Costa Rica Real Estate Challenge: Party House With a Pool

The house-hunt goes on… and on… and on, or so it seems. For a while, there seemed to be few real estate choices or what was available didn’t have what we wanted or they were too expensive at more than $1000 a month, often plus utilities. Now we have a surfeit of options, all with most of what we are looking for -- extra bedroom, office space, a good kitchen, a swimming pool, close enough to walk to town or on a bus line and, of course, priced right. Not only are there now several to choose from, but also it seems that once the owners meet us or communicate enough by email or through a realtor to realize we are good tenants, they start courting us! We’ve had two homeowners offer to lower their price by $100 to entice us to rent their place.

Now THAT's a kitchen!

The first home is probably our favorite so far and if the owner -- a Russian, we’re told -- agrees to a few accommodations, such as paying for the gardener, we will likely take it. It’s a nicely furnished two bedroom, one a large master suite, with a gorgeous kitchen, an important feature for this semi-gourmet cook and enthusiastic party hostess. Plus, it’s in a great location, walking distance from town but with buses nearby as well. It has a swimming pool, which is shared with the other house in the compound, and a charming little “dipping” pool with a swim-up bar just off the patio. It even has an old basketball court in the front yard. Its main drawback is only one bathroom in the house, although there is a half bath off the big, shared rancho in the common area.

The Santa Eulalia "Tico" house 

That's NOT a kitchen!

The main competitor to this house is an amazing Tico house in Barrio Santa Eulalia, a jungley, hilly Tico community about a 15-minute drive uphill or in our case, a 25-minute bus ride. That distance is one concern for us as we want to have parties and entertain, and although the house is perfect for such events, even sporting a pool table in the lower level and extra guest bathrooms (a total of four!), the distance from town makes it less than ideal. The really big problem with this house is the kitchen, or lack thereof. It’s a “tico” kitchen - meaning only one sink, no hot water (quite common here), no cabinets or drawers, although it does have a pantry. There’s not even a range with an oven, just a built-in counter cooktop. The owner really liked us and we liked him as well; he has agreed to several significant upgrades, including a new stove, trying to make us happy but I’m not sure our objections can be overcome. Still, the reduced price from $800 to $700 and several other features keep it in the running, as we mull our options.

Still another possibility is a temporary three-month rental in an area of Costa Rica several hours from here that we’ve been told is very nice, just up the Pacific slope from Dominical beach. We had turned this offer down a while back -- even though the place is a total mansion with views and a pool and a huge kitchen -- only because we don’t want to be house hunting so soon after a move. But when the owner had no other suitable applicants, he contacted us again recently saying he really would like us to take it and to help us out, he has been trying to locate a suitable place where we could move at the end of the three months. He and his wife have invited us to come for a visit and stay at their place to look around the area. It’s basically a house-sitting situation and he really wants us to look after his gorgeous home.

It’s so nice to be loved. ;-)

Of course, we aren’t sure we want to move away from Atenas. Having been here over a year now, we know our way around, have made lots of friends, Tico and Gringo alike, love the weather and appreciate the fact that we can bus into San Jose in just about a hour for about $3.00 total each way or to the beaches at Jaco in just over an hour and a half. We like having good health services here in town and value the friendliness of the local people.

But living in different areas of the country also has a certain appeal, as it would allow us to experience living in a beachside community or up in the mountains. And in fact, we have been told that Atenas, being such a desirable locale, has more expensive real estate and rentals than in other parts of the country so we might be able to save money by living elsewhere. Particularly now that the new highway is open between San Jose and Atenas, realtor friends tell us that well-to-do Ticos are relocating here and commuting to their jobs in the city, a pattern that is also driving up prices.

Even in the short time we’ve lived here, we have noticed an increase in the Gringo population (not counting ourselves!) and a trend of development of gated upscale communities such as Roca Verde, which covers a beautiful green hillside overlooking the town in a way that seems somewhat supercilious to us. We have looked at houses there but turned them all down, partly for the reason that I am just not comfortable in such an enclave.

