Every year, hundreds, if not thousands, of Americans move to Costa Rica. I’m one of them.  Here’s how it happened.

I laugh when people find out I used to be in a Rock n Roll Band.  They always ask me the same thing, “Were you any good?”  Obviously not, rocket scientist, or I wouldn’t be selling real estate in Costa   Rica.  LOL. Last I heard, Van Halen made $60 Million last year on their reunion tour.  If my old band got back together, there would 24 people at the show.  Our wives or girlfriends would be there along with a couple losers that had nothing else to do on a Friday night.  But it is true, I was the lead singer of a heavy metal rock band in 1982 and we failed miserably.  It was a lot of fun for a couple years, and was the start of my traveling addiction that ended by landing me down here in paradise.

When I was young, I wanted to be a rock star for the obvious reasons:  Fame, fortune and women.  As I got older though, I realized that what really attracted me to the music business were two things.  First, I love traveling.  The thought of being on a bus, in a different city every night, and living out of a suitcase was pure heaven.  Second, I loved the attention.  That was why I was the lead singer and not the drummer.  EVERYBODY LOOK AT ME!!! (By the way I wouldn’t exactly call it singing, it was more like screaming at the top of my lungs, flipping my hair around, while jumping up and down in leather pants).  Getting into sales, I was able to fulfill both of those desires.  I spent the next 17 years traveling from state to state, selling my electronics, and I always had the stage.

Here is an excerpt taken with permission from the highly regarded High-Tech Strategist Newsletter written by Fred Hickey who recently purchased a home in Playa Hermosa, Guanacaste, Costa Rica.

Fred Hickey has produced the High-Tech Strategist Newsletter for over 25 years and is a highly respected investment analyst and forward thinker.

“Escape Hatch

As you can gather, I am very concerned about this country’s direction [United States] – and have been for years. The near-total collapse in the financial system in 2008 was a scary moment indeed, and I’m not sure the risks have lessened much. The “weapons of mass destruction”(derivatives) remain in place. This country cannot continue down the path of spending massively more than it receives in revenues. Yet the huge increases in entitlement spending (which are placating the unemployed masses), cannot be continued forever. Necessary cutbacks in entitlements could be messy. For now, we have no breadlines or shanty-towns (as in the 1930s) because the government takes care of everyone – through its deficit spending. The end result of the money printing experiment may lead to inflation and a worsening in the inequality gap between the rich (who benefit from asset inflation) and everyone else. I worry that our bootstrapping culture is no longer the same as it once was and our people may react badly in difficult times.  Almost 41% of all children in the U.S. are born to unwed mothers (all races).  For blacks, the rate is a staggering72.5%. Over the past several months, some of the best performing stocks have been gun makers such as Smith & Wesson.  Not a happy thought. While I remain hopeful that we can right ourselves, as we’ve done before, there are growing risks.