I wanted to give a general update since it’s been a few months. I wanted to talk about one big thing that has taken place since my last post, as of June 22nd of this year, we have officially been here full time for 2 years. Crazy to think about it, and how much has taken place in that time. We have gotten to know many more locals, and what our town has to offer. We have learned more about processes and local laws, or ways of doing things, and we have learned a little more Spanish. We still feel horrible that it’s been so long and our verbal skills are still lacking, but between working and life it’s been a slow process. I understand a lot more than I speak, my Spanish speaking skills are MAL (BAD) HAHA!
The house has come a long way, we swapped our sitting room and bedroom and added a new door making our room a true primary suite. We really like it and it fits how we live and use our space. We are finally wrapping up our outdoor projects, the pergolas have shade cloth and fans are getting installed. The next is having the patio around the pool treated with acid to make it less slippery when wet.
We planted our back space behind the yard leading down to the lagoon and its growing in nicely, we had our stairs leading down to the lagoon refinished and a hand rail added so mom can go down when she wants.
I designed two pieces of furniture for house a bar / beverage area and a storage cabinet for dishes and cooking items we don’t use often. I also designed a new armoire for our primary bedroom, to hold a new fireplace and additional clothing. I know sounds like a strange combination but again it works for us. (haha)
The dogs are doing great they love it here, walked on the beach in the mornings, and sleepy days by the pool in the afternoon when its not to hot! The vet here is amazing really never thought we would find another vet like our long time vet and friend Jameson, we spent years visiting vet after vet and just hating each experience. Found a vet here they spend no less than 1 hour with you each visit talking about the dogs and playing with them, examining them. The experience is so refreshing and I feel like we are so lucky to have found them. They are also very heavily involved with the local rescue wish is essential to the town in helping with all the stray and uncared for animals.
I recently wrapped up a large project I was working on in CA, it was about a 2.5yr project for very dear friends and clients creating a wonderful dream home on the coast. I truly loved it getting to create it for them and making it a place they will spend time and love. I drove out a few times through the process, making sure things were on course, that said it was a learning curve being a country away, when I am usually so hands on. However, everything, well almost everything worked out perfectly and we only have a few small details we are still working out.
I am still working on a project in FL that is for a large residential project in Palm Beach, where I am just creating and 3D renderings and photo realistic imagery for the architects and designers, for their clients. I really am enjoying the project, just wish we could get it pass the approval committee!! I have never seen so many sticks in the mud! HAHA
So whats next.. I don’t know. What was that quote.. “Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get.”
I do think I will be posting more now that life is kind of evening out and things are calming down around here. We are going to start focusing more on us I think, and spending time just enjoying it here.
I think when people from the States think of furniture from Mexico we tend to think of the more traditional aesthetic that we see in the southwestern United States. This aesthetic, is prolific in southern Arizona, New Mexico, Southern California, and Texas. Commonly known as Mexican Colonial style it varies from super rustic to a little less so, but always carries through with more traditional appeal.
The style is usually denoted by its use of natural materials, leather, wood, metal, and some fabrics, bright colors sometimes as well. You will also find various levels of carving depending on the piece itself. Much of this is also driven by where the piece was made in Mexico. The Mexican Colonial style started shortly after the Mexican Revolution and has remained popular both in and out of Mexico. There is a lot of literature and articles that would go deeper into detail of the this style of furniture if you wanted to know more.
Now if you are looking for these piece, you really do not have to look far, sometimes being sold out of trucks along the roadside, in furniture stores, and online in Mexico. You can find many of these pieces in second hand stores in the states, and even some new production pieces and knock offs of various levels of visual interest in new furniture stores as well.
I really want to focus on the modernist movement in Mexico. This technically started toward the end of the 70’s, early 80’s however in the early 2000’s really took hold putting Mexico on map for handmade, modern furniture pieces. What I love about modern furniture coming out of Mexico is that it still embodies some of the important characteristics of the early Mexican furniture. The use of natural materials, wood, metal, leather, fabrics and modern takes on Mexicos heritage and design sensibilities.
How does this tie into Puerto Peñasco and design style here. Well while you will find this modern style throughout Guadalajara, Mexico City, Hermosillo and other large cities in Mexico it’s a little less prevalent here in our town. That is mostly driven by distance from where this furniture is produced, the cost of transportation, likely due to wage levels and purchasing power as well. The influx of US expats who are still so familiar with Mexican Colonial Styling, probably also drives some of its popularity. I would imagine that most expats unless they have spent time other parts of Mexico are still very much influenced by the prolific styling of the colonial period and even some of the other periods prior to the current Modernist movement.
