Costa Rica is a diverse and beautiful country with a beautiful culture. It is a wonderful place to consider for retirement and this is a very thorough book covering nearly all aspects of that important decision. My wife and I took Mr. Howard's Central Valley and Pacific tour 6 years ago and bought a charming but very simple house in the little town of Ojochal (mentioned in the book). I now have his latest revision and am amazed at the level of detailed information. This is not a book of sweeping statements. It has that as an introduction but it soon drills down to taxi fares, shipping services and rates, medical operations and costs/locations, residency requirements, and even a few recipes (Gallo Pinto - my wife's favorite - vegetarian).
The forward is a great introduction to "Why live in Costa Rica?". It introduces the options for climate (65ş F days - mountain valleys verses 85ş days coastal year round), economics, safety, alternative countries (not comparable), activities, medical, and US similarities that Costa Rica offers.
The first chapter of the book introduces the overall geography, culture (Pura Vida), government (4 branches - long standing democracy), and economics. This is followed by a chapter covering the 6 climate zones Costa Rica offers. Each section gives concrete examples of housing styles and costs, availability of services, a little history, and generally communicates the lifestyle advantages and disadvantages of each. Plaza Izcazu sort of a US yuppie set, Avenida Ezcazu CR's version of LA's Rodeo Drive ($$$). On the other side of San Jose but still in the very populace central valley is San Pedro, offering more of a college town atmosphere. Outside the central valley (San Jose) there are mountains and geothermal spas, costal beaches and surfing towns, further South there are remote rain forests and laid back little communities (and us).
These 6 zones are very different from each other and the descriptions are detailed including descriptions of the individual towns (a few restaurants, interesting sights / beaches / historical) and their personalities, housing costs, and and. There is enough information that you may be able to concentrate on a few for your investment / retirement (white sandy beaches, large resort hotels and condos, mountain views and cool air, or lush rainforest).
The last dozen chapters expand individual topics / considerations. The author provides a description of the lifestyle possible for different levels of income. Living on $1,000 per month is possible but limited, $3,000 per month allows travel, entertainment and house keepers. He gives budget breakdowns of these totals that include taxes (very reasonable - $175 per year), food, medical, travel, rent, utilities, and etc.
There is a great deal of detailed information that many long time residents in CR probably don't even know. For taxis he suggests the ones that are registered (painted red, yellow triangle on each door with the license number). He even gives charge details ($.85 1st KM, and $.85 after, $8.50 per hour, plus other rates outside municipalities - and important to look for the fare meter (marias)). A feature of this book that shows Howard's language interest is the inclusion of the Costa Rican Spanish translations for many topics ("Con la maria, por favor" to have the driver use the meter if you are in doubt). This level of detail permeates every subject area.
Financial information covers public bank deposits (no limit for amount insured) and private banks (higher interest), how to pay bills (internet is very common), how much to tip (waiter tip is generally included but most others are good to tip).
Making money (2 chapters) covers starting a business, investing in CR, available work (Intel, Amazon, HP, and many others are in Costa Rica), and some business Spanish.
Real Estate discusses the possibility of squatters rights (VERY rare but important), price comparisons, how to buy including financing, lawyers, and legalities, building (lots to talk about here - comment me if you like), beach zone laws, and so on for 60 pages of detailed info.
A chapter titled "Red Tape" has portions you need to know about basic auto insurance and personal property (including cars, boats, planes), and the justice system. There are notes on Wills and Estates, Embassy Service, legal terms and many less likely issues.
More in a sort of miscellaneous section - churches, pets, pharmacies (most US prescription drugs are over the counter - not barbiturates - not amphetamines), shopping, favorite restaurants (two wonderful ones that he took us to on our tour are not listed though- rats - one with coffee wood smoked chicken), and more than I can possibly include in this review.
The net result is the book contains a mountain of quality information. If you want just a beautiful book our favorite is: "Costa Rica: The Forests of Eden" by Kevin Schafer, Alvaro Ugalde, The sweetest little book covering the geological beginnings to early man is: "Costa Rica: The Last Country The Gods Made" by Adrian Colesberry, Kimberly Parsons, The best map BY FAR is: "Costa Rica: Waterproof Travel Map of Costa Rica" by Ray Krueger Koplin, Toucan Maps, and our favorite travel guide (resort listings, places to see etc. ) is: The Lonely Planet Costa Rica Guide Book.
There are two important pieces to me that have already changed since this book was printed. The new and beautiful road Howard mentions as nearly completed is now in fact completely done. This was only a few giant bridges when we were first there and now a new and wonderfully smooth highway goes all the way from San Jose out to and then down the pacific coast. Having to drive over the "Mountain of Death" is no longer necessary. The second new development may only apply to some areas but does include ours. We now have 3G phone including 3G internet service even in the little back reaches of our jungle community, WOW. It is necessary to get the chip from ICE - the CR phone company, and locally purchased 3G computer modems all work but the one I tried from here didn't. There is an ICE desk in the airport if you have an unlocked cell phone.
Nice book, nice country. Best for people who want to enjoy a new culture in a new environment, rather than just transplanting a piece of the US to a more affordable part of the world. But I'm pretty biased. Several friends have decorator homes and love the combination of comfort in exquisite natural surroundings.