Retirees relocating to Costa Rica

Hi mrsedwinr and welcome to Expat.com!

A longer intro for us maybe?

Harmonie.

My partner and I are in the SW corner of Missouri and also considering moving to Costa Rica.  Both on SS and want a stable place with better weather and lower cost of living.  Want to go down and rent for several months and check out areas.  Leaning toward the central valley I believe.]

The idea to rent for at least several months is a very good idea. A large percentage of people who move here end up not being able to adapt and go back home or move to a different country. If you buy land/house here then you could have a more difficult time leaving if you decide CR is not for you.

"Better weather" of course is subjective. Very basically, you have the coasts which are hot and the mountains which are cool. There is a wide variation in rainfall, surprisingly so for such a small country.

CR is pretty stable politically and economically, but again it's the culture and living in a basically Third World country that can make some folks feel unsettled. As for cost of living, here's the simplistic run-down:

- Housing - significantly cheaper
- Medical - significantly cheaper
- Car - more expensive, though maintenance is inexpensive
- Food - more expensive unless you buy locally and eat a lot of fruits and veggies.
- Utilities - phone cheaper, electricity more expensive, internet service spotty outside Valle Central
- Taxes: 13% sales tax on just about everything, property taxes are ridiculously low, income tax, but you're unlikely to earn taxable income here

Just my personal opinion: Unless you need the additional infrastructure, services, shopping of the Central Valley, you will find it is crowded, there is more crime, horrendous traffic, and higher costs there.

Casey
A Dull Roar - Moving to, Retiring in, Living with Costa Rica

On edit: you should also check out Panamá. I don't think the people are quite as friendly, but the cost of living is less there and it is easier to get residency and you can bring in a brand new car and household goods duty-free!