| Cost of Living in Playa del Carmen |
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By Shawn Bandick I live here in Playa del Carmen, with a family of four, for just over half of what it cost me to live in B.C. Canada back in the year 2000. First let us cover actual costs of day to day living here... When you travel around the area you often have opportunities to buy fresh produce and fruit at a stand on the side of the road. Last week I was enjoying a great day with some clients traveling near Bacalar. We bought tree ripened finger sized sweet bananas; three bunches for 10 pesos (less than a dollar). We also bought a bag of Mandarin oranges, and some bottles of Mandarin juice for 10 pesos each. The pineapples were 5 to 20 pesos depending on the size (less than a dollar to almost 2 dollars), and that night we decided to BBQ some fresh cut T- Bone steaks, and they only cost 38 to 40 pesos each (less than 4 dollars). If you prefer to eat out you can buy a fish platter complete with vegetables and salad with a breaded fish filet so big you will have a hard time eating it all (I’m always up to the challenge) for 95 pesos. Or if you prefer Arrachera Steak (marinated flank steak) go to El Fagon on 30th Ave. It will come with a bean soup to start, and then you will enjoy a generous portion of Arrachera, baked potato, grilled onions, and a small side salad all for about 85 pesos (less than 7 dollars). General services are also very reasonable and really enhance your life style. We pay our maid well, at 200 pesos a visit (less than 15 dollars). She spends the better part of the day and washes floors, windows, dishes, virtually cleans the entire house. She comes twice a week, which makes my wife very happy. Our gardener comes every other week. He cuts the lawn and trims everything making our yard look like a small resort. He charges 250 pesos and we usually find an excuse to tip him an extra 50 pesos for something ( about 22 dollars). One of our staff needed a plumber to come by and fix several small items, like leaky sinks etc. he came to her house and took care of it for a whopping 100 pesos (less than 8 dollars). Another friend just had a service person come out to replace the agitator and hot water valve for her washer. This house call complete with parts and labor cost 600 pesos (less than 45 dollars). If you want your car washed, an SUV like mine will cost 90 pesos (less than 9 dollars) cleaned inside and out. If you want a wax and polish the entire thing is about 250 pesos. General house expenses are also very reasonable. I have a house on a double corner lot with the house, pool, and a stone bungalow in the garden and this year my property tax increased by 300 pesos to 1698 pesos (less than 150 dollars). I don’t know anyone who pays even 500 dollars a year property taxes here. Home owners insurance, for a nice home in Playacar Phase II, will cost 350 USD for full coverage including hurricane coverage. City water is on a meter so you pay for the water that you use. For us cleaning and filling the pool, watering the garden, and all of our other house hold uses, our water is about 100 pesos per month for us. You can fill two 30 kilo natural gas tanks to run your stove, hot water, and dryer for 600 pesos. It will last us about 4 months. Electricity can be a little higher, if you run the AC a lot. We have a nice breeze at our home and don’t have AC, but we do run the pool filter and pressure pumps and our electricity is about 2000 pesos or less each month (less than 150 dollars). How much does your car insurance cost per year? I have complete coverage on my 2006 Toyota 4 runner and it costs me 401usd per year. Two days ago I picked up a screw in the tire it cost 53 pesos to have it fixed. If I had of been on the high way in the pouring rain and wanted someone to change my tire on the road it would cost 150 pesos for a 24 hr. mobile tire service to come to me and take care of it. Let’s say you were out of town traveling and you broke down. In all of Mexico they have a “Green Angel “ service. The Green Angels are mechanics who are assigned an area of highway to patrol. If you should have a problem they will either help you fix it, or tow you to where you can get assistance. This is a free service provided by the government! I have a friend who she prefers to ride a scooter around town instead of having a car. She fills it with gas once a month for 35 pesos. What about medical care and insurance? Wel,l first let me say you can get some very professional care here in Mexico. Most medical professionals were educated in the USA or Europe so the quality of care is very high. You can get a basic dental cleaning for 400 pesos (less than 30 dollars). One friend had a quote of seven to eight thousand dollars to have her dental work done in a town near San Fransisco, California. She came here and got a quote of three thousand dollars, and had the work done which ended up only costing 2700 usd. A private consultation with a doctor who specializes in any given field will cost about 500 pesos. If you want medical insurance one of my staff has full coverage in the best hospitals for 18,000 pesos a year (less than 1400usd) and if she has a baby it will even cover half of that cost. Another couple who I know, that are in their 60’s, pay 27,000 pesos for major medical coverage. There are plenty of choices to make sure that you and your family are covered. All these financial benefits and you get to live a Caribbean life style too! You will have palm trees and beaches year around. Put your turkey in the oven on Christmas day and go to the beach for a swim while it cooks (that’s what we do). You will have so many things to see and do right at you front door. You can do some world class fishing from shore or a boat. There are more golf courses than you can count. I saw a map in Campeche showing that there’s over 6500 ruins on the Yucatan Peninsula (good luck seeing all of them). You can make an easy day trip or long weekend at a number of Caribbean Islands; Cozumel, Isla Mujeres and Holbox are a ferry ride away and Cuba is only a hop, skip, and a jump away.. You’ve got diving, snorkeling, fishing and many old Colonial cities to explore as well, and the list goes on and on. What about buying a home? Well, you can choose many different options to make a quick easy step into the market. Many of you know about all the very luxurious properties available here in the area, but in keeping with the theme of this article here’s a few very easy on the pocket book options. Buy a lot today with water access that will have full underground services for 40,000 USD, and with a budget of 100,000 USD you can build a 1800 to 2000 square foot home in the future when you are ready. This will give you a luxurious place to live and allow you to plan when you are ready to spend the money to build. You will have your home in the sun for about 150,000 USD. Timing is everything. For further properties and lsitings that are sure to make you start packing clcik here. I’m sure you will agree these are some great options! Are you ready to cut your cost of living in half or at least have your place in the sun? The only way to take advantage of this offering is to take action now! Contact me today This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , and we will get you set up to enjoy a great lifestyle here on the Caribbean Coast of the Riviera Maya. Shawn Bandick is originally from Canada, a published author, and owner of One Stop Real Estate in Playa del Carmen. He can be reached by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (this email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it ) or by phone at cell:+52(984)100-5016 Office:984-803-3739 Trackback(0)
Comments (2)
... written by Jeff Hartness, July 19, 2009
Shawn,
This is an excellent article. Although we have had a condo in Playa for three years, I still learned a great deal from your article (ie. health insurance and your ideas of buying land to build on later). We have 2 younger children and have wanted to move down for some time. We are getting closer to taking the leap. Thanks for the article! Write comment
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Enjoy the laid back Caribbean lifestyle for a fraction of the cost of the US, Canada, or Europe- in Playa del Carmen and the Riviera Maya.
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I really enjoyed your article. It is very informative, answering many of my questions about living in Mexico. My husband and I have been visiting Playa Del Carmen for seven years. We absolutley love the area. We own a timeshare but have it on the market. We just sold our house here in the U.S. and are staying with family. We are undecided about buying a house in the U.S or in Mexico. Our biggest hurdle will be finding employment. My husband is an RN, licensed in three states in the U.S. My background is in Project and Property Managament. Any words of wisdom for finding employment? If we can make the move we will definetely consider buying as opposed to renting.
Thanks!
Diane