Mainecoons

Fifteen years ago when we moved here, we brought almost everything. It cost over $15,000 U.S., a big item was an antique piano. All our furniture from NM was custom hand made and it fit in our new home perfectly. At that time, the selection in furniture and electronics here was very poor in both style and quality. So we brought almost all of it and haven't regretted it one bit as we are still using all of it 15 years later. That is no longer the case. Furniture is similar in price and electronics although not as cheap are not so expensive you are justified in moving them. Unless you have really special or high end furniture like antiques there's no reason to bring most furniture Moving things within Mexico is not that expensive. It would help to know what the final destination would be if not local to Lake Chapala. You should be able to find the full range of furniture in any large city that is closest to where your new home is, and have it delivered. A fact finding trip here in advance of your move might be a good idea in making this decision. We did not have a satisfactory experience with Strom, both in terms of damage and their response to it, even though insurance was purchased. You can PM me if you want details.

Roca Azul is always our first recommendation, a bit shocked to hear it is full in the middle of summer. Beautiful place, great pools. I thought there was an RV park in San Antonio.

We used CI Banco for years but then the problems seemed to get worse and worse with those machines, so now we go to HSBC and pay the higher rate to get reliability.

You are referring to the U.S. dollar index. That is a limited measure based on only 6 currencies and leaving out some big ones like the Chinese and Mexican currencies. Against the currencies of the top three trading partners of the U.S., namely Mexico, China and Canada, the U.S. dollar the picture is mixed and very much driven by interest rates. Bottom line is it is a mistake to measure the value of the dollar using that index it appears you are citing. It includes none of our main trading partners. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/investing/dollar-index/

You file the FBAR on line, forms are easy to fill out on a PC. I use turbo tax deluxe, it has the forms needed to report foreign income.

Mexican central bank keeps benchmark interest rate unchanged. https://mexiconewsdaily.com/business/mexicos-central-bank-keeps-interest-rate-at-11-25/ It's pretty likely it won't go higher so we are going long on our Cete investments. That amazing 11.25 percent interest rate helps to compensate for the 15 percent decline in the value of the dollar since the last election. Take advantage of it, it hasn't been that long since we were lucky to get 4 percent.

The number and variety of restaurants Lakeside is truly astronomical. If you can't find it here you ain't hungry. 🤣

Don't like to throw stuff like this in the trash. Thanks.

Yes he did. Don't think anyone has picked up the car wash yet, he leased it.

It used to be one could qualify after a certain number of years of residency and investment in the country and the language and test was waived over a certain age. Now apparently the language and history test are required. I am told it is better to go to Mexico City as the staff in GDL does not like passing expats wanting citizenship much. We have a friend who just did this and reported she was treated very well and respectfully there. She was treated poorly in GDL and she reported they seemed to go out of their way to fail her. Given the reports I have seen about crappy treatment of Mexicans by the U.S. visa and passport office there, maybe there's some reprisal going on. We took some advice to avoid that office and go to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City when we recently assisted one of our Oaxacan students, a dual citizen, in getting a U.S. Passport. She was treated very well at the U.S. Embassy and had the passport in just a few weeks. Because of my very poor hearing and resulting cognitive damage I just can't hear the spoken Spanish language well enough to pass any oral language tests. I think I could pass a written test. We got here a little too late to get in under the previous rules. Would have definitely gone for citizenship otherwise. Given what is happening NOB it seems prudent to not have all of one's eggs in one citizenship bucket. We would if we could, that is for sure. We have no intention of returning to the U.S.

Wow, the whole Movie Space or just one theater? Just went to see Mission Impossible there a couple weeks ago.

Agree with the last part describing the Mexican community. Particularly I've found them kinder to us older folks. So many opportunities to make a real difference as well. We're here for good.

Been here over 15 years, going north in 3 weeks to sell our RV, last connection to there other than several bank accounts. Here for the duration. Some things better over the years, some things not. Overall better but we did luck into a great location. Things were getting sorta trashy and pot holey but the Pueblo Magico seems to be making improvements at least in and around centro. Our war on graffiti has gone well in Ajijic, adding to the appeal. It has become a great deal more expensive to buy and rent here, IMHO not only because of the expats but also the area is very popular with the more well off from GDL. If I were moving here today, I'd focus on Chapala and San Antonio. Riberas still has a ton of problems mostly related to lack of services and sewers. Buying in there is good for the long term, I expect some improvement in both categories. Very important to self assess your tolerance for traffic and noise and focus your location search on what suits best. Not hard to find quieter you just have to know where to look. Renting for a while and walking the heck out of the towns that appeal to you. Just about any life style from in-village to semi-rural available here. The better your Spanish, the more options here and elsewhere. I see lots of expats in places like Patzcuaro, Morelia, GDL, Cd. Mexico and Oaxaca to name a few. Lovers of the beach who can handle the heat have a lot of choices along the coast. If I lived at the beach it would be Manzanillo. Hang out at the Lake Chapala Society and the American Legion. Plenty of nice folks more than willing to talk to you.

Interesting. I comparison shop Amazon with EBay and at least half the time the EBay price is better, sometimes by a lot.