www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Here is a neat study, taken from
InsideCostaRica. com, as published in Al Dia, on cost of living:
____________ _________ _______
More than ¢450.000 Needed For Family of Four To Meet Basic Needs
A recent survey by the Spanish language daily, Al
Día, reveals that a family of four needs an
income of ¢447.788 (us$904) monthly to meet
living expenses, including the cost of food,
water, electricity, telephone (home phone and
cellular), bus fares, a couple of nights out to a
restaurant and payment of a mortgage of ¢20 million colones (us$40.500).

That figure is much higher that the ¢107.220
colones the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y
Censo (INEC) says is needed to make up the basic
food basket and more than twice the average income of ¢259.722 colones.

According to the INEC, general incomes range from
¢223.350 monthly paid by private business to
¢371.027 paid by the central government and
¢461.500 paid by the government institutions and agencies.

The Al Día calculates that if the family lives
outside of San José, like Alajuela for instance,
and require use a vehicle, the monthly cost
increases to ¢575.848, not taking into account
the recent round of increases in fuel that go
into effect later this week, as well as the
recent increases in food items such as milk, rice and beans.

For the director of the Oficina de Apoyo al
Consumidor (Consumer Support), Cynthia Zapata,
says that people should avoid getting into debt as much as possible.

"One has to be strict and do all possible to keep
control of the budget. The current condition
shows that people are not saving", said Zapata.

Financial expert, Miguel Díaz, advises that
families should budget their expenses. "It is
very difficult to send a Ch*ld to school, where
they see a schoolmate with an iPod, and of course
want one also, but one has to say no to avoid financial imbalances", said Díaz.

The following is a sample monthly budget for a
family of four as prepared by the Al Día:
Basic Food Basket ¢107.220
Electricity ¢11.928
Water ¢5.576
Cellular Telephone ¢11.000
Home Telephone ¢7.500
Mortgage ¢240.000
Bus Fares (for 2) ¢17.500
Two Visits to a Restaurant ¢20.000
Domestic Help - 4 days ¢12.864

If living outside San José (Alajueal for example) add ¢14.200

If a vehicle is owned add:
Gasoline ¢43.348
Car Payment * ¢84.712
City Bus Fare ( 1 person) ¢8.500

If Ch*ldren in daycare add:
Monthly cost ¢75.000
Domestic help ¢96.531
Extra Cellular Phone Cost ¢11.000

If family enjoys cable television add:
Monthly cost ¢12.500

* ¢10 millones loan from Banco Nacional

Source: Al Día

Apparently they go barefoot and run around naked.

FWIW-YMMV

This is interesting.

The average salaries appear to be more than Jose (Driver, SL) had said. He said it was about $300US a month. But according to this it's probably more like $500-600.

Any thoughts?

The first problem with this is you are asking a Pirate taxi a question about economics in CR, and expecting an honest, fact-based answer.

This article seems about right.... Especially considering the crazy 12% inflation, the ridiculous cost of food and gas. The locals should be screaming at the government about inflation and prices. Yet, they don't seem to really understand. Or, they don't seem to care and just adapt their lifestyle to the crazy prices by living on a diet of rice and beans.

Pay day is certainly funny in the grocery stores. They pack the damn carts to the seems with cheap food. They can fill a cart for $140. Whereas, I fill my little basket and it costs about $70. I guess they just find ways to work around inflation.

_________________
http://TipsCostaRica.com for pratical advice on living in Costa Rica.
In order to write about life, first you must live it! - E. Hemingway.

Respectfully, if you don't know Jose I would appreciate it if you would not slander him. As far as I can tell he is an honest man and I have had several dealing with him. He helped me find my apartment and was instrumental in helping resolve a dispute with the building manager. On more than one occasion, he has put my interests ahead of his own.

I think the $300 figure is a laborer's wages. Professionals make around $1000 and the majority fall somewhere inbetween.

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

I think the price includes a lot of tax, but this is how a lot countries collect tax. They have no income tax and hardly any property tax (administrative nightmares) so they load up on VAT (value added tax). It seems that it is easier to collect taxes from businesses rather than individuals.

They have to get taxes from somewhere so I doubt the price of goods and food will go down. Inflation is just the way it is - not sure why though.

Right now, as for food, it is going up all the way around the world. Rice in Asia has doubled in something like 6 months time. This is a huge issue especially in poor nations/countries.

I have a friend from Brazil who talks of the high clothing prices in Brazil. She tells me that her niece in Brazil thinks clothes are priced reasonably, but since my friend lives in the USA, she can't believe what they have to pay for jeans and more in Brazil. This applies across the board - electronics, appliances and whatever else in retail stores.

