Housing in mountainous areas

What is your wife allergic to?

Redbird55 wrote:

Where are the safest places to stay near other expats? We need clean safe housing with clean air.. My wife has many allergies. Thanks!

Hola Redbird,

With you wife's allergies, I'd think you'd need to try various areas to be able to find what might work for you.  Compared to North America, the air is much cleaner here, even in the larger cities.  Suggestions:  Atenas, Naranjo, Grecia, Palmares, San Ramon and there are many others.

If you want hot weather along the coast, I would ask that others make recommendations....

- Expat Dave

Molds spores and trees pores.. Ragweed and such

Thousands of species of trees and their spores are all over the country...

Mold & mildew is often a problem during the rainy season. and at certain areas of the coast and the higher elevations tends to get more rain, hence it will be more humid.

You would really need to come and try it out for yourselves, before making a
commitment. Unfortunately, as the weather changes, conditions will also change.

In your home you may have to run a dehumidifier constantly, which will get expensive.

News article regarding allergies

kohlerias wrote:

Thousands of species of trees and their spores are all over the country...

Mold & mildew is often a problem during the rainy season. and at certain areas of the coast and the higher elevations tends to get more rain, hence it will be more humid.

You would really need to come and try it out for yourselves, before making a
commitment. Unfortunately, as the weather changes, conditions will also change.

In your home you may have to run a dehumidifier constantly, which will get expensive.

News article regarding allergies

Totally agree except for, "...mildew is 'often' a problem...."  It's ALWAYS a problem during the rainy season.   

YES I KNOW... that  some on this site who live in their little Gringo gulches will not agree BUT OUR area of Concepcion de San Rafael de Heredia is NOTED for its CLEAN FRESH AIR even when we say that we live there the locals say"'WOW the BEST climate in C.R. (I agree and have lived here for 27 years  not too hot never humid and FRESH AIR ! All my guests when returning from visiting many other areas say  "WOW we can breathe again" and  "it'sSpring here Daily..Some areas have good air BUT are too cold...COME visit and see for yourselves..SHE can try it for a month and see if her allergies disappear..We are just a 10 minute drive from charming town of Heredia(which many Gringos have never heard of YET used to be the Capitol in the OLDER cleaner days...Now known as "The city of the Flowers"
I will be happy to show you around and try to help find you a place to live..
Good Luck.. PM me if interested in visiting.
Pebs

I will also add that I've yet to see a place in Costa Rica where there is no mold or mildew. Some less, some more than others. At the beach - even a km or so above it - mold and mildew are horrible but it's the price you pay for living near the ocean. In the mountains there is lots of rain and sometimes fog so there too you will have at least some mold and mildew.
Consider that you are contemplating moving to an area that is very humid, where it rains 7-9 months a year on average, and where there are lots and lots of trees, plants, flowers, bushes etc.
I do not live in a "gringo gulch", I live in a place that's 97% or so Ticos. I don't see what living in a gringo area, or not, has to do with mold and mildew though!

ANYONE on this site can inspect my 5 properties on my 3 acres  main house plus 2 rustic houses plus 3 apartments..AND if Mold  or mildew is found I will EAT IT ! 
PS:  Concepcion de san Rafael de Heredia where I live is 3000 above S.L...and in the mountains . with a RARE spring like year round climate yes it rains in Afternoons rainy season but not everyday  WHO knows know that Hurricanes are headed for Florida ..or have they passed ?
NO HUMIDITY HERE FOR SURE ,,and remember as I have said, before buying here I LIVED in. MANY MANY places ALL over Costa Rica..and the worst seemed to be in the GG areas,...maybe that is why so many Gringos gripe about mold and mildew obviously ... yes? There are many  others on this site  who do not live in GG's BUT do HAVE Mold and Mildew ..So sorry for you really. 
I guess this pocket of Paradise was blessed with a rare climate . I KNOW for sure that is is virtually Undiscovered by many Gringos ..

Another thing to take into consideration if you choose to live at a higher altitude, and that is to be prepared that you may required auxiliary heating as the nights can be cold. This would require using a fireplace or stove using  wood which you would need to cut...  .. which  may make your wife's allergies worse.

kohlerias  Are you not the same person/people as "Kohl"  with a different username?

Anyway ...true,  many upper regions in Costa Rica like above us,  only  a 15 minute drive from my home  such as at our Country Club,  IT IS COLD with PINE trees  (not quite like Switzerland BUT much cooler than here. When I visit friends there or go to the country Club I need a Jacket... than as I said our area which has SPRING LIKE TEMPS..70/83  degrees F. YEAR ROUND... SLIGHTLY cooling at night for good sleep BUT NEVER extra blankets needed as are in  parts of Upper territories and southern like Cartago..
Are you not cold sometimes in YOUR area ? I heard so.
We never are too cold because as I said a MILD and a lot of sunshine... yet we can get a better tan here than at the beaches so say ALL my guests ..WHY? because here the sun is Milder and people can stay out LONGER and not have to Spring up and down on the hot sand heading for the sea..Akin tot e movie "10"  with Dudley Moore R.I.P. my ex  British pal.Miss your humor..(Brit spelling )
SO as I said OUR  Concepcion de San Rafael de Heredia..area is  RARE in that we are neither too COOL NOR God forbid..too COLD nor  too cool even ..Just clarifying..temps are so very different in C.R within a 15 minute drive even... You should visit this  EXACT area and see for yourself..because people who say they KNOW Heredia THINK it is all the same climate WRONG ..Heredia is not just a town but a large Province ..with many climates... Alejuela is only a 25 min drive and it is too hot and humid  there for me...just an example of the many micro climates in Costa Rica

kohlerias wrote:

Another thing to take into consideration if you choose to live at a higher altitude, and that is to be prepared that you may required auxiliary heating as the nights can be cold. This would require using a fireplace or stove using  wood which you would need to cut...  .. which  may make your wife's allergies worse.

I get cold easy and while my wife and others may feel heat is not needed, the other night I turned on my heater for a while!
I use an electric one and yes electric heat is expensive but I use it so rarely it's not an issue. I almost never use it for more than 20 minutes and sometimes less, just to take the chill off late at night in the living room.
We're at 2850 feet and like I say, most people think I'm nuts but I have always gotten cold easy and though a doctor has never said so, I believe I have less than optimal circulation in my extremities.

I never imagined it could feel cold here so close to the equator but I realize that depending on your altitude and wind and other factors, it can be cold anywhere in the world!

That said, I use the heat rarely and to me the optimal altitude is around 2500-3000 feet or so. Some people who do like cool weather may prefer to be at 4000 feet. If you really like it cool go for 5,000 feet. Anything under 2000 feet is going to be hotter and the closer you get to sea level the hotter it will be. And if you hate humidity stay away from ALL beach areas and cloud forests/rain forests.

When looking for properties I recommend using an altimeter and taking notes on what altitude each property is at so you can get an idea of the heat/cold.