American citizens who are eligible to collect retirement benefits and planning to live abroad as temporary or permanent expats can collect retirement benefits in accordance with Social Security Administration (SSA) laws.

* If you are an American citizen, you can collect benefits while overseas as long as you qualify (go to the SSA’s *Qualify and Apply* section).

* Whether you are permanently or temporarily abroad, it is recommended that you arrange direct deposit of benefits to a reliable overseas or U.S. financial institution and utilize any services offered online (change of address, forms, etc.).

* Questionnaires sent periodically to determine continued eligibility must be answered truthfully and returned immediately or payments will stop. Giving false information or failure to report any changes in your status will incur penalties and/or result in imprisonment under U.S. law.

* Foreign offices handling SS claims, questions and other inquiries are usually American Consulates (click *here* to find one).

Non-citizens who worked in the USA

If you are a non-citizen who worked in the USA, you may also qualify to collect benefits if you meet the same eligibility requirements for U.S. citizens. However, there may be additional requirements as determined on a case-by-case basis.

Countries in which payment of retirement benefits is allowed as long as eligibility is met:

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Essentially, the SSA allows payments in countries where there is a significant number of American expats. If your country is not listed above, or below on the prohibited list, you must contact the SSA directly to determine other options available to you.

If you are in need of information on this subject, please contact our office Costa Rica Retirement Vacation Properties . toll free 1 888581 1786 or locally 2293 2446

Costa Rica is the number one offshore location for Americans retiring.  We at Costa Rica Retirement Vacation Properties have eyed this market for some time and need tobe ready for it despite the gloom and doom predicted because of the US markets and their fallout.  Note the following:

Boomers are 78 million strong and represent 24% of the U.S. population, they certainly don’t always think and act alike.  Some are very anxious to go offshore for a host of different reasons.
A Baby Boomers USA Report Uncovers $46 Billion Growth. At approximately 78 million people, Baby Boomers are one of the largest buying groups in America.

CANADIAN BOOMERS

The number of Canadians aged 55 to 64 — those most likely to be thinking about retirement — jumped by 28 per cent in the past five years to 3.7 million.

What do Baby Boomers seek mainly? Low maintenance, security location -

Baby Boomers the oldest of which are 58 years of age, yearn for the simplistic life when choosing a home for retirement.- low maintenance, security, and location are major factors driving activity. Sales in condominiums are on the upswing coast to coast in the USA.  Baby Boomers are going to blow the roof off retirement living.  Retirement Real Estate in warmer climates is high on the list also

Influences
 
The new retirement will encompass today’s active lifestyle communities, with all future movement driven by preference, not by life cycle events. Luxury condominiums-golf and adult lifestyle communities, secondary residences,and smaller homes in better areas are attracting this age group.

This demographic tidal wave is starting to have an impact on the cottage real estate market, but the real effect is yet to be felt.

In my opinion, Costa Rica Real Estate will share the influx of Baby Boomers through out the country with a larger percentage seeking the retirement areas with the best year round climates and good health care such as the central valley of Costa Rica.

Other centers such as Tamarindo and Liberia are now looking to have our major Hospitals server their areas. This can be most helpful for the Coastal real estate market.

We at Costa Rica Retirement Vacation Properties have been focusing most of our marketing efforts on the Baby Boomers. We see Costa Rica as a solution for many. Many Boomers will be buying properties today that complete timely with their retirement dates.

Hundreds of families in a Santa Ana condo project have had to deal with dry pipes, said a representative from the Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados.    The project is Avalon Condominiums,

said Eduardo Solano, the representative of Acueductos y Alcantarillados who is working on the case. The project developers were only allowed water for construction and people were not even supposed to be living in the condominium project until it was completed, said Solano.Instead, families moved into the condominiums as each building was completed. The Avalon project is constructed of numerous buildings, some of which are now complete and have people living in them. There are about 350 condominiums in the two buildings which are part of Avalon Country Club, said a project administrator Thursday.  

Although Solano said he could not confirm the owners reasons for moving people into the condominiums early, he speculated it could have been to finance the project.

Frank Rodríguez, a sales representative at Avalon, said that the water was shut off for four days and that it was simply to amplify the current water pipe by 50 percent. There are no problems with the water company and currently the water situation is back to normal, said Rodríguez. As to why people were living in the project before it was complete, Rodríguez said that the project is basically complete except for a few minor details.

Solano said he did not know exactly who the owner of the
project is although he later said he was working with the owners to fix the water problem. The Avalon Plaza Web site lists Grupo Sur Inversiones as the project developer and Van Der Laat y Jiménez S.A. as the construction company.  

