# cost of renting in cancun



## dannym (Dec 28, 2013)

Hello, i've been browsing rental listings in cancun and most houses im looking at cost between 1800$ to 2400$ a month (1700sq feet +) but when i go on expat blogs they all say they rent relatively large houses for less then 1000$ a month. Can anyone explain to me whats up with the difference?


----------



## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

dannym said:


> Hello, i've been browsing rental listings in cancun and most houses im looking at cost between 1800$ to 2400$ a month (1700sq feet +) but when i go on expat blogs they all say they rent relatively large houses for less then 1000$ a month. Can anyone explain to me whats up with the difference?


I don't know the rental market in Cancun, but I can think of two possibilities. 

Are you looking at short term rental rates and comparing them to long term rates for people living there full time?

Rental listings available on the internet are aimed at foreigners and are always higher than rentals that are available locally.

Maybe someone from the Cancun area will have more specific information.


----------



## ojosazules11 (Nov 3, 2013)

(I had written this but not posted it before Tundra's reply, so sorry for repeating some of what Tundra already said much more succinctly!)

My understanding is that when you seek rentals on-line, they are aimed at foreigners and will be significantly more expensive than those rentals you can find by being on the ground, walking around in the area where you want to stay and looking for "For Rent" signs ("Se Renta" o "Se Alquila" both mean "For Rent" in Spanish). Most Mexicans looking to rent out a place will put a sign up on the house and maybe at a local store. There tends to be an automatic Internet mark-up, somewhat akin to the "blue-eyed tax" I'm subject to in spite of speaking fluent Spanish with a mostly Guatemalan accent. If my husband wants to negotiate a price on something, e.g. building materials, he doesn't take me along! (Or I keep my sunglasses on.) 😎

If you stay at a hotel for a week or two, that would give you time to have a look around and see what you can rent. You can also get a better feel for the place you are renting, the neighbourhood, its location in relation to other parts of town, etc. 

However, if you're not coming down for a prolonged visit, you might not want to spend a chunk of your vacation looking for a place to rent... In that case the Internet premium may be worth it. I wonder if an Internet search in Spanish would result in the same mark-up as in English?


----------



## dannym (Dec 28, 2013)

ah that explains quite a lot. can anyone recommend a good neighborhood that has lots of expats in cancun or any city thats 45 minute away from cancun? 

i've been trying to get the help of local real estate agents but none ever pick up their phone nor send me any listings once i talk to them


----------



## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

dannym said:


> ah that explains quite a lot. can anyone recommend a good neighborhood that has lots of expats in cancun or any city thats 45 minute away from cancun?
> 
> i've been trying to get the help of local real estate agents but none ever pick up their phone nor send me any listings once i talk to them


Are you looking for a vacation rental or a place to live long term? As OjosAzules said, if it is short term you might just have to deal with the higher prices. If you are looking for a longer term place to live, 1 year or more, you would be much better off to get hotel room for a week or so and look for a place after you arrive. I know people seem to be uncomfortable with that but in Mexico rentals are not advertised the way that they are in the US. Nor do people list with agents, except those looking for foreign tenants at a premium as we both pointed out already. I can't help with neighborhoods in the Cancun area. The only time I visited the Yucatan peninsula, I never made it to Cancun.


----------



## ojosazules11 (Nov 3, 2013)

In answer to my own question about lower cost if the Internet search is done in Spanish, I did just that. Right off the bat I found a 3 BR "Horizontal Condominium" house for MXN$8500 (approx CDN$700) in central Cancun - looks new, says it is well located in nice neighbourhood clise to schools, parks, shops and malls) with luving room, dining room, kitchen and laundry area, 3 BR, 3.5 baths, 3 levels (floors), 2 car parking, shared garden and swimming pool , located on Av. La Luna near corner of Av. Las Palmas, maintenance fee included in the price. 

This was a 30 second search in Spanish (se renta casa Cancun), so it appears there may be more affordable options in Spanish.


----------



## dannym (Dec 28, 2013)

TundraGreen said:


> Are you looking for a vacation rental or a place to live long term? As OjosAzules said, if it is short term you might just have to deal with the higher prices. If you are looking for a longer term place to live, 1 year or more, you would be much better off to get hotel room for a week or so and look for a place after you arrive. I know people seem to be uncomfortable with that but in Mexico rentals are not advertised the way that they are in the US. Nor do people list with agents, except those looking for foreign tenants at a premium as we both pointed out already. I can't help with neighborhoods in the Cancun area. The only time I visited the Yucatan peninsula, I never made it to Cancun.



Im looking for a long term rental. Unfortunately i do not speak spanish so its a bit harder for look around.


