Is Retiring in Mexico the Answer for higher costs of living in the USA? Part 2

Overall Cost of Living
-One of the most popular questions we get from prospective buyers for Mexico homes for sale is about this subject…cost of living in Mexico.   It definitely ranks among the top advantages of a Mexican retirement and living south of the border along with a simpler casual lifestyle.   But it is a bit difficult to quantify the cost of living issue as everyone has their own personal standard of living.

Are you used to living a “top shelf” lifestyle, or perhaps an average day-to-day routine and way of living is fine?  Obviously your standard of living will dictate your financial budget. But it is easy to say that most everything is less expensive in Mexico.  Perhaps electricity is the only budget item that might be considered expensive here.  Based on the primary issue of amount of air conditioning you want to enjoy, your electric bill could be as high or even higher than in North America.  Other than that one item, everything else is cheaper.  Not dirt cheap, but whether groceries, other utilities, clothing, auto and gasoline expenses to restaurants, taxes (especially almost non-existent property taxes, monthly condo fees…..all are cheaper than you are used to paying. It is easy to say you can live like a king on a modest budget here in the Mexico real estate region.  And yes, it is quite a nice change.  I have enjoyed the surprised look of many clients when showing a total property tax bill of less than $400-500 per YEAR!  And condo association fees a mere fraction of what they are used to “back home”. Medical costs are much lower here as well, but I can assure you the quality of care is as good, if not better than I had living in Florida.  In fact, my medical costs here are probably less than I would pay if I were back in Florida just for my deductible and my co-pay.  When paying for my doctor’s visit last week, they deducted 25% from my already low fee since I was a “local”. And perhaps the cheapest item in Mexico is people…labor.  Whether your person cleaning the house, or cooking,  or doing the laundry to someone doing yard work, washing the car or even doing construction, that is really a surprisingly low expense. So, yes…the cost of living is a big plus when considering a move to Mexico.   Living better for less…what a nice feeling.

Doug Morgan 512-879-6546 www.TOPmexicorealestate.com THE TOP Mexico Real Estate NETWORK; “Mexico’s leading specialists for finding and purchasing Mexican properties safely !”