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Moving from Costa Rica to Ajijic


Drew

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Finally we have sold our house in Costa Rica.Now we need a long term rental.We will be in Ajijic September 6th.Would like a 2 bedroom,furnished,pet friendly,In central Ajijic but am open to other areas that are walkable.Would like a one year lease.My budget is upto $1000.00 PM me if you have any ideas.

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Unless you are already familiar with Ajijic, you might want to do a 6-month lease and learn all the ropes before getting a long-term rental. Of course some call 6-months long term so if that is what you meant..... disregard.

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Drew, I have always heard expats brag about how wonderful Costa Rica is,  I have never been there before, could you please briefly explain why you are moving here and how would you compare or rate Chapala to living in Costa Rica.  By the way, I would also recommend that you check out Chapala also.  Living here is cheaper than Ajijic including rent, shopping, market, etc.  Years ago, many expats living in Ajijic used to believe that Chapala was a dump and Ajijic was the crowned jewel of the lake.  Well times are changing and Chapala has caught up to its little sister to the West.  Over the past few years they have been replacing many of our broken streets and sidewalks with nice new and smooth paving stones.  The restaurant and bar scene has improved and things in Chapala are starting to really shine.  Most of the local tax money is being spent on Chapala's infrastructure first.  Now it is the Ajijicans who are starting to get envious.  By the way, they are just ten minutes apart from one another on the carretera or highway.  Either way, both towns are fine places to live, both with their pluses and minuses, of course.  Good luck with your new adventure!

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2 hours ago, Mainecoons said:

Refreshing bit of candor from a Chapala resident there, thanks.  :)

 

Well, honesty is always the key.  I am not involved in real estate, any local business, nor do I work for the local government.  I don't get to decide how the municipio uses its money.  Being a full time resident of Chapala, I am very happy that we are getting new smooth streets and sidewalks, I'm not going to lie.  Don't forget that Chapala is the cabecera municipal.  It ain't always fair, but that is the way it is.  Chapala has been needing an upgrade probably for more than half a century, ever since Madero was widened in the 50's.  Ajijic is still a very nice place, it is much more colorful and more quaint than Chapala.  But it is really filling up of lately.

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Several have asked why im moving here from Costa Rica.Well I have lived in CR for 16 years and before that Panama.I have always lived in very remote jungle areas.When I was younger this was a great adventure.Now i am in my late 60s and my health is a concern.Where I live it is very difficult to find good medical care.Also I have visited Ajijic for the last 5 years and realized that living so remote that I have missed out on meeting and sharing my expat expierences.Also CR has become more expensive in recent years.I also like the weather here.Its much less humid and wet.Probably the main reason im making the change is after almost 20 years its just time to shake it up.

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All your reasons for moving make sense, as do all the reasons for making a different choice that have been listed. I recently relocated, (after years) away from Ajijic (to Cuernavaca which is great for me) to escape what, for me, had become a noisy, dirty and congested area. Ajijic is great to visit, more difficult to live in so I endorse the suggestions of Chapala and Jocotepec. I lived in both and really liked Chapala - just try to find a space a little distance from the malecon to avoid the weekend party world. Good luck!

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As others have noted where you chose to live in the Lakeside area depends on your budget and preferences.  Most of the private medical services including the new facilities now being built lie between Chapala and Ajijic.  Chapala offers more affordable housing, Ajijic is the center of expat life.  Jocotepec offers considerably faster access to the upscale shopping areas of north and west GDL.  One of the nice things about Lakeside is the very wide variety of living environments it offers, from gated hillside or lakeside fraccs (or non gated of these) to a walkable small town location.

And as IM noted, there are a lot of other pretty desirable places in Mexico with decent climate and reasonable cost of living.  So you really have a far greater range of possibilities than you could ever find in Costa Rica.

 

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As much as I appreciate everyones advice on where is the best place to live.Only one person actually answered my originall question.Does anyone know of a house for rent?Thats what Im really looking for.Please pm me if you know of a nice house to rent.

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14 minutes ago, Drew said:

Does anyone know of a house for rent?Thats what Im really looking for

3

Yes, I know of some, but none that will be available to be held until your arrival of September.

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Thank you Angus.That seems to be the problem.I think I'm just to early to be asking.I certainly understand that people want to rent there places now.That leads me to another question.Will there still be places for rent  for September getting that close to the high season?

