withdraw this article immediately or we’ll be awash in the unwashed of the Northern Hemisphere looking for a place they can survive and thrive. Can’t we just keep Costa Rica our little secret?”

When Deloitte says Costa Rica’s business prospects are “excellent”, isn’t that great news?

Costa Rica Business Prospects – “Excellent” According To New Deloitte Report

When the President of Intel, Paul Otellini says the education system in Costa Rica is “outstanding”, and speaks of his “…incredible engineering team” in Costa Rica and raves about the: “…caliber and quality of the people who work here”, that’s not just great news for entrepreneurs thinking about setting up new businesses in Costa Rica, having a polite, well educated, multi-lingual society is good for everyone living in Costa Rica, including retired people, right?

Deloitte has previously published their Business Barometer report for Spain, Mexico, Argentina and Panama, this is the first time that they have completed the study on Costa Rica.

Good employment outlook and positive expectations

Here are a few highlights from the new April 2010 Business Barometer report done by Deloitte which involved a total of 110 companies in the country who employ 57,100 people and, have an annual turnover of US$10 million:

1. Most of these companies in Costa Rica aim to maintain or increase their staff levels in the next year. Only seven in 100 of them say they may reduce their staff levels.
2. These employers have no plans for layoffs in 2011, in fact 46.3% of them plan to hire more staff.
3. This increased employment outlook means that 74% of respondents felt that they would be paying their workers more over the next 12 months, no one considering a reduction in pay.
4. For 2010, most respondents (46.7%) said they expect the wages to increase by about 5%. For the same year expected inflation by 49% of respondents, would be between 5% and 7%.
5. This projection is similar to that estimated by the Central Bank, whose inflation target of 5% this year.
6. In line with the recovery in Costa Rica, 43.3% felt that production last year improved and 81.8% of respondents believe their companies will expand over the next twelve months.
7. 66% believe the economy is now in a better position than a year ago, 78% believe that there is now a better investment climate, and the same percentage said that unemployment is lower, compared with a year ago.

Higher production and much better than last year.

Alan Saborio, managing partner of Deloitte said that “…the economic recovery has been faster than we all thought.”

In conclusion, the vast majority of business people in Costa Rica and Deloitte believe that Costa Rica has a promising and very optimistic future.

READ ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE

by Jeff Hickcox

Moving to a foreign country comes with many challenges including finding appliances and furnishings for your new home.  From time to time a new home hits the market “turnkey” with all furnishings, appliances and utensils. This is one of those special homes.

Comfortable kitchen

The seller is highly motivated on this high-quality 2,500 sf home on over a 1/4 acre of land is beautifully landscaped, completely fenced in, and has terrific views of the Central Valley and Puriscal mountain range.

Full of luxury, this single-floor home has 3BR – 2.5BTH with a solar-heated pool, 6-person jacuzzi, stainless appliances, 2-car attached garage and it’s in a great Atenas neighborhood.

Atenas is a small mountain town located about halfway between San Jose and the central Pacific beaches (both 30-minute drives with new highway). Said to have “El Mejor Clima del Mundo” (The Best Climate in the World), Atenas is home to a large expat population who enjoy the tranquility and convenience of this quaint agricultural town

This home is concrete block construction with fine finishing details including wood ceilings with recess lighting and quality ceiling fans, luxury fixtures, granite counter tops, custom cabinets, and top-of-the-line appliances, Sat TV, high-speed internet, electric front gate and an alarm system.

This home is well decorated and fully furnished including outdoor furniture. It is on of the only homes with a fully enclosed garage.

Great valley views

Located on a private road in a very desirable section of Atenas, the property is about 7 minutes from the town center. The neighborhood is an excellent blend of Ticos, Canadians, and Americans and has a local church, school, soccer field with playground, mini-markets, and a great local restaurant and bars. The elevation is around 2,700ft offering a wonderful year-round climate.

The owner must move back to the United States and is highly motivated. They are negotiable on the $349,500K price and open to financing some of the sale. This is a must see for anyone looking in this price range.

Cool off in your swimming pool.

See Virtual Tour of this Costa Rica Home

SOURCE — WeLoveCostaRica

by Michael Anthony

FR-5271-P-01 SAFE Mortgage Licensing Act: HUD Responsibilities Under the SAFE Act is just one more nail in the coffin of American independence: A government-issued license to sell your own property.