Residents who contacted A.M. Costa Rica about water problems in the condominium wished to go unnamed. One person said someone had actually fallen ill from drinking the water.  Rodríguez said the water was not supposed to be drunk while workers were enlarging the pipes but now everything is back to normal.

Solano explained that the company was permitted to use a 19 mm or three-quarter-inch pipe to pump in water for construction but that someone had manipulated the tubes to interconnect with a large pipe that belongs to Acueductos y Alcantarillados.

Last week the water company came in with police officers and shut off the water altogether, said Solano. The owners of Avalon Condominiums had to pay for the extra water and pay for the installation of the three-quarter-inch pipe. Now once again people have water, said Solano but although the pipe is small for such a large amount of people, said Solano. “I imagine that it won’t be a sufficient amount,” said the water representative.

Nagel Yakomoto, the functioning project administrator, said Thursday that the condominiums do have drinkable water and that the problem is with the water company not the project developers.

Years ago when the project initiated, developers asked the water company for a large pipeline, said Ms. Yakomoto. That pipe was never provided, she said, and people wanted to move in right away.

Costa Rica gained a large amount of popularity as a Golf destination when it began to hold the Costa Rica open at the Cariari Country Club. Golf has become a very popular Costa Rica sport and grown tremendously in the recent past.
Costa Rica golf has always had an excellent Golf association which has been a large help over the years in Golf development.

(Infocom) — Everything is ready for Costa Rica to re-immerse itself in the world of professional international golf, thanks to the Costa Rica Masters 2008, which will be held in Guanacaste’s Reserva Conchal Golf Club next Dec. 11-14.
 
The tournament was officially announced by Tour de las Americas (TLA) and the Canadian Tour, as part of a partnership between the two tours that will also include tournaments in Chile and Argentina later this year.
 
In addition to being the first joint competition between TLA (the men’s professional golf tour for Latin America) and the Canadian Tour, the Costa Rica Masters will mark a new era in the country’s golf scene. With a purse of $125,000, the event will be the first at this level ever to be held in Guanacaste, which is now home to many high-quality courses that have made Costa Rica famous as a premiere golf destination.
 
Both TLA and the Canadian Tour, which are associate members of the International Federation of PGA Tours, published press releases last week making official the tree-country tours they will hold together.
 
The announcement comes at a time when golf has become an important source of foreign currency, employment and hotel occupancy for Costa Rica, which welcomes 34,000 tourists every year who come here exclusively to play golf.
 
Golf tourism is generating approximately $87.6 million annually in food, lodging and recreation expenses, in addition to sales of sporting equipment. Most golfers who come to Costa Rica are individuals of high purchasing power who take advantage of playing the game to do business with colleagues and new clients.
 
In a release issued by both tours, the director of the Costa Rica Masters, Ricardo Valdivieso, said: “We are very pleased for being able to make the new Costa Rica Masters a reality, as this tournament will proudly put the country back in the international golf scene.” He added that the tournament is proud to taking high-level professional golf for the first time to the province of Guanacaste, where golf and tourism development are growing by leaps and bounds.
 
“We thank Tour de las Americas and the Canadian Tour for their support, as well as Reserva Conchal Golf Club, which opened the doors of its spectacular course designed by the famous Robert Trent Jones II,” Valdivieso said.
 
The other two tournaments of the joint tour will be held Nov. 27-30 in Chile (50th Anniversary of the Sports Frances Open) and Dec. 4-7 in Argentina (Torneo de Maestros at Olivos Golf Club). Costa Rica will be the last leg of the trio. The tournaments will combine for a grand total of $435,000 in prize money.
 
The great business potential of golf and Costa Rica’s reputation as an exotic golf destination have contributed to the emergence in the past few years of new courses designed by internationally recognized golf stars, including Robert Trent Jones II, Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer and Mike Young.
 
The number of golf courses is expected to climb in Costa Rica in the short term, as at least six new projects are underway, several of them offering Real Estate under $200,000

We are finding lower inquiries like most, but the specialized areas still suggest good interest.  Baby Boomers looking to retire in Costa Rica are  still a little way out, but the current thinking seems to be lock it in now for 1 or 2 years down the road.

For that reason, we seek only solid retirement projects that are underway, well funded and with the correct amenities. On that front we don’t see a lot of upside in the immediate future. 

Moody’s raises Costa Rica’s outlook on improved fiscal, debt position

As Costa Rican lawmakers return today from a weeklong vacation, time grows tight to pass two laws required to implement the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA).

Lawmakers must pass a bill amending the agreement, as well as a bill that strengthens intellectual property rights, before an Oct. 1 deadline.

The Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Sala IV) is now deciding whether the intellectual property bill is constitutional and will likely release an opinion in mid-September. Lawmakers then must pass the bill in a second and final debate.

If the Sala IV finds that the bill violates the Constitution, Costa Rica will miss its deadline.

The amendments bill, which would enable Costa Rica to enter CAFTA 90 days earlier than the treaty now allows, was approved by the Sala IV this month and awaits a second debate in the Legislative Assembly.

CAFTA was ratified in a referendum last October, and lawmakers have passed 11 of the 13 bills required to implement the pact. The initial deadline for implementing CAFTA was Feb. 29, but President Oscar Arias had to ask his trading partners for an extension.

HEALTH-LATIN AMERICA: Free Rein for Biobanks?
By Emilio Godoy*

MEXICO CITY, Aug 15 (Tierramérica) - Four years ago, when Guillermo Soberón — one of Mexico’s most prominent scientists — became a grandfather, the newborn’s parents received a letter requesting a donation of biological material to be used for medical research.

Requests of this kind reflect the mushrooming of biobanks — banks that collect human biological material — in Latin America, whether public or private, almost all of which operate without any specific legislation for their regulation.

“Scientific research is advancing quickly, and has made evident the need for an appropriate legal framework,” said Carlos Romeo, director of the Law and the Human Genome inter-university group, sponsored by the BBVA Foundation, the Diputación Foral de Bizkaia and the Spanish universities of Deusto and Basque Country.

A biobank is a not-for-profit entity that holds a collection of biological samples intended for biomedical diagnosis or research, and is organised as a technical unit that follows criteria for quality, organisation and purpose, according to Agustín Zapata, an expert with the Carlos III Health Institute of Madrid.

The LatinBanks project, a study of the legal and social implications of biobanks in Latin America, emerged to study the creation of laws. The initiative is the result of cooperation amongst the European Union, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico.

One of the aims is to “elaborate proposals for optimising the legal structures and forms of organisation and participation” with respect to biobanks.

In Mexico, Article 6 of the constitution guarantees protection of data, and the Penal Code in Mexico City protects genetic information. Medical information is covered in broad terms by the General Law on Health.

In Argentina, there are public and private biobanks, for clinical and scientific research, physician Salvador Bergel, an Argentine member of the LatinBanks project, told Tierramérica.

“So far they have followed administrative regulations established by the National Institute for Excision and Implants,” which coordinates and monitors donations and transplants of organs, tissue and cells, he said.

In Brazil, the Biosafety Law, approved in 2005, refers to embryonic cells, but does not include management of samples or protection of personal data.

Meanwhile, in Costa Rica, biobanks are just getting started.

Carlos Valerio, representative of Costa Rica’s Association of Medical law, said in a Tierramérica interview that there are sets of biological samples that were taken for “very specific purposes and are not used for any purpose besides the one for which they were collected.”

The risk of operating without regulations is, according to experts, that the confidentiality of the donors may not be respected or that the samples may be utilised without authorisation.

Ensuring the effective use of biobanks implies standardising the protocols they employ, adopting appropriate methods for codifying and identifying samples, obtaining informed consent from donors and hiring qualified medical staff.

In other Latin American countries, standards seem to be more lax. “I’m a supporter of first thinking about stimulating research and letting it be, before controlling it,” attorney Emilssen González de Cancino, director of the genetics and law research centre at the private Externado University of Colombia, told Tierramérica.

“Prohibiting new processes means losing opportunities for progress,” said González de Cancino, who is coordinating a two-year study that began eight months ago.

In 1995, the European Union adopted a slate of standards for protection of physical persons and respect for personal data and circulation. In addition, the Protocol to the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine has been in effect since 2005.

“In the last few years, interest in biological research with human material has developed very quickly, because of the implications it could have,” said Romeo, one of the leading experts in the field.

According to a survey by the Institute of Juridical Investigations (IIJ) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, in that country there are 38 biological banks operating in 51 public medical institutions.

Of the 38, 14 said they utilise blood, skin, brain tissue or bone marrow samples to carry out research on diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s, and that they conduct biomedical analyses. Furthermore, 12 said they have systems to protect patient confidentiality, one admitted it had no such protections, and the rest did not respond.

“We are starting from zero because in Mexico there are no precedents in this area,” said IIJ researcher Ingrid Brena.

Valerio cited the example of the efforts of the Health Ministry and the University of Costa Rica, that work under their own norms, which demonstrates that there is much yet to be done in the field of biological material in this Central American country, where there is only the private Provida, which collects umbilical cord blood.

The samples collected so far are derived from blood. Costa Rica has no cell banks for assisted reproduction or for bone marrow samples.