But there remains a charming small town feel to Atenas, exemplified by such ironic scenes as these two horses grazing happily in a lot just a block from downtown, and with only a ragged excuse for a fence and that missing a gate, allowing them to walk out any time. But knowing horses, they would probably stay there so long as a green blade of grass remained.  

So we continue to scour the real estate ads, websites and harass our local realtors in the hope of finding what we are looking for. We don’t want much: just the “perfect” place! 

(Remember, you can click on a photo to enlarge it.)

Smile, Mr. Iguana -- You're on Candid Camera!

By now I’ve probably seen dozens of Iguanas, large and small, in our year and a half here in Costa Rica but I never seem to tire of watching the prehistoric creatures. They look so fierce but are really quite timid, scurrying off into the brush as fast as their little legs will carry them whenever I catch one unaware. I’ve seen four or five different ones right here in our compound and I’m sure that’s only a fraction of the ones in our jungle outside the backdoor. When I caught this big guy having lunch on the steps just below our front patio, he seemed to know he was on Candid Camera and eyed me curiously as I shot this video before dashing up the stairs and away. I’m still working on holding the camera still but I think you’ll enjoy seeing his mealtime activities.

It seems that even here in the rainy season we can find ourselves water-less as we were a few months ago. (See that post here.) This happened again the other day and naturally, we had just put on a load of wash. Mind you, finding a day when doing laundry is possible during the rainy season is a challenge in itself. We have no dryer and must hang our clothes outside to dry but when the sky is cloudy and threatening a downpour, the better part of valor is to hold off on the washing. Well, this particular morning looked pretty good so we put on a load but when we went down to hang them up, we found the machine was stuck at the Rinse cycle with no water coming into the tub. Uh-oh. I called up to Layne to check whether we had water in the house and sure enough, the taps were dry.

And as luck would have it, we hadn’t yet had breakfast so rather than try to cook without water available, we headed off to town to one of our favorite breakfast places. Along we way, we came across these two gentlemen in the photo, hard at work on one of the pipes leading from our new water tank. After the de rigueur “Buenas dias,” I said to them: “Tenemos no agua en Los Angeles. ¿Es esta la razón?” (“We have no water in Los Angeles. Is this the reason?”) They smiled the affirmative. I asked how long the repairs might take and was told a couple more hours so we continued on our way to breakfast. Pura Vida!

Along the way we encountered a horseback rider, cruising alongside the busy main thoroughfare on his high-stepping Costa Rican pony. 

As he came alongside us, I asked if he would let me take a photo and he was happy to pose although the horse was a bit nervous at the whole episode. When I mentioned that the horse had his ears laid back, the rider patted him on the neck and tried unsuccessfully to push the ear forward, saying “yes, fear.” Seeing the huge trucks and buses and speeding cars that were moving on the road next to the animal, you could understand his trepidation.

As mentioned in my last blog post, the local organic market is back in full swing. We walked to Nathalie’s, all the way on the far side of town, maybe 2 miles, last Saturday to pick up our first basket of food, which included beets, red lettuce, carrots, wonderfully tasty tomatoes, a big bunch of bok choy, a chile dulce, a small eggplant, some celery and a head of garlic. Not bad for about $10! When we arrived, her daughter was engaged in some pretty amazing artwork with a friend. They were painting flowers and butterflies on the seat and back of what will undoubtedly be a chair. Pretty creative and so typically Tico.

Layne and I have been house hunting in recent weeks in our search for a larger apartment or house so when visitors come, we have a suitable place for them to stay. On some of our recent walks we strolled down side streets to see if we might happen upon a rental offered by a Tico, which would be less expensive than those on Craigslist that are targeting more well-to-do Gringos. We’ve seen some nice homes in our trips out with local realtors but most seem expensive to us, almost U.S. prices. Ticos often don’t turn to professional real estate people to find tenants, relying instead on word-of-mouth, so we watch for rental signs and ask all our Tico friends for help. Wandering through those back streets, it’s often a surprise to find a small plot of land crowded in agriculture, mostly coffee plants but also citrus and banana trees, corn, mango and papaya. It may be the rainy season but the plants sure love it! 

(Dear readers: Please let me know what you think of the little "Infolinks" that I've added. And remember, you can enlarge any photo by clicking on it.)