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44 minutes ago, Drew said:

As much as I appreciate everyones advice on where is the best place to live.Only one person actually answered my originall question.Does anyone know of a house for rent?Thats what Im really looking for.Please pm me if you know of a nice house to rent.

A number of landlords prefer property management by rental agents. You could try contacting them.  I recommend Roma.

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1 hour ago, Drew said:

Thank you Angus.That seems to be the problem.I think I'm just to early to be asking.I certainly understand that people want to rent there places now.That leads me to another question.Will there still be places for rent  for September getting that close to the high season?

September should be fine. A few "birds" may trickle down in October, but the onslaught doesn't begin until November.

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If you locate a house NOW but not arriving until Sept. try offering the landlord 25 or 30% of the rent for part of May, all of June, July and August. He gets part of the loaf while it would be setting empty anyways and a full loaf from Sept. on and know right now that he has a renter instead of looking for one latter. Sounds like a deal to me.

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3 minutes ago, hammerhead said:

If you locate a house NOW but not arriving until Sept. try offering the landlord 25 or 30% of the rent for part of May, all of June, July and August. He gets part of the loaf while it would be setting empty anyways and a full loaf from Sept. on and know right now that he has a renter instead of looking for one latter. Sounds like a deal to me.

Also besides the 1st and last months rent paid in advance you might offer to pay the summer months in advance also to close the deal if needed. Good Luck and come on down.

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It would be a HUGE leap of faith for me to prepay for the summer on something that I had not seen, nor had I seen the neighborhood nor the neighbor nor the Internet connection nor the ???     YMMV

 

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2 hours ago, RickS said:

It would be a HUGE leap of faith for me to prepay for the summer on something that I had not seen, nor had I seen the neighborhood nor the neighbor nor the Internet connection nor the ???     YMMV

 

Not much of a leap at all being as Drew has been coming to Ajijic for the past 5 years looking it over already and ready to move here. 

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On 5/10/2018 at 6:47 AM, Drew said:

Finally we have sold our house in Costa Rica.Now we need a long term rental.We will be in Ajijic September 6th.Would like a 2 bedroom,furnished,pet friendly,In central Ajijic but am open to other areas that are walkable.Would like a one year lease.My budget is upto $1000.00 PM me if you have any ideas.

This thread has been outstanding for pure thread wander without giving you much useful information!  You expressed your wishes very clearly. I gathered that you'd like to know about any rentals that meet your requirements. September shouldn't be too hard for finding something as the snowbirds don't flock on down till  late October or November and a long term tenant will be appealing to many landlords.  The $1000 limit probably won't get you what you want in Ajijic, but should work in other areas.  Good luck!

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3 hours ago, hammerhead said:

Not much of a leap at all being as Drew has been coming to Ajijic for the past 5 years looking it over already and ready to move here. 

Let’s hope that is the case.....

Gringal, as you know I don’t live in Ajijic but am there ‘several times a year’.   If $1,000 won’t get one a nice enough long-term rental in Ajijic any more then things have really changed in the last 1-2 years. Not saying it hasn’t, but...  Lately I just haven’t looked at any rentals but ‘back then’ I coud and did look around and find a casa that even my wife would accept for $850.  

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I know rental rates are going up lakeside slightly faster than in the past. Or so real estate agents have told me. But that's about all I know about the rental market.

 

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lnitially transport may be a problem so I would look in San Antonio, there are properties within your price range....the area has become central with the best shopping ,decent restaurants, far more cultural possibilities than Chapala...the proximity of Ajijic ,traffic is better. Public transport is good and almost everything you need is close by ....less local tourism on the weekends .. Please note I live in Las Salvias on the edge of Ajijic and wouldn’t dream of living anywhere else but  the property prices and rentals here have risen lately .

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9 hours ago, RickS said:

Let’s hope that is the case.....

Gringal, as you know I don’t live in Ajijic but am there ‘several times a year’.   If $1,000 won’t get one a nice enough long-term rental in Ajijic any more then things have really changed in the last 1-2 years. Not saying it hasn’t, but...  Lately I just haven’t looked at any rentals but ‘back then’ I coud and did look around and find a casa that even my wife would accept for $850.  

Bear in mind that the poster wants a 2 bedroom, furnished, pet friendly (which means outdoor space, too)place.  This is not going to be likely in Ajijic any longer.  Rents have been going up.

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