In Colombia, biobanks are found primarily in university institutions and they follow guidelines based on the Constitution, but it is medical ethics standards that provide the framework for the work that is currently being carried out.

“It’s obvious that we have to apply the standards on informed consent for the collection of samples, norms on confidentiality of the data that emerge from those samples, and standards for research on humans in general, but there are no specific laws as of yet in Colombia,” said González de Cancino.

The ultimate goal of LatinBanks, according to Romeo, is to give rise to national laws that are based on common ground, but that also apply to the needs and characteristics of each country.

Another important question involves the economic benefits derived from donated biomaterial and from scientific uses of such material. Many experts believe that, since donation is voluntary, the benefits should go to the community.

Valerio notes that Costa Rica “is trying to make a contribution” towards better regulation of areas like ownership of biological samples and their storage. He predicts that through LatinBanks the members will formulate standardised guidelines that are in line with those of Europe.

In Colombia, research is advancing slowly, but without ignoring existing studies. “The discussions lead more and more towards bioethics,” said González de Cancino.

(*With additional reporting by Myriam B. Moneo in San José, Helda Martínez in Bogotá and Marcela Valente in Buenos Aires. Originally published by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme and the World Bank.) (END/2008)

The long awaited completion of the highway in 2009 between Quepos and Dominical not only offers tourists a look at green all year round, but the Real Estate market is going to see some green as well.

Costa Rica’s infamous road system, often a topic of frustrated news and national concern, has decorated news headlines this week, thanks to the potential $850 million loan to improve and fix the country’s failing infrastructure. In even better news, however, Costa Rica’s President Óscar Arias and the Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Karla González, promised yesterday that the long-awaited Costanera Sur, the southern Pacific’s coastal highway, will be complete by October 2009, after an exaggerated 30 year delay.

Three of the area’s eight major, planned bridges were inaugurated this week, arriving after years of delayed promises. In fact, yesterday’s ceremonies came after thirty long years of waiting, during which the citizens of Quepos-area coastal towns, living along the Paquita, Portalón, and Matapalo rivers, could not cross rivers during the winter, or rainy season.

The Ministry of Public Works and Transportation (MOPT), invested $5 million in the bridges’ construction. Next on the ministry’s to do list are two additional bridges over the Parrita and Naranjo rivers, which are expected by the end of 2009. In the beginning on 2009, construction will begin on bridges over the Savegre, Hatillo Nuevo, and Hatillo Viejo rivers.

This long stretch of bridge and highway area, which stretches 42 kilometers (26 miles) from Quepos to Barú near the Panamanian border, is known as the Costanera Sur. Currently paved with cement, the route is scheduled to receive an asphalt redo, to the tune of $34 million, “The asphalt is scheduled to be finished in one year, because in October 2009, we’ll be inaugurating the Costanera Sur,” González promised.

Prior to the new bridges’ construction, the area south of Quepos was woefully ill prepared for the winter rains and regional traffic. According to MOPT, the perfect example of the southern Pacific’s road system can be found at the Paquita river, where the only existing infrastructure were train tracks that had been installed more than 70 years prior.

The Costanera Sur project is possible thanks to a $60 million loan from the Central American Economic Integration Bank (BCIE) in 2003. To complete the project, MOPT invested $34 million more of its own funds, helping to finish off tasks, like resurfacing the route with asphalt.

Once the modern, well-conditioned Costanera Sur is ready, Costa Rica Tourism and traffic to the south of Quepos will surely increase, as adventurous travelers set off to explore the Pacific wilderness. Packed with incredible beaches, like beautiful Dominical, and convenient to the beachy Quepos, the route will connect northern and southern Puntarenas, affording everyone a gentler journey south to the green eden of the Osa Peninsula and the duty-free Golfito.

This should have a large monetary vale as the  impact on Real Estate activity opens up a great escape from parts north such as the heavily frequented Quepos, Manuel Antonio and Jaco beach areas. 

We at South Pacific Real Estate Services are anticipating some excellent growth in Real estate sales.

New York, August  12, 2008 –

Moody’s Investors Service has revised the
outlook on Costa  Rica’s key ratings to positive from stable in
recognition of the  significant improvement in the country’s fiscal and
debt positions and the  likelihood of such improvement continuing in
the medium term despite  ongoing global turbulence.

The outlook change affects Costa Rica’s Ba1  foreign and local currency
government bond ratings. The outlook on the Baa3  foreign currency
country bond ceiling and on the Ba2 foreign currency bank  deposit
ceiling was also revised to positive from stable.