The proposal could become law as of May 31st and directly violates the 14th Amendment to the Constitution by depriving the right of the homeowner to dispose of their property as they see fit, free of state interference without due process of law.

Now that Americans have nearly zero access to credit through banks, and hardly anyone can qualify for traditional financing, this proposal aims to slam the door on any alternative route. As stated by Roman Mosqueda, S. J.D. in his article, “Proposed HUD Rule Prohibits Seller Financing Without License Except for Family or Own Residence,” the proposed rule impairs obligations of existing contracts protected by the Constitution in the following ways:

• The contract is the law among the parties. A property owner has the right to sell his or her property, including seller financing to enable a buyer short on cash to consummate the sale.
• Seller financing likewise enables a seller to sell his or her properties faster, and earn income during the duration of the promissory note being financed.
• The proposed rule would impair obligations of existing contracts in cases involving contracts to sell with seller-financing, lease with option to buy with seller financing, and other similar contracts.

This overreach of the SAFE Act has exactly the opposite effect as what the Act was intended to cover. HUD’s own Web site, states that the SAFE act was a major component of HERA (The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008), which “constitutes a major new housing law that is designed to assist with the recovery and the revitalization of America’s residential housing market.”

This new rule actually hinders individual homeowners from aiding in their own recovery and gives more power and money to the very same industry that secretly bet on the U.S. housing crash. By requiring mortgage broker licensing, the individual’s right to the use of his own property is now strictly limited.

Furthermore, it limits any type of real recovery as bank financing simply is not possible in many cases, even beyond the “bad credit” equation, or tight lending policies — homes in flood areas, investment homes, or multiple homes owned but not occupied by the owner or the owner’s family, for example. Under the new HUD rules, even when these homes are owned free and clear, the property will no longer be yours to do with as you wish.

The following statistics posted on ActiveRain by a specialist in owner financing and lease options illustrate the vast limitation that the new rule puts on the real estate landscape across America:

• These rules would prohibit even partial seller financing – i.e. a “seller second.”
• According to HUD’s “Residential Finance Survey” in 2001, roughly 40% of all non-farm residential properties in the US are owned free and clear.
• An estimated 6 million Americans own a property other than their own primary residence.
• An estimated 4.5% of Americans own three or more properties, many purchased solely as investment properties.
• 40% of non-owner occupied residences are mobile homes which are more difficult to sell with bank financing.
• Approximately 5% of homes in US are for sale or for lease… seller financing may be key to liquidating this inventory.

As with all government legislation designed to intimidate those considering non-compliance, here are some of the more tyrannical points sourced from The RescueUS Project:

1. You cannot receive a license if you’ve committed any felonies – ever – meaning you’ll never be permitted to self-finance your property under any conditions if you’re a felon of any kind.
2. Mandates fingerprinting to finance your own property.
3. Threatens a $25,000 penalty for owners who fail to obey HUD’s rules.
4. Forces owners to complete 3 hours of Federal Law training.
5. Mandates owners complete 2 hours of federally approved “ethics” training.
6. Requires that owners complete 2 hours of lending standards training.
7. Puts upon all self-financing owners and their prospective buyers dramatically higher costs and decreased opportunities to engage private property transactions.
8. Stops you from exercising your own constitutionally protected private property rights until the government approves your conduct – and charges you for it.
9. HUD grants itself authority to summon you any time it chooses for a host of reasons.

The above scenario, if it does pass in the United States, is extremely unlikely in Costa Rica. Firstly, banks have no history of the type of predatory lending practices seen in the States. Additionally, seller financing and developer financing is seen as a legitimate parallel system that safeguards the Costa Rican economy during times of global stress.

To a certain extent, it is seller financing that has kept the housing market stable while banks correctly tightened their lending practices, which has allowed excess inventory to be depleted. As the well known US real estate investor Henry Kaufman said in his interview with Scott Oliver, “Costa Rica has made no mistakes during the crisis.”

And, now, as other nations — including the U.S. — are in mass crisis mode, or trying desperately to stave off implosion, Costa Rica has declared their economic recovery to be fully underway. In fact, home and development financing has returned with incentives as all of the major banks are now offering more attractive loan options.

While it is quite disturbing for many of us U.S. expats to see a decline in the most basic forms of independence upon which our country was built, we are doubly thankful to have found Costa Rica.