In Memory of Sean McGraw

Very much in keeping with the theme of Costa Rica real estate, I thought I’d take advantage of the liberties afforded me as the owner of this blog and write about the death of a professional associate, and a friend, Sean McGraw. Sean died Tuesday night, March 24th, 2009, in a car accident. He was … Read more

The “Guys in the Zone” Talk Show – Episode 1

Click the “Play” button (upper left) to listen to the show. The newest feature on GuysInTheZone.com, our “Talk Show” is your audio source for news and information about real estate in Costa Rica’s southern Pacific zone. Hosted by Ben and Rod, these conversational shorts can be listened to online (just hit the Play button below) … Read more

The Question on Everbody’s Mind

How would you describe the current “crisis” impact on the local economy and on Costa Rica real-estate in general?

Yesterday I made the trip up to San Isidro de el General to take care of some things. I was to meet Rod and Lindsay for lunch at “Mexico Lindo”, an amazing genuine Mexican food restaurant there, run by a bona fide Mexican Armando and his lovely wife. I have known them for years and used to frequent their little taco hole in one of the off-the-beaten-path streets of San Isidro years ago. Now they are located right on the central square and my, how things have changed since those days of long ago. I don’t think that there was a single empty table there, and at least 50% of what I heard was English – my, how things have changed.

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Running the gauntlet of greetings as I made my way back to Rod and Lindsay, I looked up to see a couple who are particularly good friends, but that I have not seen for awhile. I greeted them with something like “how are you guys doing in this new world in which we live?” (reference to the economy), to which they responded, “what is going on?”. Working in real estate provides one with an interesting position in life. I didn’t realize it for a long time, but it is now clearer than ever. This industry is at the very foundation of life. We all need to live, play, and work somewhere. I received the above question in an e-mail from one of my clients just yesterday, so I heard the question a total of 2 times over the course of the day, and that wasn’t an unusual day.

Here’s what I think

We have lost a lot of buyers due to the economic crisis. We are gaining some buyers that we wouldn’t have otherwise had. It may look something like the graphic there to the left. It means a slow down for us here in Costa Rica, but not death. I have a client/friend/partner that is a high output kinda guy. I’ll call him Steve, a lawyer in Florida. He purchased a piece of land from me 3ish years ago. Subsequent visits have given us the opportunity to forge a friendship. Steve had a plan.

  • Sell his beach condo that he bought for investment
  • Sell his main home
  • Let the lease on his Porsche run out
  • Finish up obligations at the firm
  • Set up some means of income in Costa Rica
  • Move to Costa Rica

Steve LOVES Costa Rica. This is home to him. Every visit here confirms it to him. He just needed to get the ducks all lined up in a neat row prior to making the move. This is a common scenario. Life was fine. Plans were being made. Then, it all changed.

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“Yodel Naked” Sweeps the Globe

Some are touting the global phenomenon of Yodeling Naked as the possible solution to the many divisive problems now confronting mankind. Originally developed as a privacy measure for property in Costa Rica’s remote southern pacific zone by none other than us here at Guys In The Zone, “Yodeling Naked” has swept the globe. Some are … Read more