Retire in Mexico - Live Better for Less Money

This fourth edition, completely updated in 2014, is brimming with sound and thoughtful advice on retirement in Mexico. Everything from how to pick your location to the new residency procedure that became effective in November, 2013, is covered. If you've ever considered retirement in Mexico, please read this first. It has the most up-to-date information that would otherwise take you months of frustration to acquire.

There are six major retirement havens where American, Canadian, and European retirees tend to congregate: San Miguel de Allende, Mazatlan, Oaxaca, Guadalajara, Mérida, and Lake Chapala. Dru Pearson explored all those areas and lived for several years in a Mexican village before health and family concerns forced her return to the States. A month-long visit in 2010, along with several shorter visits, allowed her plenty of time to become re-acquainted with Mexican living. She shares all the information she gathered on her trips in addition to the wisdom she acquired from four years as a full-time expatriate in Ajijic.

But why Mexico? The reasons are many. Often, Americans and Canadians choose Mexico because of its proximity. Unlike most other exotic retirement locations that require lengthy plane trips, it's easy to drive back and forth to Mexico.

A more important reason is that Mexico is a bargain compared to the rest of North America and Europe. Expatriates live very well, often more luxuriously than they did “back home,” on very little money. Housing is half what it costs in the States; excellent medical and dental care is startlingly inexpensive; and the government will even provide health insurance for less than $500 a year!

Then, too, Mexico is rich in archaeological sites, steeped in history, and has a more exciting “foreign” culture than any place in Western Europe. There is also no denying that its delicious cuisine, stunning architecture, colonial cities, and temperate climate also play a part in people's decision. When you consider Mexico's modern infrastructure, with better highways than many parts of Latin America, and the latest technology that allows expatriates to connect via telephone and Internet to the rest of the world, you begin to understand why thousands of expats call Mexico home.
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Dru isn't implying that Mexico is Shangri-La, but she thinks it is closer to paradise than any place you can find in the United States, Canada or Europe. Here in this land of majestic mountains and rolling countryside, a gentle people are willing to welcome retirees into their hearts. Expats have more time to explore other interests and develop talents because they have more freedom, better health, less stress, and fewer mundane chores. The low cost of living allows them 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. No, the country isn't perfect, but you cannot get any closer to paradise than Mexico.

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"Here's a volume that's aimed very accurately at a specific target audience - namely, people who want more information about retiring in Mexico. Author Dru Pearson has done an excellent job of researching and compiling almost everything anyone needs to know about adopting this country as a place to spend one's leisure years, either part-time or full-time. I can't think of any important topic that isn't covered here."
Allan Cogan for Mexconnect.com