Modernist furniture in Mexico, to me it is some of the most beautiful furniture I have seen and some of the most comfortable. The leathers in Mexico, I think are just as nice if not nicer than some of the finest leather coming out of Italy. Mexico also has some incredible new green “leathers” coming to market. Check out this company it is pretty amazing https://desserto.com.mx . Checkout some very interesting information about Mexico manufacturing here. https://napsintl.com/manufacturing-in-mexico/industries-in-mexico/furniture-manufacturing-in-mexico/
So, to the story of our furniture, the links, contacts, and experience..
When we started our building process we knew that we wanted to support the country we were going to be living in, just like we did when living in the US. We had expressed our desire to purchase local goods when possible to our builder. Our builder was already doing this so it was a good fit for us, cabinets, and interior doors, made by a local company. Windows and Exterior doors also by local company. The flooring we went with was brought up from Durango, purchased from a quarry I was familiar with from my work in the states. Our proximity to the US though influences things because we are so close many things are imported, because its more cost effective, this can be good and bad.
We did look into purchasing furniture in the US and having it shipped down, not our first choice but still explored that option. We then looked into buying furniture here in Penasco, we predominately found only a few options, imported furniture from the US (Mostly made in China), and the more traditional colonial style furniture of Mexico, and I believe furniture made in China but imported for Mexico. None of these are bad options, some of the pieces are nice aesthetically, we just wanted something different for our home.
Our builder knowing we wanted to buy in Mexico, suggested checking out Guadalajara as they were very familiar with options offered there. I planned a trip down to Guadalajara for a few days to hopefully find our furniture. I had an advantage in that our builder was in Guadalajara and so we went together shopping and hit up all the hot spots and some really incredible stores!
Important to remember! Bed sizes in Mexico and US are different so you have to make sure when purchasing bed frames and mattresses make sure they match! Sam’s in Peñasco used to carry both sizes, not sure right now. Muebles Coloniales, they carry Mexico sizes, and Ashley’s – Hacienda Del Sol also carries both I believe.
Guadalajara Information & Contacts
The first store I would recommend if you like the more modern furniture like we do is Moragrega. They have two locations, one in Mexico City and the one I went to in Guadalajara. I truly loved this store, everything was customizable and as a designer those are the sweetest words to hear. (HAHA!). The sofa I had them change return sides, and lengths of side as well as picking the leather and firmness of cushions. The leather is just incredible 2 years in and we use the sofa everyday and the leather is still immaculate. The marble side tables and coffee table, you can customize the size finish of marble and base color. The chairs we picked what wood species, stain color, fabric choices etc.. I even designed 2 very specific custom pieces for our home and they were made mm perfect and came out so amazing!
Moragrega Casa. – https://www.facebook.com/MoragregaCASA/ I recommend working with Mónica Chavez, she is amazing to work with, very responsive, fun, and just a great person. The best way to reach her is via WhatsApp – +52 33 1048 8616, tell her George sent you.
Next on the list of places to check out is Tlaquepaque, not a store but an area. There are some really fantastic stores here, though the style tends to be a little more colonial style, you will find some really unique items that work well in a modern design. You will also find great accessories and house ware items here. I truly enjoyed this area, you park, and then it’s a lot of walking, tons of stores, restaurants, and tequila!!
The first place I recommend checking out is Galería Imperial, they have a nice selection of house goods, accessories and furniture. I wouldn’t say modern pieces but it’s nice to bring in some more classic pieces into a modern space just to keep things interesting to the eye. I didnt get much here but I found an incredible lamp, and a few accessories. https://galeriaimperial.com
The next place I sorta went a little crazy in was Colección Arte de Mexico.. I truly could have spent a lot more than I did, but I stuck to what I knew I needed. I still might go back and get a few more pieces this year. They have wonderful accessories, incredible glass work, lights, art, just some amazing pieces. https://www.facebook.com/coleccionartedemexico/
Let’s say you have purchased your furniture in Guadalajara and are now wondering how do I get my stuff to Puerto Peñasco!? Good news I have someone for that as well. Very reasonable, he has brought things for me twice form Guadalajara, and he is a really great guy.
Miguel +52 33 1614 2969
Peñasco Information & Contacts
Peñasco, has plenty of options, offering varying qualities of furniture at various pricing points.
Ashleys-Hacienda Del Sol, they carry as you might expect Ashleys furniture, now these pieces are imported from the states, so pricing will higher than the states pricing. This is due to the fact that they had pay for importation and everything that goes with getting that furniture here. That said you can get some items here and if you do go in ask for Erika Aranda – +52 638 388 0545 – haciendadelsol.sales@gmail.com – https://style.ashleyfurniture.com.mx/
Muebles Coloniales, they carry items from all over including imports from china. I believe more of their furniture comes within Mexico or China so you wont be paying the additional 19% importation that you find at Ashleys, that said I don’t think it’s drastically cheaper as I recall. https://mueblescoloniales.mx
There are also various other stores as well as some roadside vendors that sell more of the Mexican Colonial style.
