Email & ShareWhen we, the Working Gringos, moved to Merida a long, long time ago (or so it seems, anyway), we knew little to nothing about Merida, the Yucatan or Mexico. We were enchanted with the city and the culture, but we didn’t know how to buy a house or pay the electric bill. For the first six months, we didn’t work, but we spent a lot of time finding our way around, getting to know people and learning how to live like Yucatecos. Some days, successfully ordering Pollo Brujo over the phone was considered a big accomplishment.
Ours was the total opposite of hitting the ground running.
Flash forward to today. We have lived here for eight years. We know more than one way to pay our bills. We carry FM2 visas. We run a successful Mexican corporation with employees. We pay Mexican taxes. We have bought multiple properties, renovated a colonial home into an office and built a new house in the centro historico. We’ve bought a car, been sick and cured more than once, and traveled all over the Peninsula. We speak Spanish (mas o menos), a little Mayan, and we feel very comfortable here.
This transformation did not happen simply due to the passage of time. And it certainly didn’t happen because we are geniuses. Along the way, we needed help and received it from a variety of sources, including our real estate agent , our accountant, our neighbors, our employees and other expatriates who had lived here a while. We consider ourselves fortunate that we met the right people at the right time, most of the time, and had the time to do it.
Since launching the Yucatan Living website, we’ve met a lot of people who have moved here, or are planning to move here, or have started a business here, or have invested in 
property with the intention of renting now and retiring later. We’ve had hundreds of conversations with a wide range of expatriates and we’ve heard their stories. We’ve observed how some people have an easy time integrating and adapting. We’ve also seen how many people make mistakes in the process of learning how things work. Sometimes these mistakes are trivial and sometimes they are costly. Sometimes, they can be tragically wrong.
Over the past eight years, Mexico has changed. Mexico has adopted many of the accounting and legal practices of developed countries and it has implemented technology to become more efficient. It is no longer considered an emerging market but rather a “middle-class” economy, the ninth largest in the world. Its national debt is under control, which is reflected in the ratings its government bonds receive. Since we’ve moved here, the Mexican stock market has outperformed the S&P 500 by over 160%. 
Merida, too, has grown considerably. Not just in size, but in sophistication. Merida and the Yucatan are quickly catching up to the rest of Mexico. Yucatan has Wi-Fi in the parks, modern hospitals, car dealerships of every kind, gourmet restaurants and is becoming a more and more well-known destination. As Mexico and Merida become more modern, some things about living here become easier, and some things become more complicated.
In short, this is not your father’s Mexico, the lawless land depicted in popular entertainment where money paid under the table will bring the results you expected. These days, it’s smarter to play by the rules.
Underlying all of this growing sophistication, the city of Merida, whose influence is far reaching on the Peninsula, still has a small town culture with a long-established social geography. As with any close-knit society, knowing the map doesn’t necessarily give you access to the territory. Around here, who you know is always as important, and often MORE important, than what you know.
So why are we telling you this?
Almost every day, we receive emails or comments on the Yucatan Living website asking a question that we are not really qualified to answer. A reader may raise a legal issue related to immigration or an obscure problem related to real estate taxation. Many times, somebody simply needs a referral, like whether we can take care of a problem here that they can’t manage directly because they still live outside Mexico. We try to help with most of the issues our readers send us, but we do not have the staff nor the qualifications to provide most of the resources requested.
Fortunately, for the past three years, we’ve been working with the people who do, and we’d like to introduce them to you. These are the people you need to know.
Meet our new affiliate website: Yucatan Expatriate Services.
This service is new, but the company wasn’t born yesterday. Far from it, in fact. Yucatan Expatriate Services brings together the expertise and skills of a team of very educated, experienced and connected individuals. They are Yucatecans by birth, who have traveled and worked on a global scale. Their clients in the past have included manufacturers, hotel groups and other professionals who have come to Merida to accomplish tasks ranging from building a factory to operating a resort. This team has taken care of these clients with great success.
Now, they are expanding their service offering to the web, and to individuals like us.
Yucatan Expatriate Services can be many things to many people. With its bilingual staff of project managers, accountants, lawyers and affiliated professionals, YES (that’s it’s name for short!) can be trusted to provide you with accurate answers to your questions and any services required to accomplish your goals. They are also publishing their knowledge in comprehensive guides about important topics such as immigration, insurance, finances, employment and other subjects expatriates in the Yucatan and Mexico need to know. These guides are full of detailed information and you can download them now from the YES website.
