A retired boomer who moved from the US to Costa Rica said it's 'horribly incorrect' to assume life in Central America is much cheaper

• Gary Keenan moved from New Mexico to Costa Rica for retirement but found living costs high.
• Keenan expected lower expenses in Costa Rica but faced double the cost for his car and groceries.
• Though many are moving to Latin America for retirement, some are finding living costs expensive.

Gary Keenan, 71, moved from New Mexico to the Central Valley of Costa Rica nine years ago for his retirement after selling his company and finalizing a divorce. Little did he know that a decade later, prices for daily expenses would be often double what he paid in the US.

Keenan said he's loved the peace and nature of Costa Rica after spending most of his life in Albuquerque. However, it's come with a cost — his car costs twice what it would have in the US, groceries are often 1.5 times the price of comparable goods at US stores, and rents are skyrocketing, particularly in more touristy areas.

"I have read several articles in the last four months that actually said these are the countries to live in for less than in the US. That is horribly incorrect," Keenan said.

Over the past few months, Business Insider has spoken to Americans who recently moved to Latin America for retirement or work opportunities. Some said they got priced out of the US and live more comfortably. Others like Keenan said life is much more peaceful, though expenses are still high.

Deciding on Costa Rica

Keenan was born and raised in Albuquerque and practiced law for nearly a decade in the 1980s. He took over his father's insurance business, which he ran for about 25 years.

During his time with the insurance company, he attended a retreat in Playa Zancudo, located in the south of Costa Rica. A few years later, he attended a wedding in Playa Grande in the country's northeast Guanacaste region, which he adored for its accessible beaches.

After these visits, he knew he wanted to retire in Costa Rica to live an "easygoing" life far from the US. He was tired of living in the same city his whole life, and though he considered moving to Europe, he wanted to explore other parts of the world. He sold his business in 2014 while filing for a divorce, and by the start of January 2015, he had packed up everything in New Mexico and moved to Costa Rica.

He decided to move after his retirement in an attempt to learn Spanish, intending to move to France a few years later and learn French.

"I discovered that neither my desire nor my aptitude was sufficient to allow me to learn Spanish in three years," he said. "In that time, I also met a woman who I am still involved with, so that nipped moving to France in the bud."

He knew San José would be less touristy than Guanacaste or other beach areas, though he was surprised by how few people spoke sufficient English for communication. For his first year or two, while learning the basics of Spanish, he struggled to buy groceries, deposit money in the bank, or get around the area.

"I started with a tutor, went to her for a year and a half, but I realized that although I was learning a lot of verbs and their conjugations, I was still not able to understand a word of Spanish spoken by the locals," Keenan said. "If you are lucky enough to understand Spanish as a general rule, you're still going to have issues because they drop syllables and speak very fast."

Even after a decade in Costa Rica, he said he still hasn't mastered Spanish, nor has he picked up a lot of new vocabulary. Still, he knows enough to get around and feel comfortable in his area.

Moving across Costa Rica

When he first moved, he had not been to San José, nor did he know where the touristy areas were. He did some research before moving down, though he said there wasn't much he could tell about particular areas other than what he could find on Google Maps.

He stayed at a hotel in San Pedro, on the capital's outskirts, and then looked for an apartment nearby. A few decades ago, the area was predominantly coffee fields, meaning many developments are newer and have plenty of nature. However, he discovered he didn't want to live there because of the intense rainy season. One day, he recalled it taking an hour to drive 100 yards due to the heavy traffic in the rain.

He hired a man with a van to show him around the outskirts, and he settled on Santa Ana, a small city west of San José. When he moved, the city had a large expat population, and he said the area became increasingly commercialized and expensive.

Ultimately, he relocated over seven years ago to Cariari, a town in the country's northeast home to a major golf course.

Costa Rica is more expensive than he thought

Keenan said that when he first moved to Costa Rica, prices were cheaper than in the US but not by too much. However, when inflation hit in mid-2022, he said prices in his area skyrocketed.

Costa Rica imposed import duties on US items, which have recently driven up prices for most expenses. Additionally, the US dollar has fallen by roughly 25% compared to the Costa Rican colón since peaking in summer 2022. He said prices when he visited Panama were, on the whole, much lower.

Keenan said this is most apparent with food prices. For instance, the cheapest cuts of beef at his local grocery store are roughly $5.50 a pound. Steaks, many of which are imported from Argentina, come in at about $17 per pound. Packaged goods, as well as imported fruits and vegetables, are also higher.

In early 2023, he bought a car in Costa Rica for about $34,000, which the Kelley Blue Book listed as between $16,000 and $18,000 in the US. Though he could have shipped a car from the US, he was worried about all the transportation costs and what would happen if he needed a new car part only found in the US.

He never bought a house, as he said the process can take years in Costa Rica. His first condo was about $1,000 a month, while his current apartment is $1,500 a month — which he said was a good deal as he already knew the landlord.

He said that while rents in general are comparable to or cheaper than in the US, prices can vary greatly depending on the area. He estimates that prices have jumped 50% to 100% in some touristy areas along the coasts since the pandemic hit, especially with greater investment in real estate from expats.

"If one is going to live down here, they must have close to round-the-clock security," Keenan said. "There is a lot of opportunity for crime, and an unguarded house is a prime target eventually."

Have you recently left the United States for a new country? Reach out to this reporter at nsheidlower@businessinsider.com .