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kimanjome

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Everything posted by kimanjome

  1. Thank you for the info. We have been thinking of selling (or possibly renting, uncertain at this stage). Lakeside, we have been in the US recently (I still am!) and we have been pricing retirement homes in Florida. Need to return for health reasons. Home prices are high, and show no signs of falling, other than $1000 or $2000 on "reduced price" listings. Median price range for a 2/2 of 140 sq meters (1500 sq feet) in a retirement subdivision is well above $200K. If you want a 3/2 of 180 sq meters (2000 sq feet) in an affordable golf course community with low HOA expenses, you will be looking at a minimum of $350K. Why? Demand outstrips supply. Every day over 900 people, mostly seniors and retirees, are moving to Florida. Yes, their 401Ks are down. So instead of buying a 600K home they might settle for a $450K home. Also, mortgage lending rates are almost zero %! How can they go wrong? Lastly, there is almost 30 billion dollars in value in retirees estates. Those retirees are dying, and the next generation--heirs between the ages of 55 and 70--are reaping windfalls. We visited Sun City Center in Florida. The average age there is something like 61. Flashback to when we visited Sun City in 2012, and the average age was 72. The demographics are changing, rapidly. This generation of inheritance is very affluent. More than a handful are taking early retirement as soon as they inherit. Also: the agent with whom we have been working told us that 10, 15 years ago most people paid cash. Now she says 95% are financing. Why? Low interest rates, of course, BUT, many have the intention of never paying off the mortgage. When they die, the debt is no longer their problem, it's the bank's problem. The bank can't foreclose if the surviving spouse lives there. So where is the motivation to pay off the mortgage?
  2. I agree completely! In the US my maid might be considered "poor" because she doesn't own a car. But she does own her own home, she takes at least two "traveling" vacations a year (in which she stays in a hotel in another distant location for an extended stay), and she has electricity, running water, big screen TV with cable, and once a year she gets a new Samsung cell phone, passing her older cell phone off to one of her relatives. So in Mexico, I would say she is definitely middle-class.
  3. Thank you. Having the same problem with my new-ish Epson. Green and yellow only, even after cleaning and full change of tanks.
  4. It's "you're", not "your". I'm in the US now and the majority of the working population is on one month home leave with no pay. I don't think I would be unreasonable in asking my maid--who works 20 hours a week in our home--to spend an hour or two each week, in her home, to do an odd task here and there in exchange for a full weekly salary.
  5. I can't find this anywhere. Our maid and gardener came yesterday and worked. I wasn't certain if they would show, but they did. The maid showed us the news that they, workers, are supposed to stay at home. I agreed, that's okay. She said they should be paid for this. I agreed--short term. However, my concern is if this is extended for a longer period, as in the US. Few, if any, workers are being paid if they are not working at home. I've thought of asking the maid to prepare some meals while staying at home (she is always cooking soup for her large family) and put in Tupperware containers for our freezer. Or maybe sewing some of our clothes or making cloth napkins or pillowcases for our house while she is at home. (She can sew and has a machine; I have the supplies). This way I could justify to continue to pay her. Does anyone have any ideas on this?
  6. I'm in the US now and I purchased a couple of these masks, previously available on Amazon. I also sew. The outer layer (what you see on the outside) is basically a cotton gingham or other kind of quilting cotton. Attached to the cotton "gingham" is what, to my eyes, looks identical to iron-on interfacing. The reverse side that touches the face is muslin lining.There is a third layer, a flap where my hand goes through, which is also muslin. The nose piece (I can feel it) is a flat wire. The inside is hollow and identical to how a foldover pillowcase is designed: it is made as an insert pocket, where an additional disposable mask filter can be inserted. However, as the size of this virus is quite large, I have read that a doubled piece of paper towel, cut to filter size, will also work. The mask should be cleaned daily in a gentle soap and water wash, then hung to dry in the sun. These can very easily be improvised. If I were to make one with limited supplies I would use three layers of thin cotton or similar material (old man's dress shirt, etc), elastic for the ears or fabric strip ties, and even thin, flexible wire (such as plastic coated wire electric cable, or twisted bread ties in a real pinch) for the nose bridge. That's a seam dart seen in the center of the mask, and running perpendicular on the bottom is a seam pocket where the foldable 4" nose wire is. When folded to fit the nose bridge it makes a beak, of sorts.
  7. Well, the man from Arizona who died ingested chloroquine which was supposed to go into his KOI POND, not his mouth. That would be like me ingesting a glass of chlorine bleach straight, instead of a droplet in a pint of drinking water.
  8. Doesn't anyone remember the Hong Kong Flu of the late 1960s? I do: my whole family had it. We were sick, we felt crummy, we got better. I recall a couple of fellow students who came back to school and reported they had lost great-grandma or great-great uncle to the virus. This was back in the days before flu vaccines and Mother Nature took her natural, at times cruel, course. Also, viruses tended to be called by their point of origin or other physical description--hence, chicken pox, smallpox, mumps, measles--the word etymologies bare significance in the name.
