Making the move to mexico

[California6345]

Hi all,

Fairly new to the site and did some digging around but I feel like it may be a great time to begin networking! Specifically I would love any and all advice in making the move to Mexico full-time, at a young age (call it late twenties early thirties) specifically to a larger city (mex city/GDL), I'm not the suburb type to be honest.

1. Things that were a struggle, be it language finding a job etc. (college degree education)
2. Surprises in startup/moving costs (found these to be common when switching from college to work!)
3. Anyone who went down there with medium command of language would be of enormous help! I'm not fluent nor "lost" I'd say i can hold a basic convo, not able to talk in a biz setting yet (complicated words like enterprise vs. simply saying company as an example)
4. Anything specific about the move!

Less importantly, would love to have some clarity on cost of living and instead of getting the correct response "it depends". I'll be more specific... 1br cost in the downtownish area (Any links to locations in Guadalajara would be nice, I live in the downtown area of a large california city) (preferably an area where most of nightlife could be reached via cabs, $ per kilometer?), no interest in owning a car public transport is fine, food 2 meals homemade 1 dine out (by eat out mean more lines of subways/~$10 things u get during lunch in large cities in America), typically 1 night a week out (here that's about $50-60 I assume 10 bucks a drink and 20ish cover).

Think that should be the general idea for cost of living I can look up the utilities etc myself.

Bonus if anyone can provide their story on time-line to find a job that would cover rent + above mentioned food! Or generally how they went about their job search (no personal connections in Mexico just loved the place when visited, but job requirements don't allow more than a few days off in a year... For now!)

thanks to anyone who can provide help! Or if no direct responses, just a description of the journey over for non-retires would be very very helpful!

[TundraGreen]

Originally Posted by California6345

1br cost in the downtownish area (Any links to locations in Guadalajara would be nice, I live in the downtown area of a large california city) (preferably an area where most of nightlife could be reached via cabs, $ per kilometer?), no interest in owning a car public transport is fine, food 2 meals homemade 1 dine out (by eat out mean more lines of subways/~$10 things u get during lunch in large cities in America), typically 1 night a week out (here that's about $50-60 I assume 10 bucks a drink and 20ish cover).

A one bedroom in Guadalajara Centro will rent for about 2500 pesos/month. You can walk to tons of bars and restaurants. A cab around centro is about 30 pesos. In a fancy restaurant a meal can run 200 or more pesos a person. In a medium restaurant you can eat for 100 pesos including drinks. I just had a really good meal for two of us including everything (but no alcohol) for 118 pesos for two. Beer is 13 pesos in the cheaper places 30 or so in the fancier places. Buses run everywhere and cost 6 pesos per trip, no transfers. Finally the exchange rate today is 13 pesos to the dollar. It difficult to find work and more difficult to find work that pays well. You need permission from Mexican immigration to work here legally.

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by TundraGreen

It difficult to find work and more difficult to find work that pays well. You need permission from Mexican immigration to work here legally.

Many young expats in Mexico end up teaching English, and this kind of work isn't that hard to find if you have some qualifications, but, as TG has written, it is hard to find work that pays even moderately well.

[California6345]

Thanks to both for the responses, if I were to end up teaching is there an age cut off generally? Ex: a few friends of mine went to do this in Asia but they highly prefer people 29 and younger. Also would low pay imply 10k pesos monthly? ( don' t trust google searches) I would get s TEFL before visiting. I'll take a few mins to search this site as well, thanks!

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by California6345

Thanks to both for the responses, if I were to end up teaching is there an age cut off generally? Ex: a few friends of mine went to do this in Asia but they highly prefer people 29 and younger. Also would low pay imply 10k pesos monthly? ( don' t trust google searches) I would get s TEFL before visiting. I'll take a few mins to search this site as well, thanks!

In general, there are no official age limits for teaching in Mexico, though individual schools may prefer younger or older students for different reasons. For teaching privately, age is certainly not a problem. I'm 66 and have no trouble finding private students. In fact, people usually come to me rather than the other way round. Of course, I've been here a few years and have a good reputation as a serious experienced teacher. Ten thousand pesos a month would be a good salary here unless you find a cushy job teaching children at a private school. I suggest you check out Dave's ESL Cafe, a TEFL website, for more information.

[California6345]

Thank you very much for all of the responses, definitely very helpful. Anyone out there get a job working professionally beyond English? Wondering how hard it would be to worker a job in finance/Econ, or on the opposite end at a bar/club. Guessing they have restrictions on it though bc the company probably needs to pay and explain why he or she is more qualified? (similar to the us)

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by California6345

Thank you very much for all of the responses, definitely very helpful. Anyone out there get a job working professionally beyond English? Wondering how hard it would be to worker a job in finance/Econ, or on the opposite end at a bar/club. Guessing they have restrictions on it though bc the company probably needs to pay and explain why he or she is more qualified? (similar to the us)

Unless you can find a job with an American company that does business in Mexico before you get here, I think finding a non-teaching job would be very difficult. In any event, whether working in finance or tending a bar, you would need to have an excellent command of Spanish.

[RVGRINGO]

At 10,000 pesos per month, You won't be enjoying restaurants or night life. Maybe not even cable TV and internet, without really pinching your pesos.
Can you qualify for a visa? INM will want to see proof, for the previous three months, of income/resources from outside of Mexico before issuing a residence visa. Even if you had a job at $10,000 per month, that probably wouldn't be enough to qualify for a visa.

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by RVGRINGO

Can you qualify for a visa? INM will want to see proof, for the previous three months, of income/resources from outside of Mexico before issuing a residence visa. Even if you had a job at $10,000 per month, that probably wouldn't be enough to qualify for a visa.

If you apply for the visa-formerly-known-as-an-FM3-lucrativa, there is no minimum income requirement. Either you find an employer (for example, a language school) who is willing to sponsor you, or you apply for a visa allowing you to work de manera independiente, for example, as an English teacher. The latter is the kind I have.

[Balboa]

A, forget about the money when moving to Mexico. B, its not impossible. You won't get rich down there working at a company.