• A USEFUL BUDGET HAS FOUR PARTS

    1. Housing

    Consider:

    • Rent

    • Utilities

    • Internet

    • Maintenance or condo fees

    • Furnishing

    • Seasonal pricing

    • Deposits

    2. Everyday Life

    Consider:

    • Groceries

    • Restaurants

    • Transportation

    • Mobile phone

    • Healthcare

    • Prescriptions

    • Pets

    • Personal care

    • Entertainment

    • Work expenses

    3. Expenses That Continue in Canada

    Consider:

    • Housing

    • Storage

    • Debt payments

    • Insurance

    • Business expenses

    • Professional licences

    • Family commitments

    • Subscriptions

    • Travel home

    4. Getting There and Getting Established

    Consider:

    • Flights

    • Temporary accommodation

    • Deposits

    • Immigration costs

    • Professional advice

    • Shipping

    • Pet transportation

    • Vehicle expenses

    • Initial household purchases

    Today, focus primarily on the first two categories. The other categories simply need to remain visible.

    Work With a Range. Do not try to predict an exact total.

    Create:

    • A lower realistic estimate

    • A comfortable estimate

    • A higher estimate that allows for surprises

    A range is more useful than a precise number built from incomplete information.

    *** Mexico does not have one cost of living. Your choices create your cost of living.

  • SOMETHING TO EXPLORE

    Research One Possible Location. Choose one of the three locations from Day 4. Explore:

    Housing

    Find three rentals that match the kind of home you would genuinely want.

    Useful searches:

    • “[City] long-term rentals”

    • “Rentas largo plazo [city]”

    • “Departamentos en renta [city]”

    • “Casas en renta [city]”

    • “[Neighbourhood] renta mensual”

    • “Pet friendly rentals [city]”

    • “Renta amueblada [city]”

    For every listing, confirm:

    • Currency

    • Rental period

    • Furnished or unfurnished

    • Utilities

    • Internet

    • Maintenance fees

    • Neighbourhood

    • Pet policy

    • Minimum term

    Groceries

    Choose approximately 10 products you regularly purchase and look for comparable Mexican prices.

    Useful searches:

    • “Walmart México [product]”

    • “Chedraui [product]”

    • “Soriana [product]”

    • “La Comer [product]”

    • “precio [product] México”

    Use Mexican store websites or official consumer-price tools where available.

    Transportation

    Search:

    • “Public transportation [city] Mexico”

    • “Uber in [city]”

    • “Taxi cost [city]”

    • “Bus routes [city]”

    • “Living in [city] without a car”

    Utilities and Internet

    Search:

    • “Average electricity cost [city] Mexico”

    • “Internet providers [city] Mexico”

    • “Costo de internet [city]”

    • “Electricity with air conditioning [city]”

    Treat personal estimates as examples—not guarantees. Property size, consumption, climate and service availability can create major differences.

  • CREATE YOUR FIRST ROUGH MEXICO BUDGET

    Today, you will estimate a monthly range for one possible location. Do not attempt to make every number perfect. Use current examples and record which costs still need verification.

    ________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Your Steps

    1. Choose one location from your Day 4 shortlist.

    2. Find three plausible rental listings.

    3. Estimate a lower and higher monthly housing amount.

    4. Add rough estimates for your other major living expenses.

    5. Compare your estimated total with the income model you identified on Day 3.

    6. Open the Notes app on your phone.

    7. Open your Can I Really Move to Mexico? folder.

    8. Create a new note.

    9. Copy and paste the prompt below.

    Copy and Paste This Into Your New Note

    DAY 5 — MY FIRST MEXICO BUDGET

    Which Mexican location am I exploring today?

    What did I find for the monthly cost of:

    • Rent:
    • Groceries and eating out:
    • Transportation:
    • Healthcare or insurance:
    • Fun and everyday life:

    My estimated monthly total is:

    What surprised me most?

    Based on this estimate, living here feels…

    OPTIONAL DEEPER QUESTION

    Am I estimating the cost of the life I would actually live—or trying to create the lowest possible number so I can make the answer work?

  • Long-Term Rental Research

    Use multiple sources. No rental website guarantees that every listing is current, accurate or legitimate.

    Places to begin include:

    • Inmuebles24

    • Facebook Marketplace

    • Local Facebook rental groups

    • Local real estate agencies

    • Google searches for property managers

    • Spanish-language searches using renta, departamento, casa, amueblado and largo plazo

    Vacation-rental platforms can help you estimate short stays but may not reflect local long-term pricing.

    Do not send money based solely on today’s research. Day 6 will cover rental questions and warning signs.

    Grocery and Household Prices

    Mexico’s consumer-protection agency, Profeco, provides a mobile-friendly price-comparison tool covering thousands of commonly purchased products:

    Profeco: Quién es Quién en los Precios

    Prices are reference points and can change. Availability also varies by city.

    Online Mexican grocery stores can provide additional examples:

    • Walmart México

    • Chedraui

    • Soriana

    • La Mega

    • La Comer

    Compare products you actually purchase rather than using someone else’s generic grocery basket.

    Currency Conversion

    Use the Bank of Canada’s daily exchange rates as a reference: Bank of Canada: Daily exchange rates

    The posted reference rate may differ from the rate you receive through a bank, card, ATM or transfer provider after fees and currency spreads.

    Record both pesos and Canadian dollars while you are learning, but build your Mexico budget primarily in pesos.

    Questions to Search in Community Groups

    Use the group’s search function before posting.

    Try:

    • “Average electricity bill air conditioning”

    • “Long-term rent [neighbourhood]”

    • “Internet provider”

    • “Grocery budget”

    • “Living without a car”

    • “Pet-friendly rentals”

    • “High-season rent”

    • “Utilities included”

    Honestly you can search literally anything in these local Facebook groups… if you’ve thought of the question, someone else has too!

    Always look at when the discussion occurred. A rental estimate from several years ago may no longer be useful.

  • Today, you created your first rough estimate of what your life in one Mexican location could cost.

    The number is not final.

    It is not supposed to be.

    You now have a starting range, several real housing examples and a clearer idea of what requires more research.

    Tomorrow, we will go deeper into renting:

    • Where to search

    • Short-term versus long-term arrangements

    • Questions to ask

    • Common requirements

    • Warning signs

    • Why you should never confuse finding a listing with verifying a rental

DAY 5

what would your mexico life actually cost?

Day 5