Esthilo – +52 638 383 8327, this is a great contact for window treatments, high end quality as good or better than comparable products in the US. I have used them a lot and referred them always great to work with. They truly stand behind their products!
This pretty much wraps up my thoughts and how we did things and contacts I know and use and recommend. I hope this helps everyone that might be looking and have questions about furniture and moving to Peñasco.
I know it’s been a while and I am sorry.. there just has been so much going on! I have a lot to post about but the first one and want to talk about is the border closure and immigration. I will focus on the southern border, since that is what is effecting us.
We received notification that the central southern POE(Point Of Entry) from AZ to MX would be closed, we received this information on a Friday 12/1/23 in the afternoon with the closure taking effect Sunday evening at 8pm regular closing scheduled time, and would not reopen for an indefinite period. Lukeville AZ has become the epicenter of immigration discussion, not the first small town to be drawn into this discussion and will likely not be the last.
Arizona has 7 POEs, Douglas, Naco, Nogales, Sansebe, Lukeville, San Luis and San Luis II. Lukeville being the most central and closest port to gain access to Puerto Peñasco it is a busy port for tourist. The other ports are busy as well with local traffic and commercial traffic but within AZ the Lukeville crossing is crucial to tourism, on both sides of the border.
Now as you can imagine this has fueled the ever raging left vs. right, liberal vs. conservative, democrats vs. republicans political game that gets played out in the US. I don’t really care what side of isle your favorite person is on, they are all pretty much in it for themselves, to some degree. I think at some point they wanted to be in politics to right the wrongs and help change the world, but then they got there things changed, they changed.. I think it’s very rare if not non existent to find a politician who is actually in it for the people and only the people. Yes, I am cynical, politicians have made me this way.
Moving to Mexico has been a liberating experience, while no country is free of the corruption and picking of sides, it’s been nice to be away from the 24hr non stop partisan news cycles. I find I have less and less energy and will to deal with it all. Anyway… enough of that. So the border closure spawned all kinds of vitriol and partisan politics all over, in person and on social media (I know shocker!!). Much of the comments and biased posts dealt with how the red team was way way way better at controlling the border and ensuring peoples safety! The blue team was/is weak on controlling the border and making people unsafe! I have always held the belief that neither team really gives a damn about the border till is fits an agenda or to stir up the base to garner votes!
I however approached that from just my own thoughts and had no real data to back that up. So I set out to research some and figure out if I really was on to something or if maybe the red team was right. I started by researching border protection, specifically the southern land border, I wanted to know what the data was around that, to my surprise border protection has data going back to 1960 on southern border encounters. These encounters are not legal border crossings these are classified as non legal crossings. Now, not much in the mission has changed since 1924 when BP was created, and I am sure actual encounters varied in the early years because borders were not well defined or enforced. The border did have check points even before border protection was created , it was only know as US Customs and Immigration, which dates back further than 1924.
The US has always had a grey line when it came to Mexican immigration, one that when it suites the US was fine but then when it doesn’t it’s not. Congress banned Chinese labor force in 1882 and the US looked to immigrants from Mexico to fill those jobs. Mexicans used to working longer hours and 7 days a week in Mexico to earn the same amount journeyed to the US to find a better life. Records report that between 1910 and 1920 it is estimated more than 500k Mexican nationals entered the US as the Mexican Revolution raged on, they entered the US without passports or money, many coming with only the clothes they owned.
Mexican labor fueled, the growth of farms, ranches, railroads, and cities, however even in this time the same divisive language we hear now existed. People claiming Mexican laborers were steeling peoples jobs, so this rhetoric is nothing new in the US and what I meant previously about, the influx of labor immigration is only acceptable when it suites the US needs, as the US labor force grew from the expansion of the railroads and the bounty of the farms and ranches, it was viewed that Mexican labor was no longer needed and that the Mexican people should be sent back to Mexico. Many families did return to Mexico after the Revolution but many also stayed in the US and struggled to do so with more and more prejudices emerging.
So without going into a huge long history lesson, I will kind of jump to the start of the data collection starting in the 1960s. Like I said I had no real understand if the people cheering for the red team were right. I spent several days going through records and reviewing the numbers creating a spreadsheet in my sleeplessness because it was bothering me. What I came up with was a chart that contains the encounters by year, I then divided that up into the red team/blue team captains.
