Quote from @Allen Berrebbi: Quote from @Dominic Mazzarella: I have personally owned and managed a multifamily property in Illinois and after selling it I said I would never invest in that state again.

PreREO I believe was run by the same person who owns AHP (American Home Preservation) - which has a lot of chatter on BP that you can search. 

H there, I'm a certified international property specialist and while i don't personally specialize n Costa Rica,  have several colleagues who do.  

There are many resources for you to connect online and in person.

Can this person now be "a real estate" professional? 

I would recommend targeting 30 day minimum rentals (Most associations are 90+), allowing 12+ rentals per year (most allow 1-3), and no in-person screening for tenants required.

Personally, I've been in this niche since 2007.

The terms and costs will depend on the property, your personal situation, the location, etc.

I am not sure what type of real estate investing you're considering, but it sounds like, with your family and busy job, you won't have a lot of time to be hands-on or personally involved. 

@Dustin Horner you should be contracting maintenance work and creating a preferred list of vendors as @Phillip Austin has recommended.The first person you hire to help you should be to handle what you LEAST like to do yourself or has the greatest time savings for you!