www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I am going to Atenas to look at property for a few days but have not found much in a search. I saw a sign on pictures of the town on another web site and saw one sign for "Esquina Caliente" Gentlemans Club that maybe in the city but that is all that I have to go on.
I will be in Costa Rica Aug 28 thru Sept.5. This is my first ever post.
I hope I can do some plowing out on the countryside.....

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Time to plow the fields.

Fisrt off all welcome to the board and thanks for making the effort to search often newbies fail to do that.Just form visiting the town personally it doesn't strike me as the size town that would have many opportunities to hobby but you never know.It isn't a real big place but supossed to have one of the most favorable climates in the counrty.I found it a bit warm when I visited.rbc100

I hope you're not looking to buy a gentleman's club type property in Atenas, as I think that would be WAYYY off the mark. If you're talking about places to check out at the end of the day after you've been looking for some regular investment property, you're probably not going to have much luck either. If there were anything at all in Atenas itself, I'm sure it would be geared to a local tico market. Any halfway decent looking chicas are probably going to make the drive to where there will be more demand and money. If you don't want to make the half hour drive yourself, your best bet would probably be to look in Alajuela, which is only about 10 minutes away. I know that D'Pelufo's has a 2nd club out there near the airport. I'm sure there are probably a few other local places in Alajuela.

Now as to non-monger issues. I happen to like Atenas very much. Some of the more interesting eateries in CR are located in Atenas. They specialize in dishes made with corn. One of my favorites is the Fiesta del Maiz, but there are several others. As you probably already know Atenas has a slightly warmer climate than SJ, which some people might prefer. RBC actually sold them a little short in this regard. Some internationally recognized magazine, I forget which, a few years back awarded it the title of one of the best climates in the WORLD. It is also well located being only 35km from SJ and 50km from the Pacific. It is a bit further out from downtown than some would prefer (or you wouldn't have any hesitation about going into town for the evening vs. staying local) but it is not absolutely out of reach and, on the upside, it is more relaxed and idllyic than most of the more urban locations closer to SJ.

It will probably be a little difficult to find any super bargains in the Atenas area because property values have already risen dramatically in recent years due to the near completion of the alternate highway to the coast that will go between Atenas and Orotina (drastically shortening travel time). You're also not as likely to find what bargains there are by searching on line. Those internet sites, particularly english language sites, are geared to the gringo market, meaning the will list the much higher gringo prices. They will give you an idea of some of the types of properties that are available there, but will be no substitute for actually going there and driving around.

But as long as you are looking on line, check out http://www.myatenas.com/.

Thank you for the sound advise Prolijo and RBC100 and for the newbie welcome. The web site you gave me is the one I saw the picture of "Esquina Caliente" Mens Club. I am impressed by your knowledge.
I am looking at a few home lots in Atenas and see what you mean about all the realtors taking advantage of the english speaking Gringos. I have scouted out a local that has some cheap building sites compared to what I see on the internet. I will get a lawyer and verify everything first.
I will let you know what I find in MP & Club area. At least you gave me a closer option then SJ for action. Thanx

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Time to plow the fields.

Great post - I was wondering the same thing.

I'm going to buy something, but out of SJ (more of a country setting) so I was wondering about establishments near the airport or Heredia or Alajuela.

I'll be looking for an average 3 bedroom.... I've seen crazy price ranges on the english websites so I figure I'd look in the tico espanol newspaper to get a better realistic prices. Last week, I read that prices are coming down in CR because houses that are priced too high are staying on the market forever and the ability to finance is getting and has gotten tighter in the last year.

We can only hope that the colon keeps going down.

You do not need to worry about that. Colones are devalued daily as a strategy of the Banco Central De Costa Rica. It works out to about 10% a year. At the beginning of 2006 it will close to 500 colones to a $1.00

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

Yeah, but the overall inflation rate runs well over 10% so that makes the colone devaluation pretty much a wash. I can't speak as to real estate prices. I know there was a definite softening of the high end luxury properties after the fall of the Brothers, but I was under the impression that the market had already fully adjusted for that and had resumed its overall upward trend. There will always be fluctuations in the market but given the aging gringo boomer population looking towards CR as a stable and relatively affordable retirement destination (compared to the US at least), I don't foresee any major dips in the CR RE market for the foreseeable future.

The reality of the situation with the chicas is that probably all of them want anonymity and the last people they want to know that they are working girls are their families. To this purpose, a small town won't have many good looking chicas like a big city like San José, because everyone would know that she is a puta. Just ask your favorite MP chica if her family knows what she does for a living. You will get a response like ¨nunca, jamas!¨ The sad part is that sooner or later the families will find out because ticos are ¨dogs with clothing¨ (perros con ropa) and one will spot her working and tell a friend who tells the family. Also the mothers usually know, but don´t say anything because the money is good and they don´t want to embarass the goose who lays the golden eggs.

ElGamin

FYI--I looked at some homes in Manuel Antonio last week--NOT CHEAP but everything is relative. Compared to what you get here in the States even if you spend $300K+ in Manuel Antonio you would live like a king compared to U.S (and in 5 years from know $330K will probably be work $800K). After Manuel Antonio I drove down to the Dominical area and looked at some raw land just south of Uvita. I looked at raw land that was about halfway up the mountain between the ocean and the rainforest peak with a spectacular view of the Pacific and the Osa. If all I was doing was to invest I would buy that land. Getting back to the original post, I like the Atenas area a lot. The climate seems just right. You can get a fantastic view of the Valley and it's close to both San Jose and the Coast. Unfortunately I just didn't have enough time to look in Atenas. If I were to "live" in C.R. I would prefer Atenas. The humidity on the coast, especially the further south you go can get pretty brutal.