According to the
U.S. State department, it is estimated
that there are over
a million Americans
living in Mexico,
many of them fulfilling
their retirement dream.
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"Find out where the Baby Boomers are going and get there first."
Will Rodgers
Have you ever thought about
retirement in
México?
...it's a very real and wonderful possibility.
The US Department of State estimates that out of the
approximately four million Americans living overseas, between 600,000 and
one million are in Baja and elsewhere in México - up from about 200,000 a
decade ago. The population in Rosarito is estimated at
95,000 with perhaps
as many as 35,000 North Americans.
Many of the
residential areas are gated communities much like the communities north of
the border. Most of the American residential areas are beachfront properties
at prices much lower than state side. The beach here is one of the finest in
México. In Baja California, an estimated 100,000
Americans have created the first North American land rush of the 21st
century.
In the last decade, an estimated half million Americans moved permanently to
México, making the United States' southern neighbor the country with the
most U.S. expatriates in the world. Not since the conclusion of the American
Civil War -- when thousands of Southerners emigrated to México -- have so
many Americans moved to México. Officials at the American embassy estimate
that there are "officially" more than 600,000 American citizens living
permanently in México, but concede the actual number is closer to 800,000.
Treasury Department officials in Washington estimate that the number of
Treasury checks -- Social Security, Veteran Administrations, tax refunds --
sent to México is "in the ballpark of 750,000."
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But why
México, you might ask?
The reason so many Americans and Canadians choose
México is because they can
drive to México
in a car. A bigger reason is that
México is a bargain compared to
the USA
and Canada. There
are also a large number of Europeans retiring in
Mexico.
Mexico is rich with history,
steeped in culture, having perhaps a more pronounced culture
than any other nation in Latin America
with the exception of Brazil
and Argentina.
México has great food, great
architecture and many areas with an excellent climate.
México is modern, with better
highways than many parts of Latin America
and an infrastructure that allows foreigners to connect via
telephone and internet to the rest of the world. This level of
infrastructure isn't available in
Nicaragua, or in
Guatemala, and this is a very
important determining factor for the retiree who doesn't want to
be inconvenienced by inconveniences.
México
is also a healthier place to live because of the food. Fresh
fruit and vegetables are always in season and taste so much
better in México
that you eat more of them. In fact, unlike North American
produce that is picked green and allowed to ripen in transit,
Mexican produce is picked at its peak and sold in the market the
very next day. And little or no preservatives are used in
processed food which means you're ingesting fewer chemicals.
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You will find that life is so
much more enjoyable because you finally have time to pursue your
hobbies and develop your talents. Moving to México,
people finally have time to prepare the recipes they've been
saving from gourmet magazines, put the box of photographs into
albums, or garden to their hearts' content in this land where
flowers grow all year long. Others develop new interests and
discover latent talents when they take a ceramics or watercolor
class. There are also innumerable opportunities for volunteer
work.
There's less stress here, too.
If you can adjust to the "manana" attitude and remember that
"manana" doesn't necessarily mean tomorrow, it just means not
today, you will realize that everything will eventually get done
that needs doing and with far less frustration. Rather than
worrying, go to the plaza, sit on a bench, and watch village
life pass before your eyes. You will see a family out for a
stroll, a little boy riding on his father's shoulders while Mom
buys her daughter a balloon, you'll notice the teenage girls
going one direction in the plaza while the boys pass the other
way, all of them casting furtive glances at the ones they like,
and you'll see old friends who will sit down with you for a chat
because they're in the plaza doing the same thing you're doing?
enjoying life!
I'm
not implying that México
is Shangri-La, but I think it's closer to paradise than any
place you can find in the United
States or
Canada. Here in this land of
majestic mountains and rolling countryside, you will find a
gentle people willing to welcome you into their hearts. You will
have more time to explore other interests and develop your
talents because you have more freedom, better health, less
stress, and someone else to take care of mundane chores. The
low cost of living allows you to splurge on luxuries that would
be prohibitive anywhere else and to take advantage of
world-class resorts that are only a few hours' drive away.
Many gringos that chose retirement in México
settle in the Baja, but North Americans can be found nearly
anywhere in México. Where you decide to live depends on a number
of factors, including how immersed in the Mexican culture you
want to be and how inexpensive you want your lifestyle to be.
Areas with a higher concentration of gringos tend to be more
expensive than more remote areas.
México
has a multi-layered immigration system. Tourists with an FM-T
visa (commonly known as the tourist visa) are allowed to stay in
México for 6 months without crossing a border to renew the visa.
For those who want to stay longer than 6 months at a time
without having to make a semi-annual trip to the border, the
next step in the immigration process is the FM-3. Baja
Relocation will help clients obtain an FM-3.
With the
passage of NAFTA several years ago,
México
has stabilized economically and socially. Investment rates on
bank accounts are currently paying 15% and higher. English is
spoken in many areas. Access to the
United States
is quick, and in most cases, fairly easy. Gringos can buy and
sell property. The weather is warm, and in some areas, the
climate is tropical. There are places where the weather stays
mild even during the summer. It is possible to stay in the
country for longer than six months at a time without having to
make a trip to the border. And maybe most importantly, older
citizens who retire in Mexico are respected. Moving to México
and maybe retirement in México beckons for all of these reasons
and more!
"If
you are a baby boomer, time is not on your side.
Many baby
boomers see retirement age fast approaching with little
to nothing in the
way of retirement assets that will allow them
to actually retire
and live a comfortable lifestyle in the U.S."
Baby Boomers Statistics on
Empty Nests and Retirement
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