This is a no-brainer…..
One of the biggest reasons we came to Costa Rica was to “live outside.” This meant no need for air-conditioning or heat. We lived in Calgary, Alberta, Canada before moving to Ojochal, Costa Rica; and had high heating and electricity bills (over $400 per month during the winters).
But it wasn’t just the expense – Rita wanted to live more in the outdoors. Back in Calgary, we could rarely open our windows or sit on our beautiful deck. Those days and nights when we could, were a delight, but they were few and far between. We could go outside, but the mosquitoes and too-hot or too-cold temperatures, and the cold winds prevented us from truly living in the fresh air.
Living here on the Ballena Coast, we keep our windows open all year around. If we’re cold, we put on a t-shirt; if we’re hot we jump in the pool, and have a cold Imperial! And no more shoveling snow, wearing winter clothes, freezing our hands and faces like we had to do in Calgary!
(Have you ever thought about the cost of winter clothes, boots, mitts, hats, plugging in your car, warming up your car, heating and cooling costs??)
We like the fact that living without a furnace or air-conditioner, is easier on the environment. These are large energy consumers and are largely unnecessary on the Ballena Coast area of Costa Rica. Our electric bills run between $110 and $140 per month, depending on how often we run our ceiling fans, pool pump and clothes dryer.
In the 4 ½ years we have lived full time in Ojochal, located in the mountains at almost 700 ft. elevation, we are used to the temperatures; which, to us, seems ideal.
We love living this way – no furnace, no air-conditioner, no plugging in our car block heaters overnight so that the car will start in the morning, no more scraping snow and ice off them, running them for 20 minutes before using them so that the seat will be thawed and warm enough to sit on! No more freezing fingers to unlock a door. No more slipping on ice, shoveling snow! The list goes on and on! We don’t have to shovel rain, we can easily and quickly blow the leaves off our terrace.
We love hanging our clothes out on the line to dry most of the year, and they don’t freeze dry!
Less expense, less energy usage, and doors and windows wide open!
No pollution from cars, air traffic, home furnaces, no extra chemicals added to our drinking water…
Breathing clean air, drinking clean water, eating fresh food!
Does it get any better?? You, too, can make the choice to live this way…!
Seriously take a look at what winter costs you… and then, you will have a more realistic idea of what the cost of living difference if choosing to live on the Ballena Coast of Costa Rica! When I looked at what winter cost me, on a spreadsheet, I realized it was about 30% of my income! And, then, add in the cleaner, healthier life style…That made my decision a no brainer!
Do you have a question about this blogpost or costa rica real estate for sale? Contact us for more information.
Send me an e-mail at Rita@C21BallenaProperties.com
