Relocating to Costa Rica FAQs

Yes, Costa Rica is an exceptional place to relocate. It offers a wide variety of areas with completely different prices, lifestyles, and affordability. Whether you want to wake up to misty mountain views in Pérez Zeledón or enjoy the tropical warmth and world-class surfing along the coast in Dominical and Uvita, there's an area tailored perfectly to your pace and budget.

It is not needed to rent. If you do your investigation and scouting trips you do not need to rent before buying. Instead of reading online, have a discovery call... people talk about Costa Rica online as if it were a small city and because they spent 2 months in the north, they think that is the reality of the south too. And you can always sell what you bought if you did not like it.

Absolutely. Costa Rica is culturally and socially diverse. There are specific enclaves for almost every lifestyle: luxury and entrepreneur-oriented communities for networking, bohemian coastal towns perfect for creatives, and places for individuals prioritizing medical freedom and natural health choices (such as those who prefer no vaccines). We can match you with the exact community that shares your values.

The cost of living varies wildly depending on your lifestyle and location. Coastal towns like Uvita and Dominical lean toward premium pricing due to high tourist demand, whereas mountain areas like Pérez Zeledón and its surrounding valleys offer a much lower cost of living, abundant local organic produce, and a truly authentic Costa Rican lifestyle.

Yes, foreigners have the exact same property rights as Costa Rican citizens when buying titled land. You do not need a local partner to buy a house or a lot.

No, you do not need to be a resident to purchase property; you can buy on a standard tourist visa. In fact, purchasing a property valued over a certain threshold can actually qualify you to apply for an Investor Residency.

We have trustable builders and the design of the house is free of charge when you buy with us.

Once you choose the property, we do a Letter of Intent (LOI) or Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA). You do a downpayment (which is refundable if the Due Diligence is not what we expected) and then you buy the house.

We can have a call with our lawyers to see what is best for you and your plans.

It is very important to do it. This will secure and also nationalize the funds.

Yes. Many areas of Costa Rica have schools in English.

Costa Rica has a dual, highly regarded healthcare system. There is the public system, known as the Caja (CCSS), which legal residents pay into monthly and can use for free. There is also an excellent private healthcare system with world-class hospitals (mostly centered around the Central Valley) where procedures and private insurance are a fraction of US costs.

As a general rule, immigrants cannot hold a local job that could otherwise be filled by a Costa Rican citizen. However, you can legally own a business and manage it, work completely online as a remote employee or freelancer for companies outside of Costa Rica, or work legally once you achieve permanent residency (which usually takes a few years of temporary residency).

You don't need to be fluent to survive, especially in heavily populated expat hubs or tourist destinations where English is widely spoken. However, to truly integrate, build relationships with your neighbors, navigate government bureaucracy, and show respect to the local culture, putting effort into learning Spanish makes a massive difference in how successful your relocation will be.

Costa Rica is rightfully famous for its peace, its solid democracy, and the warmth of its people. Traveling or living here is an extremely safe experience. In the city and the busiest tourist areas, the only real challenge is being careless with personal belongings. In contrast, non-tourist areas are oases of tranquility so extreme that it's normal to see neighbors with their house doors open. Here, true "safety" has more to do with nature and the roads: the main recommendation is to avoid driving at night or under heavy rain, as visibility decreases significantly and, being mountain or rural routes, roadside assistance can take a little longer to arrive. Cautious driving is the key to enjoying the trip!

Bringing domestic pets to Costa Rica is highly doable and does not require a quarantine period. It does, however, require strict coordination with a certified veterinarian to secure specific international health certificates, up-to-date rabies vaccinations, and endorsed paperwork within a tight window before your flight.

High-speed fiber optic internet is now widely available across most popular beach and mountain towns, making remote work entirely seamless. That said, depending on how remote you live, you have to be prepared for the occasional power bump or water outage during major storms, and navigating certain rural areas still requires a reliable 4x4 vehicle due to unpaved roads and river crossings.