Click here for the Yucatan Expatriate Services website to learn more about YES services and the YES guides!
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GREAT Addition to your services, but it is going to take a while to absorb everything and really fully understand the depth of everything that is being offered!
Very nice article. A godsend to those of us who can’t wait to move to Mexico. As soon as I can sell my house here – which currently looks like it may take forever – we’ll be neighbors. In the mean while, thanks for the GREAT website. It gives me hope.
A very good idea – I hope people will understand the value of getting the right kind of direction. It’s a good world, but a different world, and there are a thousand ways to make a mistake if you presume to know things or operate on intuition. Thanks as always.
It would be a God send to have one location in order to deal with this myriad of issues, and to know that the people are dedicated, knowledgeable, and reliable. Thank you for introducing this service to all of us considering the Yucatan.
Moving within one’s own country, state or city can be a frustrating and perilous undertaking, so moving cross country lines is even more daunting. My husband has difficulty dealing with all this kind of stuff here in country, so having a resource such as this would make him much more comfortable in retiring to the Yucatan.
Dear Ex-Pat’s,
Its is intriguing, the work that you guys do. I am contemplating moving back to Mexico. I am hesitant because growing up in the LA area especially i have become quit accustom to the amenities that one has here. I heard that there was a lot of crime there especially if one is new to the area. I heard that there is less opportunity for a prosperous career, hence the reason why the US is so saturated with illegal immigration. Where would you recommend a 24 year old with a masters degree, to settle? I was considering Guadalajara, would you recommend?
Dear Tom:
Have you been in Merida, capital of the State of Yucatan? I’m sure you are cautious about moving to a city that might not provide you with all the services that a big city such as LA does, but let me tell you a few things.
I’m from Merida, have lived all my life here (29 years) and have traveled and lived for short periods in big cities and I’m able to compare what we have here with what other cities offer. I don’t want to make this a long comment, but there’s so many good things to say about Merida!! So I’ll try to keep it short:
And regarding crime, Mexico is a big place. While some cities in the north are indeed “dangerous”, Merida is the city with the lowest level of violence in all of Mexico.
Also, I think with your age and your level of education it won’t be hard to find work. Guadalajara is a beautiful city, the 4th biggest in the country (1.6 Million people, Merida is almost 1 Million)…. but nothing compares to Merida
.
You can read more about our wonderful land here in the Yucatan Living site for an Expat point of view, visit our site where you will find useful information (www.yucatanexpatriateservices.com) and also the Yucatan Government’s tourism site (www.yucatan.travel/es/).
Who could have imagined that we would need the help of Y.E.S. right here at Yucatan Living! Of course my problem was solved many months ago… but what did I do then? Put the wrong address on the paperwork to D.F. !!! The entire thing imploded. All looked lost forever. Enter Betty Quijano of Y.E.S. Problem solved – no muss, no fuss, no bother. Thank you, Mrs. Betty.
I am still quite a ways from moving to Merida, but Adriana was absolutely terrific in helping me with some fairly complex questions about starting a business, incorporating, taxes, labor laws, etc, etc, etc. There is no doubt that I will use them for all my needs once I get closer.
Hi,
We are toying with the idea of retirement in Mexico. Our retirement check is not going to be very high and we are looking for a place where we could have a good living and where it would be affordable. What would be your recommendations to start thinking seriously there?
Hi,
I really want to move to and live in Merida. Is it safe for a single 52 year old woman to live there? Approximately, how much does a person need monthly to live comfortabely? I would like to rent a house close to shopping. What do houses rent for? I just need a small house.
Who do I contact to get the legalities of moving to Mexico?
Monica,
Of course it is safe for you… and you’ll find there are many other single women living here happily. I am 54 years old, and feel safer here than anywhere I’ve ever been in the world, except maybe my hometown in Central California. (On the other hand, there has never been a serial killer here, and we did have one there.)
Please read our Cost of Living article (http://www.yucatanliving.com/yucatan-survivor/the-cost-of-living-in-merida-yucatan.htm) for information on what it costs to live here. And contact the good people at Yucatan Expatriate Services (www.yucatanyes.com or email them at info@yucatanyes.com) to find out more about the legalities of moving to Mexico.
Lots of people before you have done it… it’s not that hard!
