Estimated Reading Time: 7 Minutes Waterfall hikes in only one of many adventures you should experience while living in Costa Rica. It doesn’t matter where you live in this beautiful country, there is a ton of adventure waiting for you. The Spanish word for waterfall is catarata, and hiking is caminata or senderismo. Costa Rica…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes Before you become an expat in any country and move here with your family, there are some important things to do first. There’s nothing like going to a beautiful getaway to help you add adventure to your routine. Costa Rica offers incredible scenery and remains a solid destination for you…
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes What you should do with the earnest money deposit is a real estate FAQ or frequently asked question for those buying or selling Costa Rica real estate. This question arises because, in Costa Rica, it’s customary for the buyer to give the earnest money to the seller. Local buyers rarely…
Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes Everybody wants to buy a beach home or condo in Costa Rica now, which is why we have the lowest inventory we have ever had before. Better said, since June 2021, the rush on beach property in Costa Rica has started. We have 13 affiliates on over 800 miles of…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes Is renovating in Costa Rica difficult, or is updating a lot easier? While housing is more affordable in our beautiful country, most foreigners who need to renovate a home have their own standards. But renovating a house is a much larger headache than just updating. You will be jumping through…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes Adding or changing a bathroom vanity can be a quick way to freshen up a bathroom. Instead of shopping for a more modern home, you can simply upgrade, which doesn’t take too much time and money. A double sink bathroom vanity not only provides peace in a marriage or between…
Estimated Reading Time: 8 Minutes Watch out for mud or landslide! A landslide can make your property disappear overnight; did you know that? The image on the left is in Cinchona, where an earthquake in January 2009 – Richter magnitude 6.2, took 34 lives and destroyed many properties. Buying a property in Costa Rica is not…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Although open house showings are not very common in Costa Rica, it is one of the most cost-efficient ways to do so. There are many reasons why open house showings are hardly ever done here, but we won’t get into that now. An open house allows buyers to observe the…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes With all the country’s rain forests and beaches, Costa Rica may not seem like the place to go for museum hopping. However, we happen to have more than 40 museums to explore. Quite a few of them are in San José, so I invite you to request a San Jose…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes If you don’t know where to start when searching for a real estate agency, this MV Realty’s Guide is your solution. Purchasing a property is one of the wisest investments you can make. The purchase allows you to enhance your equity, take advantage of tax breaks, gain more personal freedom,…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes For years, lawyers have recommended using a corporation for property ownership in Costa Rica for resident and non-resident foreigners. For many years, lawyers recommended a corporate structure to own a property because of personal liability, estate planning, tax planning, and a few other reasons. Also, real estate developers used to…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes Taking a walking tour in Costa Rica, as long as you do it when it’s not raining, is a great way to get outdoors and enjoy life. Before you spend all your free time indoors playing online casino games when you move here, think about taking a walking tour first.…
Estimated Reading Time: 4 Minutes Did you know that Tico construction is very different from US-built homes? I’ve seen opinions from expats who think they know but don’t. We DO have construction codes here in Costa Rica, BUT they’re only a bit different. If you don’t believe that, check out the INVU construction regulations. And…
Estimated Reading Time: 5 Minutes A gap year is a great opportunity for students to mature, explore the world, and learn new skills. Whether you decide to take it after high school, between graduate and postgraduate education, or after graduation – there are plenty of opportunities. A gap year can be especially helpful for those…
Estimated Reading Time: 6 Minutes Is shipping a vehicle to Costa Rica a hurdle or not? When moving here, you might doubt shipping a vehicle. Should you shop for a car once you arrive here? We pay high import taxes on cars. So, when you bring a car, you’ll have to pay the tax. When…
Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes Even during the pandemic, some of you have fun things to do, especially those who don’t believe you have one. But today, whether we’re in a pandemic or not is not in discussion right now. This pandemic changed the lives of most of us around the globe, being obliged or…