  9. I called Miguel and although he was busy and could not assist, he was kind enough to find me another driver. Bonus star for Miguel.
  10. The number you gave does NOT work. Says the customer does not exist.
  11. I don't foresee the end of this climb in rents and real estate prices. The Baby Boomers are just coming into their prime--those born in 1946/47--are just a tip of the iceberg, going all the ways through until 1963. That is 16 years of seniors, some of whom will have a considerable amount of retirement wealth and will want to try the expat lifestyle, and others who will have barely enough for survival and will try living SOB to extend their budget. I moved here 3 years ago and I remember the average price of a one-bedroom in Ajijic was $400 or so, with SAT about $350. We bought a property in SAT and thought about building casitas for rental income, then we discovered it would take a couple of decades to recoup our investment. 3 years later, and the idea of building for rental income doesn't seem bad after all.
  12. Has anyone had this done, whether in Mexico or US? I know I've had one since my twenties, but I could always position it back into place. Lately, though, I've been having h. pylori symptoms, and through a recent endoscopy discovered that the hiatal hernai has become problematic. I do have US health insurance and I've read that it's better, in the US, to go to a medical center that specializes in gastro surgery, like hiatal hernias, as I want a surgeon who does these things day in and day out. However, it's more convenient for me to have it done in Mexico. Any thoughts on this?
  13. Have to go on a soft protein diet to heal an inflamed digestive system, and my daughter suggested Tempeh. Does anyone in area sell Tempeh?
  14. I've been through the wringer in the past few months, and in getting to the heart of the matter it appears I have allergic reactions to certain things I am ingesting. Already discovered nuts, eggs, and maltodextrin (of all things), as well as certain strains of probiotics. Within 20-30 minutes of putting something in my mouth my nose starts to run, my eyes burn, my throat swells up, my chest gets tight...and then it goes to the digestive system from there, misery for hours. A CT scan showed an inflamed colon, due to eating irritating foods. I'm on Proton-Pump Inhibitors now, but it's a temporary fix. Also I have Candida overgrowth in my gut (verified by Chopo) which can of course cause leaky gut and exacerbate the entire situation. Well no wonder, in 10 months I have been on strong antibiotics for 6 separate occasions! I need to get tested (doing the elimination diet now, but it is slow going) to find out what more is wrong with me. Chopo does food testing but I think only 3 items???? Does anyone have suggestions?
  15. (apologies if this is the wrong place...unsure whether here of Customs and Immigration) I'm trying to come up with a way to get myself and my 2 big, oversized cats in big crates across the border to Laredo, where I can then get a cab to take me to the Laredo Airport and I can pick up a rental car to drive myself and the 2 felines to Florida. I just can't see myself trying to lug 2 crates, each with a 20 pound cat inside, through US immigration. I suppose I could stack them on a dolly or a luggage trolley, if I could find one.... Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't that 25-mile border zone "thing" into the US allow certain Mexicans to get into Laredo with no hassles? I know of Mexican drivers here who will make the run as far as the border, but I've never asked if they can actually cross. I did speak with one who is a dual US citizen but he would only drive my car, and I won't have my car. Suggestions welcome.
  16. I'm 58, medical history includes: hysterectomy 10 years ago, gall bladder surgery 6 months ago, and occasional things like strep throat, food poisoning (on IV for 36 hours) and I had a mild case of walking pneumonia last year, caught it flying back to Mexico from Europe. I've been quoted by Cigna, Aetna, and others for global insurance coverage, excluding USA, around $350 -400 month. That comes with a $2000 annual deductible. If I add the US in there it goes up to $900- a month. My husband is 72 and as healthy as an ox, low BP, everything looks great, and he was quoted over $600 a month with $5000- deductible. He has Medicare in the US so we decided to skip health insurance for him and either use Seguro Popular for emergencies, or private pay here. 600x12=7200, plus 5= $12,200 a year, before even getting anything back? No thanks. The money we thought we would save by moving to Mexico isn't as great as we thought, as costs here are going up, so we are contemplating going back to the US. It will cost me more but him less, so we break even. Other things in the US certainly cost more, but when I start paying 200% markup on vitamins and clothing coming through amazon.com.mx, I realize the savings get eaten up in another way. Hope that info kinda helps.
  17. @Pappysmarket, we are thinking about returning to the US, also for the same reasons. When we moved here 3 years ago we thought we would obtain health or evac insurance for my spouse, then 70, and inexpensive private coverage here in Mexico for me, then 56. Come to find out the evac insurance doesn't cover you until you are completely stabilized in Mexico, so what's the point in going back to the US by that time? Also, we have been told that after age 70 the cost of insurance here is so pricey it's not even worth it. Better to stash the $700 or $800 or more a month that would go towards Mexican health insurance, in the bank and have it saved for an emergency. In my situation, now at age 58 , I am being quoted appx $375- a month for global insurance excluding the US by companies like Cigna, and roughly the same price by local insurance companies here in Mexico. It's substantially much higher than when we were researching Mexico 3-4 years ago, when the quotes at the time were a reasonable $150-$200 a month. I've been told that it is due to fraud and padding the bills. I know my recent stay in Puerta del Hierro Sur was $700 a night per room(!) and I was told the prices were geared to the US market and those with generous insurance.
