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monthly income to live in San Jose Area

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Bktuna

Post subject:

Posted: Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:09 pm

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Sun Jan 15, 2006 7:31 pm
Posts: 3645
Location: Land of Milk and Honeys

As mentioned above there is a huge range of possibilities.

I pay 500 for a furnished two bedroom in Escazu. It is nice but not fancy. My utilities counting cable for two tvs, phone, high speed internet and water is about $135 a month. Food is a huge variable. By eating at local places and shopping at the outdoor farmers market and local butcher and bakery I have greatly reduced my food costs. Anything imported is very high. I take the bus into San Jose and cab it back a t nights. The bus cost less than 50 cents. I can live reasonably well and still find entertainment for $2,000 a month. i would say my lifestlye is in the middle of the pack not all that low or high.

BKTUNA
I am never going home

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BangBang57

Post subject:

Posted: Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:08 pm

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Sat Aug 20, 2005 12:28 am
Posts: 4368
Location: Living the good life in CR

CounteDante:
There are MPs in almost every Barrio surrounding SJ. Problem is, just as in SJ, they are difficult to find, sometimes difficult to get to, and with 50+ MPs in Sj, is it really worth the hazzle. In San Pedro 3 different ones have opened and closed in the past 1 1/2 years. These are the ones I was aware of; am sure there are more, just have not found them.

Phoenix Rising and I spent about an hour looking for one I had the phone # for in Guadalupe. While we were looking, were told of 2 others which we never found. the one we were looking for was a complete waste of time after finally finding it.

As for "having to go into San Jose"; many of the areas (barrios) where gringos live are very close to centro San Jose. I am in San Pedro and it is only a 5 minute bus ride to the parada 1 block from the REY.. Granted some are futher away.

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Old and retired but still bang, and bang, and bang!!! :twisted:

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Professor

Post subject:

Posted: Wed Feb 06, 2008 7:53 pm

Ticas ask me for advice!

Joined: Sat Nov 04, 2006 8:33 pm
Posts: 390

Floridaboy wrote:

Another option you might consider is to live with a Tico family as I am doing. I live in a 5 bedroom 5 bath house on the east side of San Jose. I have my own room and private bath, daily maid service, laundry service, 3 meals a day cooked for my health condition, cable tv and have my exercise machine in the garage. I pay $500 a month for all the above. Sorry no rooms available

I have to pay for my hi-speed internet, cell and land line phone. Costs approx. $75 a mo.

One thing for you to consider when choosing a place to live. how close is the bus and taxis from your house because in the rainy season making a long walk from the stop to your house can be a real pain.

I have 2 bus stops (for going to San Jose) which run every 20 min. and taxi stand 1 block from my house.
I average about $10 a mo on bus fare and $25 for taxi. I do not have or want a car, for me it is more trouble than it is worth

I first came to San Jose 4 yrs ago and have been living here for 2 yrs. I am strictly a MP person as I am not wanting to have a girlfriend and all the BS that goes with it.

Florida, thanks for providing this information. I considered applying for an ESL position near San Pedro, and the language school mentioned that living with a local family presents an option. I considered it briefly as an option for the first year or so, until I found an apartment. I never considered that I would be living in a five-bedroom house. There goes my North American bias. If such a position posts again, and it will, I shall give it more consideration next time. As with you, I used the MP scene, and met a very, very sweet girl there. I "dated" her for several days.

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Puravida29

Post subject:

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 12:52 pm

Not a Newbie I just don't post much!

Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 11:33 pm
Posts: 115

i'm not aware of any MPs in SP, but chepe is roughly 5-10 minutes away

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Rider

Post subject: thanks all

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2008 4:35 pm

Just Learning The Gulch!

Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2003 7:56 pm
Posts: 31
Location: northern california santa cruz mts.

thanks for great information. I plan to retire next year -with a pension of around $3000 a month. I cannot live in California on that. I have been visiting San Jose for the last 10 years and enjoy the scene.

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CaliforniaMonger

Post subject:

Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 12:37 pm

Okay, how much a month would it cost for:

- a one bedroom apartment in a nice complex with a swimming pool
- within 20 minutes drive of SJ
- cooking at home and eating mostly local foods; but going out for dinner a few times a week
- no car: buses and taxis everywhere

Without including entertainment, can this be done for less than 2K/month?

