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gurley

Jun 2, 2004, 1:50 PM

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Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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Hola! We really fell in love with Guanajuato when we were there, looking for our future home, last fall. We were told that Guanajuato has a higher cost of living than many locations. And that rentals are especially expensive and hard to find (I'm assuming because of the very large university population).

Can one find a simple, but sound, rental house for $500-$700 per month? We would really like to be within walking distance (within ~ 2 miles) of the city center. What is the best way to find rental property? There didn't seem to be much available in the local newspaper.

Can anyone share any insights regarding life in Guanajuato? What about other costs beyond one's residence? We met some of the (small, as I understand it) expatriate community there - nice people. We certainly look forward to creating friendships with Mexicans, as well as with foreigners working at the University and expatriates who have retired.

Also, I would welcome any comments regarding other Guanajuato cities.

Gracias!
Rosa
God Bless the World - No Exceptions!

johnv

Jun 2, 2004, 7:36 PM

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Re: [gurley] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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It should be easy to find something good for MX$5000 to MX$7000. (unlike San Miguel de Allende, rental prices are in pesos here).
I chose Guanajuato over SMA because it has a lower cost of living. I lived in San Miguel in the mid to late 80's, and that was the last that I know that it had a low cost of living there.
The local paper is rather useless to find rentals. You must purchase and use "El Chopper", available at all newstands in Guanjauato. (it is a small magazine-sized publication, larger than a TV-Guide, but smaller than a magazine). 90% of the rental adds can be found in the Chopper.
After living in Guanajuato for 2 years I would have to say that the lack of alot of other NorthAmericans is what I dislike the most. At the time that I first moved here, I did not forsee it as a problem. However, after 2 years, it's starting to get to me. That is what is so nice about renting. You can always move rather easily.

Carol Schmidt

Jun 4, 2004, 10:13 AM

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Re: [johnv] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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Even though SMA´s cost of living is high compared to most other areas of Mexico, it´s still cheaper overall than Phoenix was, and that was much cheaper than LA, SF, or NY. SMA gets criticized a lot for having so many gringos (the mayor says the foreign population is 7,000 out of a population of 70,000 in the city limits and about 120,000 including neighboring areas), but I find that wonderful.

Guanajuato is indeed beautiful but I could tell from our one day there that I would always feel out of place. I knew from the first day that I would fit right in to SMA.

But after two years in Mexico I believe that if prices got too high here in SMA, we could indeed survive in a cheaper area, maybe even Guanajuato. The culture there is certainly a selling point. I just heard it phrased that SMA is the painting town, Guanajuato is the music and dance town. Since we had a wonderful bus ride to Queretaro and enjoyed exploring the central area there, that city would be a definite possibility if we were ever priced out of SMA. And then there´s Oaxaca...

Carol Schmidt

gurley

Jun 6, 2004, 10:30 AM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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I appreciate learning from all of you who are already "living the dream!" I know that I am somewhat naive about the realities of living in Mexico. I tend to think that I would not mind living in a place with few English-speaking expatriates. But many mention that the reality is, for them, that living with others from a more similar birth-culture is important - more important than they realized initially.

I guess what most "worries" me about SMA is there is no close proximity to "full-service" hospitals - those offering specialties and specialists. A question regarding this: Is there an ambulance service in SMA? I've read various opinions about the local hospital there. Are people confident that physicians there can deal with emergency medical conditions?

The Lake Chapala area gets high marks regarding health care, since Guadalajara is so close (tho, for the "emergency, being even that distance from the high-quality hospital can be a life-and-death issue). But, does that area have the Mexican feel that I crave? We need to return; I've not been there since 1978 - a LONG time ago! That will be our next area of exploration as we seek our future home.

I have great memories of Oaxaca - except that, when I was there many years ago, the pollution was unpleasant. I guess it's a larger city than what I would choose. But it can't be beat for cultural and artistic excellence.

I read Mexconnect several times a week, but don't post much. I really do appreciate all the great information shared here.

Rosa
God Bless the World - No Exceptions!

Carol Schmidt

Jun 6, 2004, 12:36 PM

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Re: [gurley] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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There are two hospitals in SMA, the General Hospital which is used by those with IMSS and is the public hospital, and De La Fe, a private hospital started maybe 10 years ago with considerable gringo donations and input. Gringos who have gone to the General Hospital for simple emergencies like a broken leg have said good things, though it has all the disadvantages of a very small poor hospital. For emergency care it is as good as any small U.S. hospital--I lived in a town of 2000 in rural Michigan and can report that has its limitations as well, though that 12-bed hospital saved my partner's life in a heart condition. I've been in De La Fe twice and had excellent care, very cheap (a private room is $72 US a night). It's also small but some of the doctors on staff are excellent, trained in the US, online with Mayo Clinic. Visiting doctors from the US have trained and trained at both hospitals.

Only 45 miles away is Angeles Hospital in Queretaro, and I know several gringos who have had major surgery there, breast cancer and such, and have good opinons of it. The city has many excellent specialists and laboratories. Yes, we have ambulance service in SMA and it is as quick to get to Querataro as to a big hospital in the States from a small city. I had a 165-mile ambulance ride in rural Michigan to the University of Michigan hospital in one of my many medical emergencies.

To me, health care is a crap shoot these days anyplace you go. My partner has had three close relatives, her mother and brother and son-in-law, die in major US hospitals with misdiagnoses, and two lawsuits resulted from bad care in the deaths. I've had idiotic doctors in the best hospitals in the US and wonderful care from doctors in tiny hospitals in the US and Mexico.

In any small town you have the problem that if you have a rare blood type or need a great deal of blood you might not get it in time. In one incident in a recent Running of the Bulls, blood was obtained from Celaya, maybe 25 miles away, a quarter million people.

This is a complex, very individualized question depending on your own health conditions and resources.

Carol Schmidt

gurley

Jun 7, 2004, 1:02 PM

Post #6 of 8 (922 views)

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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Carol,

I find your comments, here specifically and in general - so many good postings (!), very insightful and valuable! Thanks for being a great Mexconnect communicator and thanks for responses to this question!

Rose
God Bless the World - No Exceptions!

gpk

Jun 7, 2004, 1:59 PM

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Re: [Carol Schmidt] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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Just in case anyone is interested, IMSS hospitals and General Hospitals are different in Mexico. They currently offer similar levels of care--at least in some locations--but IMSS is for employees whose employers insure them (or for those, like me, who pay for their own coverage) and the General Hospitals are for the uninsured. In the recent past, and this may still be true in some places, the General Hospitals were not nearly as good as IMSS hospitals.

Cynthia7

Jun 9, 2004, 9:23 PM

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Re: [gpk] Guanajuato - Quality and Cost of Living

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I had my broken foot bone operated on in Queretaro at LosAngeles Hospital by an orthopaedic doctor trained in Munich,Germany. I was very pleased. The General Hospital on Reloj's emergency room is staffed by US Doctors. My understanding is that they are increasing their medical language inn Spanish. They rotate every so many months and are excellent. Our son had a hemotoma on his leg sugically taken care of by a trauma specialst from U. of Va. Tuck that in incidental info.