What I found out is that I was basically right.. immigration really doesn’t change much between the red and blue teams, in fact what the number suggest is that prior to the new blue team captain the red team was “winning?” by almost 8million more immigrant encounters! So I guess you could say, maybe the new blue team captain wanted to even the score? Not sure.. My point is all the rhetoric is just that! Politicians use this issue as nothing more than division to garner votes and win elections and then go back to ignoring the issue till the next news cycle, election time, etc.
Look all the rhetoric and partisan politics aside the issue still remains and little is ever done, what is sad to me is behind all the spreadsheets, bar charts, graphs and breaking news headlines are peoples lives. I know there is no easy answer, I know the US can not take every single immigrant that wants to come to the US, it’s just not feasible. I also know by not taking them we are dooming many to a life of misery and death, that’s what gets lost in all of this. The southern border is no longer a major crossing point for Mexican nationals instead it’s become a crossing point for peoples from all over the globe looking for a better life. People from India, Middle East, Africa, South America, China, I often hear they are all men, its dangerous, they pose a threat. I often want to ask the person saying this if you were in their place, would you send your wife, your mother, your sister on a journey around the world with no money, no clothes or would you go alone to protect them. I know the answer, but again I think it gets lost in all the rhetoric and partisan politics.
The US basically closed this POE to cause some economic hardships in Mexico to spawn more cooperation of the Mexican government in deterring immigrants passing through Mexico to the US freely. I get that, but the fallout is effecting hard working men and women on both sides of the border! The small family shops, restaurants, businesses here in Mexico that rely on tourism to survive are struggling to feed their families and stay open. Businesses north of the border as well that are sustained on tourism traffic, small restaurants, gas stations, and stores, have closed or cut back staff and hours. I cant say if what is being done is right to help secure the border and deter immigration, because it has used everyday hardworking people as pawns in a game that never changes, doesn’t have a winner.
The Statue of Liberty, between 1892 and 1954 Ellis Island saw 12Million immigrants who came to the US with nothing many times not even documents. The US only deported 2% of those people back to their counties. I think we have to ask ourselves has anything really changed, or has the rhetoric and partisan politics changed, feeding on peoples worst characteristics and fears to gain power and demonize those less fortunate. The US still likes to view itself as this beacon to the rest of the world, one of the things so many recognize the world over is the Statue of Liberty and the words inscribed.
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. “Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Emma Lazarus
I will leave you with one final thought.
The US really strived to embody the words that poem at one time, has the Statue of Liberty, her purpose and symbolism faded? Should the statue be removed and the inscription taken down, stored in a museum as something belonging to a time since gone?
I get this question more than anything, more than how good are the tacos?!!?! HAHA! ” Do you feel safe?!” Yes we feel safe, we actually feel safer here than many parts of Phoenix, or other areas in the U.S. We have never once felt anything but welcomed and safe here in Peñasco. We are not unaware of the issues surrounding certain areas in Mexico and cartels however, I am not so convinced after living here that its any different of worse than then things we see happen in the U.S.
When there was an incident involving the mistaken identity of tourist south of Brownsville and I got all kinds of questions about if I felt safe here where I am because that was being plastered all over the news in the U.S. Yes, I felt safe, let’s put some perspective around what happened. The incident that occurred would be like me saying well I am not going to Tucson because someone was murdered in Seattle, that is the geographical comparison..
I compare living in Mexico like living/visiting anywhere you just have to be aware of your surroundings.
The sad part to be completely honest is that the only time I feel unsafe is when I am driving back to the states and have to deal with U.S. drivers.. they are passing in no passing zones, on hills, speed like crazy! Sadly, many Americans think once you cross the border they no longer have to follow any type of traffic laws, we have started planing any trips when we know there will be minimal drivers, and not on any holidays!
Many other people are worried about police and the military transports you see when driving through Mexico. The military transports do not worry me they are all usually heavily armed but the guys are so friendly and nice, it’s never been a concern. Then I hear stores of police shaking people down, telling them to pay on the spot, etc. I have never experienced this, ever, however I know people say it happens, so. The things to remember : 1. speeds on are in KPH, not MPH. 2. Stop at any stop sign including homemade. 3. When you are stopped, be kind, courteous and insist on paying your fine at the police station…. PERIOD. Negotiating and paying the officer is only making the issue worse, and even the head of the police want the bribes to stop.