Enjoyed your site, the intro is very helpful. I live in the U.S. in the state Maine. Just enjoyed a show on TV about a family who relocated to your city. This piqued my interest about your lovely city. Time to consider a vacation to Merida and see for ourselves. Thanks, Trish
Get out! {big Elaine push!}
You are not 54.
Who wrote that…?
To Casi Yucateco, yes, we are in our mid-fifties. The secret is out
To Trish, that family you mention are friends of ours. It can be done, and in fact, is done every day by many readers of Yucatan Living. Come on down and see for yourself!
I enjoy reading your site, although I am not moving to Merida but to playa del carmen in april I have a question that I hope someone will answer. I finally got my FM3 visa after much ado I must add, but now do I have to report to (WHO) in mexico before 30 days? Do I have to bring all the paperwork that it took in the states along with me or just show the FM3 visa? Do I fill out the entry form on the plane? I would think not since I have my visa already? Lots of unanswered questions but it will be all worth it once I have settled in. Thank you
Great idea…I went there looking for home rental options and thought I had hit the jackpot by the first glance, but soon found I was overwhelmed.
We are a family relocating from PV to Merida this summer and are looking for a house to get into for the first 12 months while we find the perfect place for our family. Here we have something called the manoamano , a popular classifieds book distributed weekly and also online….is there something like this for Merida?
No, not that we know of.
I would say you have a few options. You can check the Diario’s Classified section (www.yucatan.com.mx). You can check Yucatan Living’s Vacation Rentals section, or the Rentals section on any of the real estate websites for this area. Or you can call or chat with the YES people (the chat on their website is staffed and works well during business hours… after business hours, it leaves an email that they will reply to), and ask them to help you find the right neighborhood, and a reasonably priced rental… they can do the legwork for you for a reasonable fee.
To Rebecca… sorry we did not get back to you sooner. You should just have to show the FM3 visa, not the paperwork. We have not heard about the 30-day rule, and would recommend that you email the people at Yucatan Expatriate Services and ask them that question… they have immigration experts there. And you fill out a different entry form on the plane. Tell the flight attendant you have a visa and she will give you a different form.
We have very recently arrived in Merida from South Africa and are slowly finding our feet.
Can you help with two slight problems
1) Where do you suggest we go to to obtain a Mexican will and what does this usually cost?;
2) We bought a car very easily but need to register it in our names. Where or whom do we go to to get this paperwork done?
P and G
Peter and Glenda, we suggest you contact the YES people by clicking this link:
http://www.yucatanyes.com
They can give you an estimate on drawing up a will, and can help you with registering the car in your name. In fact, I’ll bet Adriana will contact you after seeing this email… you’ll be in good hands.
My husband and I have been seriously considering a move to either Merida or to the Chelem/Progreso area for a couple of years now. My husband recently inherited money (not a lot but enough for us to purchase a modest home outright and leave us with most of our funds invested for the future). Because of this unexpected windfall we’re considering moving within the year versus 10 years from now. Today I was searching online for a company to move the household goods we can’t bear to part with and discovered all the FM Visa rules are changing as of May 1, 2010. Is there anyone who knows about the changes explain them in laymen’s English?
Your website is wonderful and I’ve enjoyed reading all the articles over the past year +!
As of May 1st 2010, some of the immigration rules will be changing. The experts at Yucatan Expatriate Services are investigating this for us and we will be writing an article about it as soon as we know more. Stay tuned to their website: http://www.yucatanyes.com
hola,
I have visited Merida and really like it. But I am not sure how to find the information for citizenship in Mexico. Can someone help?
Ive been to Merida as a tourist for a 2 week or so period, several years ago. I found that people there were indeed friendly and that there were few signs of serious crime. They have a tourista police too. I don’t know about permanently living there, but if you cant take searing heat and sun don’t even think about living there. Ive been to many tropical regions around the globe and the Yucatan was the hottest ever!
Jim,
The first thing you might want to do is get the Immigration Guide from the YES website. You can download it from here:
http://www.yucatanexpatriateservices.com/category/expatriate-guides
That will tell you everything you need to know about visas and citizenship… what you need to get them, how long it takes, which visa you need for your situation and what is the path to Mexican citizenship. All in easy-to-read English!
Merida Visitor…
May is the hottest time of year in the Yucatan… so if you can make it here then, you will LOVE it here the rest of the year!