  18. Thanks for the info--I have used Puerto del Hierro Sur (cringe! expensive) and Country2000, not quite as costly. Just last week a local middle-class dual Mexican/US citizen told me that the next time (fingers crossed, hopefully not soon) I should use Hospital Mexico Americano, I wouldn't be disappointed.
  19. We (two of us) have had a change in circumstances and I'm looking for a Financial Planner or some other Consultant-Type to give some guidance on how to sort through our options. Not looking for investment advice, as I handle that already. More like, lifestyle changes. We have an X budget to work with, and Y variables. Specifically seeking someone who can look over our options A, B, C, and D, on a big chart, and who might be able to point out things I/we hadn't considered in re-thinking whether we remain in Mexico, return NOB, or go to yet another location. Thanks.
  20. You guys have been SO helpful. Gosh, you'd think "they" would come up with a simple plan to eliminate all this bureaucratic nonsense. Again, I appreciate your efforts in helping me understand it all.
  21. Thanks! That's what it is. Question: Are these "Medicare approved charges" set at a lower, negotiated rate? Like with my private Blue Cross health Insurance, a visit to the physician is "normally" $150, but Blue Cross negotiated a deal with my network, so all I pay is $35-, which is the "co-pay". My CBC lab work has a "rack rate" of $750, but BlueCross negotiated a deal with the lab, so all I pay is like $43.12 or some crazy number. But if my husband used his Medicare Part B to visit my doctor and have the CBC, he would pay $30 for the visit, and $150 for the CBC, correct? And, should he have to go to the hospital for some emergency that costs $80,000 "rack rate", he would have to pay 20% of that--Medicare doesn't negotiate to bring it down to a reasonable level? Why would someone want that type of plan, instead of an Advantage Plan?
  22. Prior to moving to Mexico my husband had a Medicare Advantage plan in Florida, which I believe was United Health Care, kind of like a PPO/HMO. Then we moved to Mexico and had our mail forwarded to Texas, and hubby was unenrolled in the United Health Care Plan and put on "regular" Medicare. He pays like $125? $140? a month. Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't this basic, bare bones Medicare (not sure what it's called) only pay 80% of everything? So if he needs heart surgery that costs $500,000, his share would be $100,000. If an MRI costs $6000, then my husband's share would be $1200. Are these Medicare patients charged "rack rate" or are they charged negotiated Medicare rates? I'm wondering why someone would have that type of regular Medicare plan, unless they were forced to, like my husband, because he is out of the country. We need to go back to the US for some tests for an extended time and will be living with my parents in Florida, so my husband will want coverage for whatever is most beneficial--would that be to re-join an Advantage Plan, or keep straight Medicare?
  23. Why on earth would someone build an evento? Seriously, they don't make much money....you could make as much with a cow pasture, for God's sake. And there are already places for sale that can house evento-type venues. All I can think of is some landowner decided to do something with his/her lot, to make some side cash. They would be better off building multi-family housing and renting to expats, or an ALF or something that pulls in decent income, like an RV lot. But an evento????????? I give it a year, at best.
  24. I've had 2 surgeries here in Guad. Private, top-notch hospitals that look just like the US facilities. Surgeons who trained in the US. Both with excellent results. Doctors' services were impeccable and fees were reasonable, as were lab tests, etc. Where you have to watch out is the hospital itself--some charge much, MUCH higher room and operating theatre rates than others, US prices? Learned this on my own experience and speaking to others. I was told to have on hand the names of a couple of decent, fully equipped upper-end hospitals but not the top luxe one or two. And find the best doctors. Ask around.
  25. Windscribe in the past, okay. Then ExpressVPN, but too many of their servers were being "discovered". Now using IPVanish, tolerable. I don't think any VPN is perfect, occasionally you will have to change your server, as you will get "proxy detected" notices on your device. I keep my VPN on the Dallas server, to match my Laredo billing address. Note that whatever VPN you use on each individual device, your internet speed will decrease substantially. Six months ago here in San Antonio we were having speeds of 2 Mbps down, .09 up, sitting right next to the modem. When using a VPN the speeds dropped to around 1 Mbps down. Now (for whatever reason, probably an influential Mexican neighbor) all our Telmex street cables were replaced and our internet speeds range from 45 to 51 Mbps down, and 10 to 15 up. That is a massive jump. I speed test frequently using a variety of testing services, and all are in the same range. Note that when I have my VPN active, however, my speeds drop to about 15 Mbps down and 3 or 4 Mbps up. Still perfectly good enough to watch Netflix and browse my US banking sites.
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