I will say as someone who makes many many many trips back and forth to the states over the last 2.5yrs.. When I drive through the areas where people complain about being “shaken down” for speeding, not stopping at signs.. etc. What I see happening around me is Americans speeding, passing me with on coming traffic in town, rolling through stop signs, etc.. So, I cannot be to sure that reports of wrongful stops are not grossly over stated! I wish I knew the people I see stopped, their FB names so when I see them post about being wrongfully stopped, I could say, no I saw you speeding, rolling through stop sign and really being unsafe! (haha)
First Visit PalapasBeautiful Sign on the MeleconVery first night in PenascoCayenne got a little dusty trying all over town.Renders we saw of our possible future home..Where the lot and home woudl be located..Master plan for the community First floor plansOur Awesome builder and now Friends!This guy hs the right idea!! How do you support tons of concrete.. well like this.Rebar walls… rebar sticks.. lolFuture Cabinet ColorsThe communitySandy beach after a busy day of house inspectionsNo more sticks!!Starr of a pool… Roof on!!Pool inEarly Drive back to the statesOff to Furniture shop with Maria!! Friend/Builder!!Hello Guadalajara Thank you Maria!!Loved this place!! Leather selections fro custom couchFabric selections for custom couch for deafFood in Guadalajara is amazing!!This restaurant is amazing.. such amazing atmosphere One of the best margaritas I have ever had..Pools tiledStone wall going in… we had a little fluff with the HOA over this but worked out in the endWater tight!! wooohooCabs in!!!I designed this from the original design works good for us.. since we dont need long hanging for dresses.. LOLBack in Phoenix Pistachio Palmagranite cake!! OMG..Stiar glass going in.. Back to Phx…Landscaping going in .. Counter tops being fabricated.. blue marble!!Back yard almost finished..Tops in!!Cars Full!!! lol heading to new home for a quick clean, prep, etc.. Al furniture from Guadalajara is done and loaded about to head to our home!!!Actual sunrise one morning .. I did a digital art piece to mimic the photo I tookDid a little cleaning out and found some interesting old images.. lolMy best friend Chris and his Brother right and left.. Found some artwork from whe I was like 4.. maybe.. I was a huge Last Unicorn fan.Thank yoU Maria!!!Packing a Boxes, preparing to leave PhoenixPierre Frey Pampas Sonoran wallcover I love it.Sofa Delivery.. woohooMy dad passed and the VA sent his headstone but with covid and other issues we only finally got to Texas a week before moving.Saying goodbye to some clients babies!I was getting love for bring back their big custom dog bed!Sunrise the day after arriving in Mexico..I love these!! So much fun..Found these at a local artisan type store.. These used to be part of a sculpture now they are art.Chocolate Babbka YUMMMM!Osprey having a mid morning snack..Japanese Milk BreadOut for a first walk.. they dont like the sidewalks.. lolThe sunsets are like none we have seen around the world.MMM summer water.Nothing like fresh caught shrimp cocktail and a margarita while steps from the water.Homemade dark chocolate peppermint patties.. OMG..Sourdough BreadLocal restaurant yes that is a cat half asleep by people eatingPerfect door for neighborhood surveilanceThe breakwater installed to restore the estuary Crabs.. yummmmNew steps leading to lagoonFolding Kayaks.. Oruwhy yes that is a washing machine tub turned upside down making a light.. HMMM well thats a situation…Hello Kay About to harness the power of the sun!!!Beach walks are the best!Making sure they clean her pool properly!100% not retouched.. Why yes I will take these two cute paintings!!Hello Mr Osprey, did you bring me a fish?!?!New Induction GE Cafe Range.. LOVE!!!!Not retouched.. this was one evening taken only You want how much for boring letters in cheap metal that will rust.. ill just print my own thanks!!Boom! finished house sign Franks B-Day present..More panels added filled up the roof.Muah hahaha the power of the sun belongs to me!! well us.. and technically the power grid but we get credit.. lolMothers Day, with our friend Maria!New BacksplashMy Birthday..Friends Sheila and Vanessa!The arrival of something stunning..3D printing test.. DOH!! Why yes that is a Great Blue Herron3D printed a logo for our friendshmmm yes I did fall and badly sprained my wrist!More friends down, they are actually building a home here too!3Hello Hilary!!This and 10hrs without power is about all we got!Preparing for Dia De Los MuertosOur home at sunsetBeach Walks are the best especially no leash beach walks!Our Friends Kim and Rich introduced us to this Tequila omg.. amazing!!New Pergolas going up Furniture I designed arriving!!New Landscaping Beach Fun!!Privacy Walls added.Jellybean says phew!!! that was a lot of catching up!
More posts coming sooner sorry for the delays.. This took a lot longer than planned!
Ok, we live in the Sea of Cortez, we are on the leeward side of cholla bay. We still receive high winds and surf during storms but due to our location we are protected and get much less than areas south of us. Islas Del Mar the neighborhood we live in contains the largest ecological certified beach in northern Mexico. The community also contains a large salt water marsh estuary, breeding areas for Herons and several breeding Osprey pairs.