Dear Working Gringos:
My wife and I have thoroughly enjoyed reading Yucatan Living for some time. You give potential expatriates a lot of valuable assistance. You may or may not be able to answer this question. I received my FM-3 visia in March of 2009 and we intended to move to a house we purchased in Valladolid during the summer of 2009, and ship some of our household belongings using the Certifacado A Lista De Menaje De Casa A Extranjeros. However, during the summer that we had hoped to ship our household belongings I was diagnosed with prostate cancer and had to have surgery. The cancer had spread beyond the prostate and in February of this year I underwent radiation therapy. I will be released by my physician in July and am optimistic that they have stopped the cancer. The problem is that to use the Certifacado you must ship within 6 months of receiving your FM-3 visa. There was no way for me to have moved to Mexico during that 6 month period because of medical problems. Do any of your experts know if I can get an extension and still ship the household items for the fee of $129.00? If so, I would deeply appreciate your answer as we are ready to ship now.
Byron Augustin
Dear Byron,
We have no idea… but you are in luck! Because if the people at YES don’t know the answer to this off the top of their head, you can hire them not only to find out but to take care of it all for you. Their bilingual project managers are extremely knowledgeable and efficient, and employing them will save you a lot of time and, in the end we are willing to bet, money as well.
Call them … their number is on their website at http://www.yucatanyes.com.
Oh, and felicidades on your recovery!!
Dear Working Gringos:
(Cool Name) I like it !!!!!
I am 45 years old and a single father of 3 grown daughters…I’ve lived in San Antonio, Tx all my life and have a 25 year career within the the Commerical Construction Management Field. I must say I am swept about the culture in Merida.
I have long since wanted to move to Mexico. I dream of it. I have visited several areas inthe past (Cancun, Cozumel, Playa de Carmen) many, many times and while sitting on the white sandy beaches , I cant think of nothing more that what my life would be like to live in a beautiful place like Merida. But I am nervous of making such a big decision to move…
My question is this..simply put,,how well is the Commercial Construction Industry doing in Merida or the areas around it. Falling short of not surfing the websites like “Monster.com” for career opts I have no idea.
Thank you in advance for any information that you might provide.
Jesse Ray
(p.s. I m really enjoying the Yucatan Living Website and its articles. Keep up the great work)
Jesse,
I just moved here with my family from San Antonio, TX. We officially moved here June 30th. You can email me with questions if you have any.
Jay B.
jayblackshear@yahoo.com
We just moved to Merida from the US at the beginning of July.
Our cost of living so far….and again, these numbers may need a little massaging as we go forward but from what I can already tell:
Rent $560 USD monthly. Brand new home. We are the first tenants. Great neighbors. Clean neighborhood. 2 bedrooms, huge living room. Tile everywhere. Green grass, covered parking, fenced in driveway with secured gate and a garage door opener.
Electric: $100 to $200 monthly depending on how much you like A/C. Still waiting on my first bill however.
Water: I was told around $25 monthly. Still waiting on my first bill.
Gas (Stove/Hot water heater/Dryer): $50 USD to fill up the gas tank on the roof.
Drinking water: $5.00 USD weekly for 15 gallons.
Car Insurance: One year policy. $25 to $50 monthly, depending on the amount of coverage/type of car. My 2001 model truck was $25 monthly with Theft coverage.
Gas (car): $75 to $150 monthly roughly.
Internet/Cable: 2GB Internet Highspeed and Basic Cable Package through CableMas $40 monthly.
Garbage: $5.00 monthly. Yes that is right. And they pick up Monday/Wednesday/Friday. And they take everything you set out there.
Groceries: $600 USD monthly shopping at Costco and Wal Mart. We are a family of four, 2 growing boys that eat alot.
Cell Phone: $100 monthly through ATT. We still have our ATT phone lines with a MX phone package, 1400 minutes for both phones. I have been strongly encouraged by my Meridian friends to get a local cell phone.
Miscellaneous: For us, $300 monthly, depending on our boys. Peter Piper Pizza costs the same here as in the states.
Total for us right now: Around $2,000 monthly for a family of four who is still renting. We paid our car insurance a year in advance. We can flex down to $1600 monthly if we have too. This budget does not include the annual visa expenses if you choose to go that route or if you choose to fly back every six months and renew your tourist visa. Your call on that.
PS. We finalize a pet adoption tomorrow, a mixed breed dog. See the home page of yucatanliving for more info on the process.
Regards
Jaybird
Thanks for that good info, Jaybird! And thanks for adopting a local dog too!!