Caroline

My FIRE challenge right now is actually the RE part. We are absolutely in a financial place to officially retire (my husband already is), but I'm holding on due to, well, fear. I have a very good job with excellent benefits working with great people that isn't hard but doesn't fulfill me at all. Quitting would put strain on some of those great coworkers so I'm battling with that guilt as [...]

The numbers are in for 2020, and despite Costa Rica borders being closed from March through November, we were able to eke out a small profit across our three properties. We attribute this to one major factor – owning all three properties outright, with no mortgage to cover. When you don’t have a monthly mortgage (or 3, since we own 3 properties), you don’t need much income to break-even. In [...]

Our last investment was a private loan at 10%, to fund a flip, and it’s coming due shortly. This is a borrower we have worked with before – a family business but with decades of real estate experience. We also know their work firsthand because we bought a rental property from them (they do sales, renovations and property management) and have done very well with it. Finally, we like investing [...]

We own rentals in Tamarindo, Costa Rica, Asheville, NC and Jacksonville, FL. For 2021, Costa Rica was named the number 1 best place to retire by International Living. In a US News survey of best place to retire in the US, Asheville, NC was number 8 and Jacksonville, FL was number 13. It’s no coincidence that we own real estate in top retirement destinations – that’s one of the factors [...]

We don’t name all of our real estate – only the vacation properties, not the long-term rentals. All three of our Costa Rican units have names: Condo Boom, Casa Salita and Condo Reeves. From a practical perspective, we figured the names would help with marketing the properties. Having a name would make the property searchable on a vocational rental platform like AirBNB, without divulging the address. The names could also [...]

I read 33 books in 2020, down 10 from the 43 books read in 2019. When I look back at how I spent my time in 2020 (I keep a Time Diary of activity on the half hour and highly recommend it!), I spent just as much time reading, but unfortunately I read more breaking news than books. Keeping tabs on the pandemic and its economic effect was part of [...]

The Costa Rica Tourism Board is awarding 15 residents of the US and Canada (excluding Quebec somehow) an all-expenses paid vacation to Costa Rica. I don’t know what area of Costa Rica (there are 12 microclimates), but the contest prize description includes: Coach roundtrip air transportation for twoSix nights of hotel accommodations$200 in meal vouchersGround transportTravel insurance Here’s the link to enter if you’re feeling lucky! Even if you’re not [...]

I think it’s one of the work hazards of being a coach, but I spend an inordinate amount of money on learning & development, self-help and other personal and professional improvement resources. We spent just over $6,000 this year, and since 95% of that was directly attributed to me, I feel wholly responsible for the training line item. This is actually a pretty mild year in comparison. A few years [...]

The Sunshine Blogger Award is a peer-recognition award, given to those who inspire you, motivate you, or otherwise add “sunshine” to your day. There’s no formal, nomination process nor awarding ceremony but it’s a chance to be spotlighted by peers and then to pass on the sunshine to others – as you’ll see in the Award Rules. When you are nominated for the Sunshine Blogger Award, you must follow these [...]