Since this thread was started I suppose there has been about a 15% inflation in the cost of many of the items we buy at the supermarket, if we´re talking about prepackaged food and beverages. This has affected a lot of the things we buy. Official inflation is running at about 4.5%, but I can´t say it impacts all things equally. Fresh fruits and vegetables don´t seem to me to have gone up in price, for example. Taxi fares went up a long time ago, and have been stable, since then. Gasoline went up, but not as much as it did in the U.S., and is now about at par. I´m not aware of any increases in the cost of utilities, and I wouldn´t say rents have gone up, either.
I hope I can still find a low cost rental in the area. Even if it's farther inward West, I wouldn't mind. If not, I'd be looking further South to Playa del Carmen or Tulum. V, do you know if there are cheap rentals there for stays up to 4 months in a year? Thanks for the good info. Manuel
There are others who can provide more details, but $500 USD, or even less, for a furnished apt is possible. Want to go lower? You always can, but quality and neighborhood would be less.
Many retirees, living on modest incomes and considering Mexico as a lower cost destination, may have been put off by the increased levels of financial resources required by Mexican Immigration Law to get permission to live here, long term. However, they can take comfort in the fact that Mexico has long permitted de facto residence in the form of entering, visa free, for 180 days; then, leaving and re-entering at the end of that period, getting another 180 days when they re-enter, each time. There has been no change to this practice, or limits of any kind placed on this form of residence, here. Belize is just seven hours or so away, by bus, less by car.
This is an old thread but... I am a senior man who is moving from Alamos, Sonora to Cancun for awhile simply because of the cheap and numerous air fares to Florida where my aged mother lives. As for as medical problems, correct me if I am wrong but if a Mex doctor tells me I need some expensive treatment or an operation why not just fly to Florida ($350) and use my medicare? I realize one could not do this with an emergency.
Ditto, here. Airfares from Cancun are much cheaper than from places further west in Mexico, especially if the destination is anywhere on the east coast, such as Florida. My wife's aging parents live in Florida, too. She can pop over there any time they need help, without worrying about high airfares. Medicare is just a little over an hour away, if your destination is Florida. With an emergency, and no other insurance, IMSS will take you on a fee basis, but their fees are remarkably low, and based on your ability to pay. There are cheaper places in Mexico to live than Cancun, but we've got the clean air, and the sea, both of which can add years to your life. It's not a bad place to be in old age, so far as I can see, with its low elevations, and complete absence of gradients to climb. Consider that here you don't need a second set of clothing for cold weather, and never need to pay for heating. Those who can tolerate heat can live here cheaply indeed.
Since you mentioned it, water. Having only been in the hotel zone, I haven't had the pleasure of acclimating to the water. How does one go about this and how long does it take? Does eating local produce cause an issue too? My other question is would there be a cheaper place in the area to live, Like Playa or Isla Mujeres? Or are the costs about the same all over the state?
Agreed. For singles in good health Cancun can be very affordable. For families on the other hand, not so much so. Our two kids school costs are around $12,000 a month alone.
There's nothing really to get used to. Everyone buys bottled water for drinking, anyone who has been here any length of time uses tap water to brush teeth, wash veggies that are to be boiled etc etc For an equivalent standard of accommodation there isn't really much difference. There are both cheap and expensive places to live in Playa, Isla and Cancun. Utility and food costs are not going to vary much either.
Retirees with limited resources can benefit from the weakening of the peso against the dollar, which makes the purchasing power of social security retirement and other dollar denominated resources more valuable here now than when this thread was started. One of the last questions asked on this thread had to do with medicare. With medicare Part A and Part B together Americans are insured for major medical. For chemotherapy, for example, Medicare Part B will cover 80% of the costs, after a modest deductible. Returning to the U.S. for treatment is an option, though the cost here may still be less, even if you have to pay for out of your own pocket, so high are medical costs in the U.S.