Oh, and the recent food shortages are related in part to more and more food being used as biofuel. Just 1 reason why corn and what not will not replace oil. It is just a matter of choice, either accept oil for what it is or use food as fuel and starve some people to death.

These numbers seem very made up to me, but what would you expect from a tabloid like Al Dia...

_________________
heredia porn king

Chi_Trekker, I tend to agree with your post/

Pac55, Not trying to start an arguement and I have never had buisness dealings with Jose and frankly if your apartment is an indication, I do not want to. You are paying a lot more than the last tenent! Frankly if it comes out of the mouth of a CR taxista, I do not believe it.

My understanding is that doctors average around $1200, lawyers, $1000, and most other professionals around $800. Police, $300-$450; skilled laborers,$375-$425;Clerical in offices, $275-$300; vendadoras in retail stores,$250-$275.

D2864, Tax on most items is 13%, but many food items are not taxed, atleast not at the point of sale. 2 recient recipts:

1: total--c1884.16 all was fresh fruit and veges
no tax

2: total--c8009.00 beer, processed food items
tax-- c505.63

Rice in many countries is imported from the USA and it has gone way up in the USA from what I have been told. Items such as name brand jeans, tennis shoes, and electronic items have for years been considered luxury items in most countries and therefore have a very high tax.

I certainly do not buy your oil company and Bush based thoughts on oil from crops. If the US government would pay farmers to grow corn, sugar beets, sugar cane, etc. on the millions of acres currently not being farmed the same amount of money it is currently paying the farmer to grow NOTHING on those acres, there would be no food shortage and enough oil to greatly reduce the demand for petroleum.

Now let the flamming begin!!

_________________
Old and retired but still bang, and bang, and bang!!!

So, can we all agree that:

-> 'on average', the cost of living is ~USD $900/month [Article]

-> an 'average' tico/tica may bring in substantially less than that ~USD $500/month - thus, individually having a deficit of ~USD $400 [my calcs]

-> But that many households are multi-income households, and with my belief that Latin family systems describes a multi-generational living arrangement, we can conservatively say that in a portion of the households there exists more than one earner [ my assumption]

I would safely say that 25% of all households can make it, 50% are probably on the borderline, and 25% are in direct, dire poverty.

sounds alot like the United States, verdad?

Hi, BB. I know you live across the way from me and pay a lot less, but I have discussed the price with other tenants and my price is in line with theirs (I pay a little more but not much and they have been there for awhile). You haven't been over yet but we will fix that when I am back down.

I agree with your synopsis of wages and I believe that those are about the figures I heard from Jose. Jose is one of the Sportsman's Lodge drivers and I have had no complaints with him at all.

_________________
"Your love gives me such a thrill
but your love don't pay my bills,
I NEED THE MONEY!" - John Lee Hooker

Disclaimer: The above is merely the opinion of the author unless specific scientific data is included.
Your mileage may vary. https://costaricaticas.com/phpBB2/viewto ... 978#206978

"Bush based thoughts?" hmmmm! Ted Koppel who now works for NPR was on the radio tonight saying that biofuels is part of the problem. Before Ted, I have read and heard basically the same thing in misc. print articles and news magazines on TV. Search yahoo news and you'll find that more and more articles are placing the food shortages partly on biofuels. Farmers sell to the highest bidder and currently, because oil has skyrocketed, corn sells at a higher price as biofuel than for human fuel.


You can listen to Ted here:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... d=89817188

Not at all like the USA. Those who are defined as living in poverty in the USA have TVs, microwave, cars, cell phones and much more. Poverty in the USA would never pass for poverty in a lot of other places. I guess poverty is "relative," but when I think "poverty" I think of people who are living without modern conveniences.

Another thing you guys have to keep in mind is that credit is ridiculously easily available to Ticos... The whole "credit system" is a joke as long as you have a job and a cedula, and you can finance just about anything (take a walk through an appliance store and check out the $0.80/month payment plan on a $17 coffee maker sometime). A lot of ticos appear to be living an average middle class lifestyle but will be in harsh debt until they die, at 30%+ interest rates.

_________________
heredia porn king

Jose is a very good guy and the only taxi driver I would trust in the whole of the country. When he says $300, you have to understand his reference point.
In the states, if you go to Harlem and take a poll of the average wage in New York City then go to Wall Street and take the same poll, you'll get very different answers I'd bet.
Same with Jose. He was being totally honest IN HIS OPINION.
As for the wage, I think a lot of great points have been made and the original study is right on. Know my girl needs at least $800 a month for a family of four...

_________________
The only thing that matters is happiness in all it forms...

Good point. The biggest expense is housing so i'm sure it varies from one barrio to another.