I would like to find information on house insurance and company`s in costa rica that are credited with the better business Bureau. Maryann

Wait wait you are not in Kansas anymore.. LOL.. there is no better business bureau and no insurance companies.. at this time the monopoly from the government is the ONLY game in town...

[quote name='sammi' date='Jul 19 2008, 08:33 PM' post='18382']
I would like to find information on house insurance and company`s in costa rica that are credited with the better business Bureau. Maryann

Hi Maryann!

There is no Allstate or State Farm or Geico etc. in COsta RIca. THere is the one and only Govt. run INS which you can get homeowners, car and medical insurance from. WE have all three. Our atty. helped us get the homeowners and car insurance policy. ARCR handles the CAJA medical for us. Our car is 1987 so we only have liability. Our homeowners only covers natural disaster and fires. WE did not feel comfortable having an "appraiser" from the Govt. come in an assess the values of all our stuff and then come up with a policy rate. That is how they do it. Quite a set up to charge the gringos with all the neat stuff ALOT of money. For the natural disaster coverage we pay about $260.00 annually. Hope this helps.

I don't like or have insurance on are homes, autos, boats, or airplane. None

Thank You. I am moving from Las Vegas and have much to do. I have already purchased a house in Quepos, C.R. I still don`t understand how to start our residency. You know step #1 and after that? But thank you for your information. Maryann

Sammi, are you saying that you bought property in CR, but are not a resident, and have no idea of how to become a resident?
first, go here: http://www.arcr.net/services.html
then, go to www.therealcostarica.com
read, read, read..........
follow the directions to lead you to your nearest Costa Rican Consulate...........get in touch with them, and ask them to tell you what you need........

Depending on your location, especially if you are near a river, you should check out flood insurance as they have many propblems, every year during the rainy season. Quepos is one of the wettest area in Costa Rica.

Has anyone ever been actually paid by INS? I know lots of folks who pay them but don't know of them ever paying a claim.

We had a couple of break ins at the farmacy and the rigamorole they put us through was ridiculous. You must have original receipts of anything you want to claim, including furniture and fixtures of any kind. They never paid anything at all.

They won't be getting any more of my money voluntarily.

I know a few folks that are waiting but none that have been payed. Thanks I'll keep my cash.

Incredible....

Hola Maryann,, Residency is a huge issue. To know just how huge read these forums.

Most of the documents you need are obtained within the states. Residency for Costa Rica is essentially impossible to completely accomplish IN Costa RIca. You should get most everything done state side ie.-police letter for your local city of residence, birth cert., if applicable-marriage certificate, proof of income worded specifically for lifetime to you- if you will be pensionado status,all needing to be authenticated, stamped, translated etc. at about $40-50 per document through the CR consulate that is located nearest to you in the US. Once in CR you complete the process with just a few additional items done here-interpol investigation based on fingerprinting done in Costa Rica, some more passport photos, and a cita for migracion lotsa luck with that one, even with the help of ARCR you could be looking at MONTHS before you see a cedula to put in your purse.

For my husband and I we started on all the paperwork in Texas, 6 months before we relocated.

Of those I know (and ARCR estimate confirms) who recently received approval the wait was about a year, (cedula pickup is +/- 2 mo. beyond that). One friend submitted in June of 2007, everything in-country complete (fingerprints, bank deposit, etc.) & folder number by Sept. 2007. He was approved in mid-July 2008. He'll probably get the appointment for cedula in Sept.

BTW, I read elsewhere that new applications may move more quickly because they're going straight into the computer, not stacked on a desk waiting like in-process applicants.

Yes, do all the application work before leaving Las Vegas. Ensure that the Consulate has sent the package to Immigration and it was received. Do all the work while you're where it must be done... You'll need birth and marriage certificates, police letter of good conduct, pension or bank letter, and all must be notarized, certified, authenticated.... as GringaTica said. Although you can (currently) stay while Immigration processes the application, that is not guaranteed and can change. If you haven't even submitted the application...
CD

In the case that one is divorced, they need proof of that as well.

