Why People Are Leaving Chelem Mexico

Introduction

We would like to preface this article by suggesting that anyone that has not yet been to Chelem visit, before considering a purchase. It's worthwhile renting here for in winter and summer, to see if you could get used to the heat and slower pace of life, long-term, not just for a quick vacation. While Chelem is a wonderful place, it isn't for everyone.

Dual Economy

Amongst all the wonderful things one gains by moving to Chelem Yucatan, is the fact that your dollar goes further. Unfortunately, being a foreigner can sometimes work against you when making any kind of purchase here, and a home purchase is no exception.

Whether buying a home in Chelem or hiring a plumber, it is not uncommon for a local to quote you a different price than he or she might quote a local. This is the dual economy we're referring to.

The negative impact on Chelem Real Estate is that you can go through the process of drafting an offer on a property with both parties being on the same page about almost everything, but when the seller learns that the buyer is foreign, through the Fideicomiso (land-trust) conversation, they may change their selling price.

In June 2024, while representing a buyer, looking to buy a 33,000 sq.ft. parcel of land for 1 million pesos, we ran into this very issue. After a month of chasing the seller for proper documentation on the property and establishing a transaction method, as they were unbanked, they decided to increase the price by 20%, bringing the sale price to 1,200,000 pesos just because the buyers were foreign. They didn't even try to obscure their reasoning behind it.

This of course made the buyer angry, blew the deal and left the seller's real estate agent a little embarrassed that their client wasn't trust-worthy. But this is what can sometimes* happen in the Yucatan.

The Heat in Chelem Yucatan

The Yucatan is hot... very hot. The advantage that Chelem and other coastal towns have is the ocean breeze. It truly makes all the difference. Especially come summer time.

According to WeatherSpark, the hot season in Chelem Yucatan is from Apr 24 to Oct 5, with a daily average high of 31C and a low of 25C. According to WeatherSpark, August's average high is 33C.

IMPORTANT: Everyone you know is likely to disagree with these numbers, including us. Add an average of 7 degrees Celsius to all these values to get the true temperatures. Even your car's thermometer will confirm this.

Being under the mid-day's sun in these temperatures is not pleasant. While siestas don't really seem to be a thing here anymore, you do come to realize that Yucatecan cities come to life at night. There are many times more people out and about after dark than during the day.

Some folks that are intolerant to the local heat are victims to not having rented a home in Chelem in the summer before buying and decide to stick it out for several years. Others didn't initially mind it that much but it started to affect them as they age. Then there are others still, that develop health conditions that drastically reduce the amount of time they can withstand the heat. Never-mind withstanding the electric bills if you have to run the AC in all rooms, year-round.

Healthcare in Chelem and Merida

Ughhh, nobody wants to believe that there health could take a medical swan dive in the near future, but this is occasionally the case, whether we're living in Chelem Yucatan or anywhere north... it just happens.

Vacation Vs Life in Chelem

This is something that we find affects the younger expats more than the "wiser" ones. We know the feeling of visiting a place, even for a month and thinking we'd like to live there, since it's a nice break from our usual daily lives.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we're of the opinion that Chelem has everything you would need as Home-Buyer leaving their home country and not wanting to compromise too much on the luxuries and habits that we've developed up north. But as any good Real Estate Agent would recommend: Rent in Chelem during both seasons in order to have the highest chance of success.