“Costa  Rica’s remarkable fiscal performance over the past few years
has been  driven by significant expenditure restraint and an
improvement in revenues,  reflecting not only the business cycle but
also a concerted effort to  enhance collection,” said Moody’s Vice
President — Senior Analyst  Alessandra Alecci. “As a result, the
fiscal and debt positions have  improved to such a degree that it would
take a major crisis to reverse the  virtuous debt dynamics seen in
recent years.” Costa Rica’s fiscal and debt  indicators have begun to
converge towards the investment-grade  level.

She said that the most surprising aspect of the government’s  fiscal
performance is the control of expenditures. Despite campaign  promises
and pent-up demand for infrastructure and social expenditures,  outlays
have actually contracted significantly in recent years, in part due  to
lower interest payments but also due to a more targeted effort  to
address social needs. The degree of autonomy of the Finance  Ministry
from political influence has been particularly impressive, she  added,
which is a testimony to the maturity of Costa Rica’s  institutions.

“The decision to change the outlook to positive comes at  a delicate
time for Costa Rica, whose key macroeconomic variables are  being
affected by the global slowdown and credit crunch,” said Alecci.  ”We
focus our ratings on the fundamentals rather than the business  cycle.”

She said that the strength of the fiscal anchor and the fact  that the
majority of Costa Rica’s public debt is in local currency and  mostly
held by public entities mitigates the risk associated with  a
potential, albeit unlikely, disorderly exit from the current  exchange
rate regime”.

“Notwithstanding recent strong pressures on  the balance of payments
and the volatility in the exchange rate market, the  external position
and the economy as a whole is equipped to deal with this  type of
shock,” said the analyst. “Foreign exchange reserves remain  at
historical highs relative to imports and to the money base, giving  the
authorities ammunition to handle the current difficult  transition
towards a free-floating exchange rate regime as well as the  widening
of the current account deficit.”

Costa Rica has been the  recipient of unprecedented high levels of
foreign direct investment in  recent years, which have more than fully
financed its current account  deficit, despite the delay in joining
Central American Free Trade Agreement  or CAFTA. Given the resilience
and diversification of its economic base,  there is, thus far, little
evidence of a sharp drop in non-debt creating  external financing that
would lead to a meaningful deterioration of Costa  Rica’s external debt
indicators.

“We will carefully monitor how  Costa Rica navigates through these
challenging times,” said Alecci. “In  particular, we will observe the
performance of the fiscal accounts and  whether financial
dollarization, one of the key rating constraints, will  significantly
increase.” A severe problem with the exchange rate regime  would have
important implications for the banking system which is close to  50%
dollarized, she underscore

No shortcuts in Costa Rica land development today.  If you think doing permitting the right way is onerous, wait and see what happens when you do it the wrong way.

The Costa Rica government is rapidly improving enforcement, significantly increasing the chance that un-permitted construction will get shut down long before the developer has a chance to ask forgiveness. In the year 2008 we saw a series of high-profile crackdowns on construction sites all over the country that should the developer community. The penalties can include everything from fines to even jail time. Also, the government is also making a few key changes in the permitting process – particularly in the environmental review – that promise to make permitting move faster, meaning that bribes, in addition to being a crime, are no longer worth the risk.   Without the meticulous attention to detail that the permitting process requires, you could end up unnecessarily delaying your product an extra year or two – a catastrophic development if your financing is time sensitive. Horror stories abound.

The main problem that developers face is the great variety of permits that must be obtained prior to building. To develop a property larger than 5000 square meters (1.2acres approximately),  you need the OK from at least half a dozen separate entities,and probably more. Developing a subdivision or a condominium adds another layer of oversight from another regulatory body.

In the end  you’ll probably need to have hired at least seven state-certified professionals, including an architect, a civil engineer, a topographer, an environmental engineer, an archaeologist, an anthropologist, and a biologist. All that, and you haven’t even started construction yet.

At Costa Rica Development properties our Land development division, we have arrived at a very carefully planned methodology to both find properties for our clients as well as get them off on the right foot in the development process.

We identify development objectives clearly and seek properties that match up in the areas best suited for this particular type of development whether it be major Hotel and Golf course project or simply project of building lots for sale.

Once we get close to a decision, we take the choices we have narrowed down to and do a very inexpensive Ambiente study by satellite. This gives us a pretty good indication of the land use. When it is decided to go forward with an offer, the due diligence is planned very carefully to give us the best time frame to complete it properly and receive the full information we need to be sure we can do what we want to accomplish on the land.

Our company has personally been involved in a fine project called “Vistas Manuel Antonio”.

In the upcoming posts, I will walk you through the process the we used to get to through all the approvals to date and successfully so, while others were being shut down all around us.

Please feel free to comment or ask questions regarding your devlopment