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BangBang57

Post subject:

Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 12:55 pm

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Sat Aug 20, 2005 12:28 am
Posts: 4368
Location: Living the good life in CR

Racetrack,

Read some of my post on this. I have a 2 br furnished condo in San Pedro 3 blocks from the mall and I do everything just about as you described. AND I AM LIVING ON NOTHING BUT MY SS-$1500 per month

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Old and retired but still bang, and bang, and bang!!! :twisted:

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Frettless

Post subject:

Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 8:20 pm

Ticas ask me for advice!

Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 6:55 pm
Posts: 353
Location: Saarasota FL

My ex Novia lives in a very small 3 BR in Moravia. Not the best neighbourhood but quiet and relatively safe for $200/mo The water bill for her and 3 K*ds was 8 bucks. Electric was cheap. There was no heat or air and it wasn't needed. Food is not cheap. We shopped at various Supermarkets depending on what we wanted/needed. When I was there we always shopped a bit more since it was going on my ATM card.

The bus to SJ is really cheap snd it's not a long ride but I hear that they do get held up and robbed at times.

Heredia: Gated community 3/2 Gringo amenities new construction around 170K. I didn't get the monthly fee. I bet taxes are going up though. That was on my last trip in December.

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Puravidatransport

Post subject:

Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 5:35 pm

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Tue Apr 03, 2007 1:12 pm
Posts: 1976
Location: San Ramon, C.R.

You can live in San Jose dirt cheap if you wish. I've managed to get by on $500 a month quite a few months here.
The key is, how much luxury do you want/need? For $500 a month, you can live like a poor Tico with your own place.
The possibilities are endless on the higher side. I mean if you want a mansion in the hills of Escazu, a BMW sport utility vehicle and all that, it'll be more like $10K a month!
And everything/every price in between is possible.

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

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Spanky

Post subject:

Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 5:39 pm

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:50 pm
Posts: 5821
Location: Referred to the OIG by Mucho Gusto after mysterious fire at his gay night club.

Prostoner wrote:

You can live in San Jose dirt cheap if you wish. I've managed to get by on $500 a month quite a few months here.

Those the months you had to buy clothes back?

_________________
[url=http://www.amishrakefight.org/gfy/]

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TonyTC

Post subject:

Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 5:48 pm

Masters Degree in Mongering!

Joined: Mon Oct 10, 2005 9:30 pm
Posts: 972
Location: next pussy stop

BangBang57 wrote:

I have a 2 br furnished condo in San Pedro 3 blocks from the mall and I do everything just about as you described. AND I AM LIVING ON NOTHING BUT MY SS-$1500 per month

Hey BB, and that includes your poosie bill each month?

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Elroy

Post subject:

Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 9:22 pm

Masters Degree in Mongering!

Joined: Sat May 10, 2008 8:31 pm
Posts: 647
Location: Jupiter FL

Speak some Spanish and I think you can enjoy it.

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ZeeBraWon

Post subject:

Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2008 12:08 am

I can do CR without a wingman!

Joined: Fri Aug 11, 2006 2:34 am
Posts: 291

My proposed pensionista budget:

Hookers and Booze: $1,499
Rent (ala la calle): Priceless

And for everything else, there's Gringo Express, aka Cash Machine American Joe, aka Cajero Automatico Gringo.

At least that's the way the chicas would like it.

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SurfTown

Post subject:

Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 9:22 am

Ticas ask me for advice!

Joined: Sun Jul 23, 2006 5:00 pm
Posts: 397
Location: San Diego

BangBang57 wrote:

1500 a month now that is impressive.

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BangBang57

Post subject:

Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 9:58 am

PHD From Del Rey University!

Joined: Sat Aug 20, 2005 12:28 am
Posts: 4368
Location: Living the good life in CR

And I have sessioned with 9 chicas in the past 10 days and have two, YES, two 3somes scheduled for today :roll:

. Hell it is my birthday, and I am leaving tomorrow night for 3 1/2 weeks in gringa land

Thou after today, I may be toooo tired to even breath :cry:

Getting old, NO, being old, SUCKS :lol:

So yes it is possible to live here and have the time of your life on very little money--Helps to like MP chicas, be able to talk to them, and above all to be nice to them(the chicas). Do I ever want to live in the States again :?:

Not no, but HELL NO :twisted:

[/b]

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

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