We live on essentially a peninsula, the front of our home faces west and the Sea of Cortez, and the back or our home faces east and the salt water lagoons. The lagoons are where we watch the Osprey fish all day catching fairly large fish everything from 8”-20”. The most common fish here in the lagoons are what locals call Lisa, (Liza Aurata) they are most similar to Sea Bass or so I have been told. I have not had any luck catching them so far… though I have researched what they like bait wise! Just haven’t gotten the lures to try yet.
The Tides, well I think most visitors are confused by the drastic tidal swings. Some California beaches , tidal swings are 4-8ft roughly. Some beaches in Florida beaches, tidal swings are 2-4ft. Here our tidal swings are 6-24ft. depending on time of year and lunar cycle, but the tidal swing is dramatic compared to most beaches I have ever been to, all over the world.
Our tidal swings allow for some very impressive photo opportunities as well as exploring tidal pools, sand flats, breakwaters and just some very unique sights. Now if you are a beach for beach sake kinda person then the bay is probably not your thing. The waves are not always at the beach, some times they are 3/4mile out at the break water, however the diversity of sea life and experiences are so much fun. I love taking photos both at high tide and low!
I will do a photography post of various times of the year… these are just some over the last year, pretty random just showing you the various tidal heights. I hope you enjoy I will post more about the various sights like the estuary once I kayak down there or take a long hike.
The next post I think will be all about photos to sure some of the amazing sights over the last year, they will be mostly natural images. I was hopping ti maybe do a Dia De Muertos post.. but we are having a lot of work done around the house so I am not sure we will get to do all what we were hoping for this year!
Shortly after building our home we had the opportunity to purchase a condo located in the same community as our home. We really liked the overall look and design of the condo community but also the condo itself. The condo was already under construction but not completed. Now, if you have been reading my other posts I covered the learning curve, of expectations and timing… This was probably the biggest test of that new found understanding.(HAHA).
The condo was supposed to be completed in August of 2022, they had some delays in supplies due to Covid supply chain issues. We understood, however, August turned September turned October, we took possession but we couldn’t actually do anything with it for another 3 months till the entire property had been finished, so hello January.
We purchased this with the intentions of doing AirBnB vacation rentals, and it was a little stressful to be 6 months behind and first able to start renting in a slow time of year. That said we invited some friends to come stay in the condo give us feedback on what we needed to include to make sure we gave guests a good experience.(Thank you Kim and Chris and Girls! Thank you Jeff and Gypsy!). We started renting the condo, the nice thing it is managed by the community, but it’s been slow going, the neighborhood is fairly new on the rental scene so it’s not widely known about yet. The HOA management company has been setting the rental rate and I think its a little high, they want to be seen as a premium product and they are but we want to get the word out and get people in the condo.
We pulled the condo from the rental pull, to give us some time to figure out what we wanted to do and look into a few options. We have ultimately decided to keep the condo, tell the HOA what we want the new rental price to be. I built a public facing website that we will be launching with this post actually! The website will allow me to just post a link in FB groups to advertise it, rather than needing to create a listing or to only give people the HOA links for it..
Woohooo! it is live took some calls, I have 5 websites, and with that I have some fancy hosting routing thing.. makes no sense to me but it saves me hundreds a year because all my sites are either very small or redirects so anytime I have a change I just call them to do what I need. Please share with friends and family!
Here are some images that will be on the site, I would ask since it’s active please share with family and friends who come to Mexico or are looking for a fun place to get away to. The condo is located outside the really tourist area of town so it’s more family friendly, quiet and relaxing.
Today was a quick run to one of the fish markets and one of the local fruiterias. I promised pictures of them to show where we have been shopping for the last year.
The learning curves as I mentioned previous are many, there are a lot of things that once you get past the 🤷🏼♂️🙋🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️💆🏼♂️(HAHA)it all makes sense and sometimes even more so than how we do things in the states. I covered, expectations of timing, house buying, land owning, shopping, now ill cover things like opening a bank accounts, passports, ffm forms, stop signs, signal lights, electric usage, paying for purchases, auto tint. So I will try and keep these short where possible, but explain where necessary, a friend mentioned that for the general public that might read this, that they would greatly benefit from someone who has done all these things and has the first hand experience.(Thank you Sheila!)
