We retired to Guanacaste from Ohio: our first year, honestly

Linda (63) taught middle school for three decades; Tom (66) managed a plant outside Dayton. In early 2023 they sold the house, shipped eleven boxes, and rented a two-bedroom three streets back from the sand in Playa Potrero. We sat down on their porch — geckos commenting from the wall — to get the version of the story that doesn't make it into retirement brochures.

The decision: fear did most of the talking

“We ran the numbers for three years and were still scared. What finally helped wasn't a spreadsheet — it was talking to couples who'd already moved.”

Their tipping point was a two-week scouting trip that they deliberately booked in October — the heart of the rainy season. "Everyone shows you paradise in February," Tom said. "We wanted to see the worst month. Turns out the worst month is green, dramatic, and the afternoon storm is the best show in town."

What the first year actually cost

They budgeted $3,200 a month and averaged closer to $3,600 the first year — the overage almost entirely from setup costs and what Tom calls "the tourist tax on not knowing better yet": furniture bought retail instead of from departing expats, the first mechanic, restaurants while the kitchen had no pots.

The mistakes, in their own words

1. 1"We almost bought a house the first month." A charming listing, a persuasive agent, vacation glow. Their lawyer talked them into renting first. A year later they're glad — the house was in a town they now know isn't theirs.
2. 2"We brought too much stuff." Eight of eleven boxes were, in Linda's words, 'Ohio clothes and appliances for a life we don't live anymore.'
3. 3"We underestimated the paperwork patience." Residency took eleven months end to end. Banking took three attempts. "It all works," Tom says, "just never on the first Tuesday you try."

What nobody had promised them

Linda's blood pressure medication was halved by her doctor in month nine. Tom — who "hadn't exercised since the Clinton administration" — swims every morning with a group of retirees who call themselves los tiburones viejos, the old sharks. Their daughter visited twice the first year; in Ohio, she'd managed twice in five.

“Now we're the ones telling newcomers: come down, rent first, and ask everything. The community here answers — that's the part we didn't believe until we lived it.”

Their advice, distilled

Scout in the rainy season. Rent for a year no matter how sure you feel. Ship less than you think. Start the residency file before you move. And talk to people who do this professionally before the wire transfers start — the couple credits their relocation consultant with saving them "at least the cost of the consultation, times fifty."

Every move is different — but almost nobody regrets asking better questions a year earlier than they did.

Updated July 2, 2026