When Kema Ward-Hopper uprooted her family — and career — to relocate from the U.S. to Costa Rica six years ago, she wasn’t sure what to expect.
She and her husband Nicholas quit their corporate jobs as a research analyst and mortgage broker, respectively, in Houston, Texas, to pursue new careers as entrepreneurs abroad.
The couple signed a one-year lease on a house in the middle of the jungle on Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula with their daughter Aaralyn not knowing “a single person who lived there” and “how long we’d be able to find work for,” Ward-Hopper, 42, recalls.
But, she adds, the risk has paid off: Even though she had to leave a career she loved in the U.S., and is earning less than she did while working there, Ward-Hopper says she is “a lot happier” living and working in Costa Rica than she was in the U.S.
Ward-Hopper now balances four part-time jobs: She’s a health and fitness coach, a Spanish teacher, a host for wellness retreats and, most recently, an author. She self-published her first book, “For my Beloveds: An End-of-life Journal for Guidance & Wisdom,” in September 2023.
“I work 25 hours a week now,” she says. “A heavy week is about 30 hours a week, but that is rare and happens about once a month.”
Last year, Ward-Hopper’s different income streams earned her about $10,500, according to financial documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.
Meanwhile, her husband Nicholas, 43, runs his own remote logistics business, earning him about $19,500 in 2023.
“Living here has allowed me to explore my passions so that my methods of earning income don’t feel like a job, it just feels like I’m getting to do the things that I love to do, which is to be of service to others,” Ward-Hopper says. “We make less money, but we’re still living pretty comfortably … our money definitely goes further here than in the U.S.”
Last year, the Ward-Hoppers moved to a three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath house in Nicoya. Their biggest expense is rent and utilities, which totals about $628 per month.
What it’s like working in one of the world’s happiest countries
In addition to the lower cost of living, Ward-Hopper says she’s found a “more fulfilling, less stressful” career in Costa Rica than in the U.S. because of the country’s relaxed, “family-first” work culture.
“It’s common to see children in businesses where their parents work, if they’re off from school and don’t have another child care provider, and bosses aren’t so rigid that if you need to take time off from work or step away for a minute if your child is sick or needs something, you’re going to get in trouble,” she says. “As a working parent with young children, that cuts out a lot of stress.”
Ward-Hopper’s son, Nico, was born in Costa Rica in 2020.
Costa Ricans also value a healthy work-life balance, she adds. The country has a shorter workweek than many other nations, allowing ample time for hobbies, rest and spending quality time with loved ones.
Many businesses in her neighborhood don’t open until 9 a.m. or later. “You can’t visit a coffee shop and get your morning latte at 7 a.m. like you’re able to do in the U.S.,” she says. “A lot of places are closed on Sundays, too, and holidays, which I’d think helps their employees not burn out.”
Costa Rica is one of the happiest countries in the world, ranking 12th on the World Happiness Report’s 2024 list.
The Nicoya Peninsula, where the Ward-Hoppers live, is one of the five original Blue Zones. Blue Zones are regions in the world with some of the longest-living people and highest life expectancies, according to longevity researcher Dan Buettner.
Some of the factors that make Nicoya a Blue Zone, Buettner discovered, are the Nicoyans’ diet, which includes fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains as well as their focus on family and community.
Ward-Hopper would add the Costa Ricans’ attitude toward work to that list. “Work is a lesser part of conversations and how people identify themselves here than in the U.S.,” she says. “That mindset makes it easier to have a fuller, more joyful life outside of what happens at our jobs, which is so often out of our control.”
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