Disclaimer: These are all things relevant to where we live in Mexico, most things are the same throughout but your milage may vary…
I am going to lump some of this together for shortness and because they are all linked! (Passport, FFM, Residency Card, RFC, CURP, Bank Accounts, House-Land Purchases). Ok this should go without saying, Mexico is another country.. (HAHA) yes passports are required but rarely enforced. Passports are required to do any type of financial transactions like buying property. The FFM(Tourist Visa) forms are also legally required, and we made sure to always have our forms, because for us we knew this was always going to be a long term adventure for us, and we wanted to follow the laws.
We had a bit of a learning curve with applying for temporary residency, there are several more requirements than there used to be to obtain your residency cards. We had to supply lots of bank statements, birth certificates, FFM forms, Passports, and we needed to get an apostille marriage certificate. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but I think it came together pretty easily, it was just time. The consulate was really easy to work with and they even rushed our Visa the day we had our appointment so we could make the border closing time. You might think well that was a lot, however that was only half of the process.. (HAHA) Once you cross the border we had to get your Visa stamped then we had 30 days to get to the local INM (immigration office) and finish the process. I lucked out I walked in, one person ahead of me, 1.5hrs I walked out, with a note to come back in 5 days for my card. Frank however wasnt going to be able to get his card till two weeks later, when he went it was an entire day of waiting and not getting in, followed by a second day waiting for 3 hrs, getting in and finally getting his card. Woohoo we were officially temporary residence of Mexico!! OH MAN.. that reminds me our one year is up in February.. and that means another trip to the consulate and the INM office.. however this go around the cards will be good for 4 years after such time we will be able to apply for citizenship!
Banking, this was and continues to be one of the largest learning curves!!! Stateside we are all familiar with opening a bank account its pretty straight forward and maybe a 1-2 hour process, in some cases you can do it all online. So, Mexico, I had to get an accountant, who provided me a letter, that then I needed to take to government office to get my RFC number, that is linked to my CURP number that was assigned during the residency process. Then once I had my paperwork I had to head back to the bank to start the actual process of opening a bank account. The security around even accessing your account is something I have never seen before!
Stop signs and signal lights at the same intersections!! While maybe confusing, it makes sense here, electric has not always been reliable so to negate issues with traffic during those times.. however very confusing at first..
Autotint, illegal here other than factory installed that includes on US cars just here for vacation, while not strictly enforced it is enforced and they will stop people and remove it on the side of the road ..
Purchases, I have researched this a lot, and always come back to the same conclusion no matter the exchange rate. Always pay CC first if possible as long as the card doesn’t have foreign transaction fees. The next best form of payment is pesos. The last very last option should be USD. This was a learning curve because almost everyone says just use USD because everyone accepts it.. and this is true, however they almost always give you a way worse exchange rate than what you would get at the bank.
This installment.. very boring, but a lot of useful information for those who might be interested in moving or visiting Mexico. Please keep in mind these are summaries to keep it “short”.
Ok so I think thats maybe enough of the background, the next installment will be a jump ahead to more recent events!
The learning curve started even before the move, what many people do not realize is that as a foreigner buying property in Mexico you cant not actually “own” the coastal property, it sits in a trust. The trust is 50 years, so I am pretty sure neither of us will care, but we are working on our citizenship and at that point we will own the land. The next thing we learned is that Mexico doesn’t really do home loans, when you see a price it’s pretty much cash. Yes some builders and sellers will carry a note but that is not typical.
Leading up to moving into our home, June 22, 2022, many people thought, aren’t you scared of just up and moving to another country!? No, I cant say that at any point of this have I been scared or worried about, up and moving to another country. There have been major learning curves, I will say I think it’s more cultural differences, and societal differences. People might think it’s the language barrier that has been the hardest, but thats only been a small part of it because we are in classes to learn Spanish, translation apps and very patient kind people here.
So, what was one of the largest learning curves. you might ask? Well my friends that would be “EXPECTATIONS”. Most people reading this know that I am a Designer who has my own design firm, where I do architectural design work, 3D photo realistic renderings, I worked very closely with clients, and the builders to make sure the designs came together as laid out. That included contractors showing up when they said, etc. What I learned here in Mexico, that “see you at 9am” really means 10:30-11-12, “see you Monday” really means Tuesday with a slight chance of that being Wednesday. (HAHA) This by far was the biggest learning curve, over a year in and we really appreciate this laid back outlook. Nobody here really gets in a hurry, and nobody really gets upset about anything, it’s just a more relaxed laid back atmosphere. While I can appreciate it now, the first 3-4 months it was very stressful for me and frustrating.
The next learning curve was shopping, to go from order something on Amazon, get it potentially that day or by the latest before 12pm the next day, to thats going to take a week and then we have to drive to the border to get it, was a bit of a shock to the system! (HAHA), 16 months in and we have found we don’t need “stuff” from Amazon and the items we just have to get, well there really isn’t a rush for it.
