A Luxurious Life for Less
We have a washer and dryer now so we’ve eliminated the laundry service line item. Without a messy yard that brought in leaves, dust, insects, and geckos we can now keep up with our housekeeping, eliminating the weekly housecleaner expense.
The Home repairs/Maintenance line item is much less because our condo is newer and has fewer interior systems to malfunction. Jon won’t be nearly as busy as a handyman here.
Some Expenses are More
Since we moved here during the hot, humid month of July and live here year-round, air conditioning our home during the warm months, we expected our electricity bill to be significantly higher. Surprisingly, with the efficient Dual Inverter mini-splits, a well-insulated condo unit, and all lightbulbs changed to LED’s, our electricity bill hasn’t been much higher than our average in Sayulita and may drop after more winter month history.
We splurge by dining out more often in Puerto Vallarta, about twenty times per month, sometimes breakfast or lunch, but usually nice dinners. Quality restaurant food and wine are more expensive here than in Sayulita, but still significantly less than in the United States.
Veterinarian costs have increased for us here because we go
to a clinic that is well-liked by Canadians and Americans for the quality of
service and English-speaking staff, so their rates are higher. Wolf’s
Veterinary Clinic is well worth the 30-minute bus ride to get there.
We no longer go back to the U.S. for doctor appointments or
to load up on vitamins, nutritional supplements, or OTC and prescription
medications. Health care is very good and relatively inexpensive here. Medicare
doesn’t cover medical care abroad and we’ve chosen to live here without
supplemental health insurance. Now that we pay out of pocket for medical
treatment and supplies, these Health Care line items are higher. In the past
two years, Amazon, Costco, and Farmacia Guadalajara have become great
suppliers for most of these items.
Now that we’re older, we have additional medical and dental
issues, all paid out of pocket, so I’ve significantly increased the budgeted amount for these line items. Jon’s
Parkinson’s disease treatments have increased these line items in the last two
years. We keep enough IRA investments to draw from if we have a major medical
event.
We no longer travel by motorhome but allocate funds for
travel by other means. Usually, we hire a driver to take us on adventures in
México which is convenient for travel with our small dog. We hope to fly somewhere
in the Yucatan this year so have budgeted for that.
We pay for everything in pesos, but I’ve converted the expenses
below to U.S. dollars for ease of comparison. I’ve used 20.5 pesos per dollar
as the exchange rate, though it’s sometimes over 21, making our dollars stretch
even farther.
Groceries & Wine $
350
Restaurants (Yes, we splurge here) $1000
Waterdrop Filters $
7
(Rather than Purified Water--More about this later)
Condo HOA Dues $ 520
(This is
one of our highest monthly expenses, but includes a lot of services, replacing
several expense line items from our Sayulita budget. Included are gas,
internet, water, sewer, landscape maintenance, common area cleaning and
maintenance, swimming pool, rooftop bar and café, gym, security, and building
maintenance.)
Electricity $ 70
Fitness (Zumba Gold & yoga classes) $ 20
(We save
by using our condo’s gym and free YouTube classes)
Health Care—Medical $ 120
(Physical Therapy
$30, Doctors $30, Procedures, Lab tests, etc. $60)
Health Care—Dental $ 40
Health Care (Prescription Meds—OTC in Mexico) $ 250
Health Care (OTC Meds, CBD, Vitamins, Suppl.) $ 320
Personal Care $
245
(This is where we splurge more than
we did in Sayulita for much less than in the U.S. Weekly Massage $155/mo.,
Hair Color & Cut $90)
Pet Food, Supplies, Vet $ 40
Home Repair/Maintenance $ 30
Phone and Skype $ 30
(2 Telcel Amigo
sin Limite Plans + 2 Skype Numbers)
Property Taxes $ 10
Property Bank Trust Fee: $ 44
Transportation (Local--Bus, Taxi, Uber) $
60
Kindle eBooks $ 50
Entertainment and Netflix $ 50
Clothing $ 30
Charity and Donations $ 30
Travel and Vacations $
120
Total Monthly Budget for Two People $3436
Some people rent out their condo units for much of the year
to increase their income. We were landlords for over twenty years during our
“rat race” time in the U.S. and don’t plan to ever do that again. This is our
home, not a rental. We may not earn rental income from this condo unit, but it
will be a good investment in the long term if we ever sell it, or if our
children sell it.
Anyone who boasts of living for under $600 per month in Mexico is probably not enjoying many of the inexpensive perks of living here. I’ve tried to give a more accurate impression of expat life in México. Of course, many people live on less than we do by sacrificing some of the benefits we splurge on. Monthly tours or days trips provide the adventures we crave, expenses that are well worth it. Enjoying being pampered is part of the fun of retiring here. A weekly massage—why not, as the Mexicans say. A weekly trip to the salon for a hair wash and style—I love it and can afford it here but not in the U.S. Dining out because I don’t feel like cooking—we’re helping the economy. Budgeting for a vacation or two each year is important to us.
Yes, I like to justify being spoiled. Why not? Life is good as a foreigner retired in México.
“Being a writer, living in the Pacific Northwest, roughly the same age as the author, and having long a goal of retiring and living at least part-time in Sayulita, MX, THIS was exactly what I was after. And it did not disappoint. Her frustrations as a career pharmacist, getting hit hard in the real estate market of 2008 (boy, I can relate there,) the decision to downsize, to travel, to retire to Mexico, Terry writes about it all in a style that's very readable and very helpful. Her pros/cons list of various Mexico locations is golden. We have another exploratory trip to Sayulita coming in a few months, and I'm now much more prepared to see it with "new" eyes than I was before.”
Thank you for reading my books and blog articles. Happy travels.