After speaking with my staff, I have been told that some Ticos, when there cars break down or fall apart get 'stolen'. They have been payed with no trouble at all.

I can't take it any more. Sabo, please tell us one thing: are you really that illiterate that you cannot write a cogent sentence, or is this an act? On the one hand, your posts declare you to be a business person, but your command of the English language leaves me shaking my head in wonder! (there care.........they get stolen...........they get payed.......????)

Methinks English may be a second, third or fourth language !

Or it could have been a little to much vino with lunch. As to being successful in business, one does not need to have exceptional grammar or superior intelligence. I have found that being straigth forward, honest, and hard working pays a lot better that being to smart for ones good. Many of the most intelligent folks I know could not run a business to save there lives. IE: Your in healthcare Jdo look at the smartest Docs you know.

The smartest "Docs" I know (and I know quite a few) work long hours...worry about people...and save lives...and are not nearly as rich as folks believe....jp

I agree 100% and when those very smart Docs go into business they tend to not do well.

I certainly did not mean to say, or even to imply that intelligence equals good business sense, or leads to success in business. It is just that my experience has taught me that successful "business" types generally demonstrate at least a modicum of good manners, and the most successful display a good grasp of (common everyday) written and spoken English in all of their dealings, whether formal or informal. This does not require an exceptional use of the language.

Actually, I thought you may be originally from Europe...

We spoke both Swiss/German and English at home. I was born in FL and Jdo is of course right.

I knew I could hear 'another couple of languages' in your posting. And including Spanish, a fourth language!

That and the vino.

What wine do you make? A favourite?

Being in CR I have been working with local fruits. None are as good as I would like but I will keep trying. I will start some new berry wine on Sat. we shall see.

Someone a few years back was trying to market a Passionfruit Wine in CR. Don't know if it ever hit the shelves of the stores there but those who had sampled it said it was pretty good.

So sabo, Passionfruit (parcha, granadilla, maracuya) might be worth playing around with.

Certainly in season it is plentiful and inexpensive enough maybe to warrant experimenting with.

Solamente mis dos granitas de arena . . .

Cheers!

Paul M.
==

I have tried that passion fruit, but think the one I make is better I also use grapefruit, maranon, banana, plus a few secret ones that are great! I also have used the Giant granadilla, but I prefer the small fruit. We use what grow on the farm. We have planted some other 'exotic fruits' that we will 'play with' when they eventually bear fruit. We are also growing grapes.

CRF,

[Sorry, this topic is drifting. Maybe TG will split this part off to form another thread about passionfruit.]

Where did/do you find the giant granadilla. Are you growing it yourself or in the féria near you?

I didn't know that there were any available in CR.

There are 30 some-odd Pasifloras with comestible fruit.

Have you seen the great treatise on passion fruit? It's "Passion Flowers", by J. E. Van der Plank, ISBN: 0304342165; Cloth; pub. Cassell, 1996.

There are several copies on ABE Booksearch at

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResu...p;x=30&y=20

and several copies on Amazon.com at

http://www.amazon.com/Passion-Flowers-J-Va...k/dp/0304342165

It is a very thorough book, well researched and with excellent color photographs of flowers, leaves, and plant habit.

HTIUFY,

Paul M.
==

Yes,Paul, we are growing it and have 9 ripening outside. At the moment I have 12 gallons of this wine, which is 'not to my own personal taste'. It needs to be hand pollinated, though.
When you eventually get a garden going here, I will make sure you get some plants if you want some.

I'll take you up on that.

Does it seem to grow well in your area? Do you have trouble containing it? Pest problems? Have you tried germinating/growing from seed?

Cheers!

Paul
==

No, I have no problems with it. I was given a piece by a friend about 4 years ago,and planted it in a pot. When we moved here, it moved with us...plus lots more! It took a long time to get it's first bloom after being planted in the ground, but now we harvest them regularly. I got a second plant from seed and will look for some more seeds to 'spurt' because one matured and fell a few weeks ago, when we were away for a few days.
I have never seen them in the feria, and when local friends of either ours or our workers come by, they always ask what it is.