House Hunters International

South Carolina Retirees Buy 2nd Home in Costa Rica (12x12)

Air date: Jan 27, 2010

Ken and Donna Richardson live in Conway South Carolina with their maltese dog, Oscar. Ken recently retired and wants to buy a 2nd home in his favorite fishing spot, Nosara Costa Rica. Even though Donna has never been there, she is feeling adventurous and is willing to join Ken in the search. They want a 3 bed, 3 bath home with an open floorplan, a pool and an ocean view. They also want to buy a place close to the beach. They have a budget of $700,000, and they've given themselves just 3 days to complete their search. Their real estate agent Bram Shook knows it might be difficult for them to find a place that's both close to the beach that also has ocean views, since in Nosara there is a wildlife refuge that separates all the homes from the beach. The first place he takes them to see is a 10 minute drive from the beach and has 3 bedrooms and 3 baths in 3000 square feet. It's listed for $525,000. The home has a nice pool and amazing ocean views, though Donna is worried about her grandson's safety since the patio has very little railing. They like all three bedrooms, but they aren't crazy about how far the home is from the beach. Later that same day Bram takes them to see a 3400 square foot, 4 bed, 3 bath home that's listed for $650,000. This home is a 10 minute walk to the beach, but it has a fantastic pool area with an outdoor bar and kitchen. They aren't crazy about the small guest rooms and the bright tropical paint colors but they do like the master bedroom and the ocean view from the rooftop deck.The next day Bram takes them to see a home that's a 2 minute walk from the beach. Listed for $450,000, the house has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms in 1250 square feet. Ken and Donna like being closer to the beach but they aren't crazy about the inside of the home and the fact that there are no ocean views. They both think the furniture, countertops and appliances would need to be replaced, and the home is much smaller than the other two they saw. With one day left to make t