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Your impressions: More snowbirds this year?


Mainecoons

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Wait, there are no stringent labour laws in the U.S.?

No where close to Mexico. e.g. if you're a full time employee of a corporation in Mexico, say Walmart, the company must pay all of your social taxes, retirement, and medical insurance. In the US nothing is required by law, NOTHING. The best example of a lousy employer is Walmart. An example of an excellent employer is COSTCO.

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No where close to Mexico. e.g. if you're a full time employee of a corporation in Mexico, say Walmart, the company must pay all of your social taxes, retirement, and medical insurance. In the US nothing is required by law, NOTHING. The best example of a lousy employer is Walmart. An example of an excellent employer is COSTCO.

So if the medical care problem gets fixed, it would seem way beyond the time to do something about employment laws. There's a federal proposal in Canada to raise the minimum wage across the board to $14 or $15. About time.

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Guest verchiel

I don't think anyone on this string has one shred of evidence for how many snowbirds are here, how many expats are moving in our out, how business is doing, etc. etc. etc. adinfinitum. It's all speculation. Therefore, it's B.S.

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I don't think anyone on this string has one shred of evidence for how many snowbirds are here, how many expats are moving in our out, how business is doing etc. etc. etc. adinfinitum. It's all speculation. Therefore, it's B.S.

People who don't own business's here really don't have much "evidence" of the movements of the foreign population or of how business owners are doing etc.etc. etc. .....but people who have established businesses do know. We keep records.

The health of the local economy is not accurately reflected by the lunch hour at a few high end restaurants , believe what you want but this is a particularly tough year even if it is not affecting you personally.

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People who don't own business's here really don't have much "evidence" of the movements of the foreign population or of how business owners are doing etc.etc. etc. .....but people who have established businesses do know. We keep records.

The health of the local economy is not accurately reflected by the lunch hour at a few high end restaurants , believe what you want but this is a particularly tough year even if it is not affecting you personally.

you are absolutely correct betsy. we've been coming lakeside for 20 years and have been permanent for 13. last year was the worst. we look forward to seeing our snowbird friends and they didn't come. we are hoping that this year will be better, but october and november didn't improve things much. ask around to businesses both gringo and mexican and you will hear the same thing. we have also seen long time gringos selling their homes and moving back north. the new immigration laws have been sited by some, and a desire to be near family that needs help is the other reason....and no one wants to spend anything until they see which way the wind is blowing.

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I cannot seem to find any facts to support that statement. Lots of other facts, though, that disagree:

-Wal-Mart tries out a new wage in Mexico: $0 an hour!

-Walmart Tries to Pay Workers in Walmart Vouchers

And who could forget Bribery And Corruption

Bribery and corruption in Mexico? I'm shocked, shocked!!

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It is said that on average an ex-pat lasts approximately 10 years .
Of course few leave sooner and few will stay forever.
We had a huge influx of Nobies here lakeside in 2004-2006.
So if my first sentance has any merit we will see people moving North soon.
They came ,they tried to push the "progress" and they will leave their legacy behind.
It will have a huge impact on the locals.
-
We are coming here for winters since 2000.
We are not coming for the economical reasons but for the sun.
Because we are here only part time we see all the changes in the area
with different eyes than the ones who live here full time.
-

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I wonder how many of us would not be here if the INM income requirements were as steep as they are now? I wouldn't be, and neither would a lot of my friends and a lot of people who patronize our business. People move or don't come back for various reasons every year but this year we are not seeing as many new patients where I work. We will hang onto our one employee no matter what happens, but a lot of people are out of jobs and there is just not much money circulating. That affects every corner grocery store, mechanic, Gardner, housekeeper and on and on.

This is only the first year that new prospects are having to contend with the new INM rules, what about 5 years from now?

We haven't heard from any realtors yet and they know more about this than most of us.. How's it going , realtors? Are all the rentals taken like they usually are at this time of the year? Has there been a significant increase or decline in seasonal rentals? What about sales by foreign buyers? We know that wealthy Mexicans are snapping up some bargains, but what about the foreigners?

There are many ways we can help our economy ...keep our business local and out of large corporations. Create small jobs, share a home cook. Share an ironing person. Rony has lots more workers than jobs.

We have a lady that sweeps the street in front of our house AND office , she even brushes the cobwebs off the walls around the doors and windows. We pay her .$ 150.00 a month and she has lots of clients. She must be pushing 80 but she is there every day doing her job with a big smile on her face.

The two houses next two us are owned by People from Guadalajara who use their house a few times a year. You think they would hire her? No, not even when I told them that I personally pick up their trash in front of their house when they are not there.

If you live in Chapala Centro and would like to provide a small but meaningful job to this lady send me a P.M. And I will hook you up.

I'm not trying to enter a pissing contest and I don't need to be right. I just know that times are tough and we can help. I love my town and my neighbors, don't you?

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Maybe if you looked at El Parque and the other large condo place Birds of Paridise which I think has a large snowbird rental/owners it would give us a feel..any people from those places want to coment??

I know that it was near to impossible to obtain a rental in El Parque, a few years back. Now there are some "for rent" signs, though most places were spoken for a year ago. My impression is that there is a new, younger group of snow birds arriving and that they are very different than the snow birds of 10 years ago. (Not so flush with equity that they can leverage to buy a second home). I notice because, five years ago, I used to be one of the "younger" snow birds. Now I see lots of people in their early 50s checking the place out.

I have a number of snow bird friends and relatives, coming down for the first time this year and they are renting for just 3 months instead of 6. No one mentions the INM rules as they are not really willing to give up their Canadian Medical and are only a little curious about why I am here full time. So: I would say I see a lot more younger snow birds this year than in previous years. (Of course, I am older now than I was..... so that makes sense!)

**I wanted to note that, when in Canada, I meet a lot of people interested in retiring to Mexico full time.... but they are all a few years away from retiring and can easily meet the INM financial requirements. Its Medical Insurance that holds them back.

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That's silly; medical insurance in Canada is expensive, especially for retirees. Private health insurance here is relatively inexpensive as long as you buy it before you get into your mid-sixties.

Lets not make this a political thread, please. I am not taking the bait. I welcome all new comers and hope they have a good experience here and stay as long as they can afford to each year. It is a great place to live!

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Private health insurance in Canada is not necessary for primary care physicians or hospitals. Dental work, eyeglasses, prescription drugs are not covered so private insurance is necessary for those. Most private plans are carried by employers for things like that. Life insurance is expensive, particularly after one hits 60. Certainly one can buy private coverage for specialized care, but in my experience for life-threatening scenarios, the best doctors and surgeons already work within the system.

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With no hard data I think it's more of a personal mindset . that is , positive - minded people see positive things and negative- minded people see things negatively

funny - actually when you are trying to prove a fact, observation comes into play..........And people are making observations - eg business down, traffic unchanged. Those observations really don't have much to do with their negative or positive mindset.

And those observations are the best we are gonna get here. Restaurant Business may be down for some- and who knows if it is because of new oversaturation - people spending less money - or people preferring other restaurants in a different area or, or, or.. And traffic is subjective - lacking car counters. Lately I have seen the carreterra gridlocked at 2 in one direction - and flowing well at 3.

And based on my opinion, more permanent expats are leaving the area. Four of my friends have moved NOB in the last 7 months - one moved to Baja - and my circle of friends is not that large. So that also means you would need more snowbirds to make up for those leaving - to get the same population count. Just an observation:)

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