Food, that is another story, I think for us it was not a huge adjustment in the process of shopping for food but more in the availability of food. We stopped years ago really doing the one stop, big box store food buying, we were doing more curated food shopping from many sources, including farmers markets etc. We love that here in this little fishing village there are limited big stores. There really is something special and precious about supporting local families who own small shops providing quality products.
I love going to the butcher shop and asking them for a specific cut and not a single person working there, doesn’t know what you’re looking for. (after I learned what to call the parts in Spanish. haha!). You then go down the harbor area and hit up the fish markets, for fresh seafood and what is available varies by the time you get there that day and time of year! Then we head down to one of the many Tortillarias to grab some freshly made corn or flour tortillas. We have not been to the Panaderia(Bread) yet, because most of you know I make our bread fresh most of the time. Fresh fruits and veg. have to head over to one of the many local Fruiterias where we find whatever happens to be in season. The thing we learned very quickly here, is that Mexico sends all the A and probably most of B graded fruit and veg. to the states, and they get the left over B, C, D.. levels. We have been totally fine with that. Honestly, I love the fact that we are using things that in the states would be left behind tossed out and left rotting. Fruits and Veg here is almost always rip, not picked green and gassed to make it ripe, it really truly ripened, with that comes bruising, and imperfetion but thats ok!
Nothing comes in industrial sized packages, another re-learning experience(while our travels around the world exposed us to this reality, it’s a learning curve living with it), everything comes in small packs and there is not 200 of that item on the shelf with 2 pallets sitting in the back, what you see is likely all they have.
Realtime Comment…..
I will do my best to take some pictures of the places we go and put them in the continuation of this post tomorrow. Tomorrow we have to run to the Fruiteria and pick up some more veg. and drop by the fish market to pick up some shrimp and fish.
Please stick with me through these first posts, they are a lot I know.. but I wanted to share what has happened over the last year with the people that mean a lot to us, our friends. I promise shorter post will happen once we are caught up.
Ok so our offer accepted, I think it really started to set in over the following days that we had just bought a plot of dirt with footings in another country and a builder we didn’t know. My work experience, and my flexibility made it easy for me to get down here often and check in on the build. The house is located just south of Phoenix a short 4hr drive to the fishing village of Puerto Peñasco, referred to by many as “Rocky Point”. So this is what it was meant to look like based on computer render.
This was along the way.. a bit of an ugly duckling so to speak..
ours is on the right..
Here it is nearing completion in February of 2022, so at this point we were still envisioning this spur of the moment home of just being out every few weeks vacation spot to escape to and bring the dogs and cat and enjoy the quiet beach time. Things were about to take a major shift, at some time between this point and May 2022, discussions of retirement and what that looked like. What timelines it could involve if we make some drastic changes in lifestyle, homes, where we lived, etc. April 2022 we decided based on may external and internal circumstances to sell our home in Phoenix.
The market was up, home prices were close to the peak of market prices at the time. We had been following all the news mainstream and rumors about water shortages that will start effecting AZ, NM, CO, UT, and CA. The writing is on the wall, the majority of residents just have not taken the time to read it yet. The next next 10 years will be very painful for these states, less so for CA and CO they have taken major strides toward water conservation and reclamation. That mixed with the social and political climates in the U.S., just made it a somewhat “easy?” decision. What this meant though is that the home had to be decluttered, paint a few rooms to remove our color for one that appealed to more buyers, and get everything packed for an international move… in 3 weeks or less. The housing market would be slowing as kids would start back to school, and so it was now or take our chances after summer or in the spring. I think I started packing that night. (HAHA) No, really I am pretty sure I started packing the night we made the decision. I knew it was going to be a colossal task to get this completed, I had only a couple jobs both winding down, so I could devote the time. We spent 3 weeks getting trades in, painting, cleaning, packing, organizing, giving away, throwing away, preparing to move. The three weeks flew by but when picture day arrived the home was ready much to many peoples surprise and nobody died. (HAHA)
The home was on the market for less than 24hrs and we received 5 asking price offers. Wow, well now it’s real… so now between mid May and mid June we have to be fully packed out of the house and moved to Mexico. This also included my mom’s apartment that had to be cleaned out packed up her stuff ready to move, and whatever she wanted to give away given away to family. The home was still being completed some last minute items like landscaping, touchups curtains, solar panels, etc. This our home on June 22, 2022, ready for move in.
Sorry this posts are long.. I promise they will be shorter after I catch up to where we are, and I will skip some bring parts, I promise! This however brings us to the year of “The learning curve!!!”
Mexico Beach Adventure 