We Brake for Water Buffalo!

Watch out for the water buffalo!

We’ve been back in Costa Rica just over a week now and it sure is good to be here. This is the first July we’ve spent in country and we can understand why it’s called the “green season.” In the six weeks we were gone, the trees have filled out in lush splendor, flowers are in bloom everywhere -- even more than usual -- and the air is alive with butterflies. On our first walk last week, we passed a large roadside patch of zinnias and the number of butterflies of every description, large and small, black and yellow, brown and orange, red and white, was just astounding! I recorded this video and hope that you can spy all the wings fluttering from blossom to blossom. The musical background is the neighbor’s radio. Talk about abundant flora and fauna!

A local cornfield

Local gardens are bursting with the bounty of fruits and vegetables as well. It seems like the corn stalks increase a foot or two every day and huge squash leaves spread wide across the ground. Banana trees are majestic with their large new leaves and still-green fruit. If this is the rainy season, it’s not too bad. Most days the rains don’t start until mid- to late afternoon and mornings are sunny and nice.

Of course, for our own pantry we hope to get back to buying from the local organic cooperative market, now run by our friend Nathalie on the model of community markets in her native France, offering small or large size baskets stuffed with the week’s best buys. In addition to the veggies and fruits, she sells organic goat cheeses, Swiss cheese, jams, chicken and fish, eggs and dark chocolates. Yum!

Atenas recycling in action

And while we’re on the subject of organic farming and other important environmental issues, I recently wrote a column for The Costa Rica News about a relatively new effort here in Atenas to collect and recycle tons of materials, such as plastics, glass, paper, cardboard, to prevent them from ending up in landfills. Señor Alfonso Quiros V, chief of operations of W. Recicladores, CR, S.A., has recruited dozens of local volunteers to help his small staff in gathering and sorting recyclables the first Wednesday of each month at the Central Park in Atenas. He’s providing the same service twice a month in Grecia, the larger town up the hill from us. Such efforts are so important in protecting the amazing biodiversity and beautiful ecology here in Costa Rica. As Señor Quiros said to me, “It will take some time to educate the public and our youth on how critical this is, but we will continue to work toward that goal.”

Such projects are extremely valuable in helping Ticos understand the long-term value of preserving their magnificent country’s fragile environment. But one of the most promising developments in ecological progress here is the creation of a new political party focused on protecting Costa Rica’s vast biodiversity and ready to move the battle into the political arena. Formed in 2004 by reporter Carlos Arrieta and retired English teacher Rodrigo Arias, the Green Ecological Party has set its sights on winning a seat in the National Assembly representing the Cartago province where they got their start and have their strongest support. The party has put Arrieta forward as a candidate for office twice before, in 2006 and again last year, but failed to win a seat. He and Arias are optimistic that as Ticos’ political awareness of environmental issues grows, voters will demand strong governmental policies to protect Costa Rica’s ecology; party members hope that 2014 will be their year for a win. 

One of the main planks in the Green Ecological Party platform is banning plastics in certain Costa Rican industries in favor of biodegradable materials. They support mandatory environmental education programs in schools as well as the creation of an environmental “police force” to guard against litterers, polluters, illegal loggers and others whose activities degrade the environment.

 

On a lighter note in closing this post, I’ll mention a couple of funny animal incidents we observed lately. The second rider’s unusual mount is a water buffalo! As we were walking down the road, we saw this fellow along with two horseback riders jogging down the sidewalk then crossing the highway to continue along a side road. I’m sure my horse would have been freaked out to share the road with this creature but the Tico horses seemed less concerned with him than with a rough place in the sidewalk.

Roscoe and Layne socializing on the deck

Vicious Bassett Hound

And finally, meet Roscoe, the landlord’s young pit bull who often comes to visit us as we relax on the front deck in the late afternoon. He gives the breed a good reputation with his lovable nature. In fact, he’s so easy-going that a neighbor dog, an elderly Bassett hound that seemed an unlikely attacker, got the best of poor Roscoe on our back patio recently, biting him in the butt. Hard to imagine but the old guy gave the pit bull puppy a sore tail end!

Pura Vida!