----------



## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

Where we live a $8,000 peso per month unfurnished house or apartment would rent for $11,500 pesos per month fully furnished including TV, kitchen equiped to cook etc. If you want a move in ready place expect to pay $2,500 + per month more than those advertized for rent. 

Also here if you want to live in a predomentaly middle class neighborhood instead of mixed working class with a few nice houses per block or apartment expect to pay 50% to 100% more for rent. If it is an upper middle class neighborhood expect to pay 100% more for a similar house or apartment someplace not exclusivly an upper middle class colonia.

In other words a house or apartment one place that is very nice might cost $6,000 pesos per month and a similar house or apartment in a better colonia might cost $10,000 pesos per month. etc.


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

ojosazules11 said:


> There tends to be an automatic Internet mark-up, somewhat akin to the "blue-eyed tax" I'm subject to in spite of speaking fluent Spanish with a mostly Guatemalan accent. If my husband wants to negotiate a price on something, e.g. building materials, he doesn't take me along! (Or I keep my sunglasses on.) 😎


I don't have blue eyes (mine are hazel), but I do look like a foreigner, I think. I've never run into what you call a "blue-eyed tax" and what some call the "****** tax". What am I doing wrong?


----------



## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

Isla Verde said:


> I don't have blue eyes (mine are hazel), but I do look like a foreigner, I think. I've never run into what you call a "blue-eyed tax" and what some call the "****** tax". What am I doing wrong?


It really depends where you live or visit. In Mexicali once I was abused because I am an American. [my preception, at least] In TJ more than 10 times in 35 years. Here in SLP 2x by taxistas for less than 10 pesos. [big deal]

If your area has virtually no foriegners I would suspect it would be "business as usual" all the time. Why would they even think about "taxing" you? You would probably be 1 in 15,000 customers.

Renting a place might prove difficult though in a tourist zone as the OP suspects.

Tourist zones are not the same as the rest of the country in more ways than one. IMO This is one of those ways. [****** tax by some vendors]


----------



## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

AlanMexicali said:


> It really depends where you live or visit. In Mexicali once I was abused because am an American. [my preception, at least] In TJ more than 10 times in 35 years. Here in SLP 2x by taxistas for less than 10 pesos. [big deal]
> 
> If your area has virtually no foriegners I would suspect it would be "business as usual" all the time. Why would they even think about "taxing" you? You would probably be 1 in 15,000 customers.
> 
> ...


Well, I do live a few blocks in back of the US Embassy and near Reforma, where there are lots of bank and corporation headquarters, some of them foreign, and so I occasionally see people walking down the street who are obviously not Mexican. But almost none of them live in my barrio. Also, the local restaurants and stores I patronize know me and wouldn't dream of overcharging me. In fact, the nice guy who cuts my hair gives me a special price (a lower price, in fact) because we're "friends".


----------



## ojosazules11 (Nov 3, 2013)

It does depend on where you are and what you are purchasing. Recently I went with my Mexican niece to buy some brightly coloured shopping bags (bolsas de mandado - the kind many Mexicans will use for going to the market, not something aimed at tourists per se). He quoted a price much higher than what I knew the regular price to be. My sister-in-law then went to a different _puesto_ (without me) and was quoted a price nearly half the price at the first place. On the other hand, I have a friend who sells artesanía at the market and I'll often spend time with her there. She essentially has the same prices for everyone, and does not barter down either. 

However, in Guatemala's central artesanía market I got to know the prices quite well. Once the vendors realized I knew what to expect, I would be given very good prices, sometimes better than Guatemalan friends.

Overall I try to just go with the flow and not stress about it. However if you are dealing with a difference of several hundred dollars a month for a rental, it certainly makes a difference.


----------



## ojosazules11 (Nov 3, 2013)

Isla Verde said:


> Well, I do live a few blocks in back of the US Embassy and near Reforma, where there are lots of bank and corporation headquarters, some of them foreign, and so I occasionally see people walking down the street who are obviously not Mexican. But almost none of them live in my barrio. Also, the local restaurants and stores I patronize know me and wouldn't dream of overcharging me. In fact, the nice guy who cuts my hair gives me a special price (a lower price, in fact) because we're "friends".


This illustrates the difference between being from outside or passing through, and becoming part of a place. Once you belong to a place, the community embraces you, and the colour of your eyes, an accent, how well you speak Spanish, etc. no longer matter much. Of course for this to happen you have to first open your arms, heart and mind to the community. In my experience, once you do that the community soon responds in kind.


----------



## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

There is Cancun the city and Cancun the beach area...big difference. Service people and most Mexicans live in the town where is is way cheaper and I bet easier to find long term unfurnished houses but to find them you have to walk the street and look for signs.

If you are looking for an area near the beach you will pay a premium wether you are a Mexican or a foreigner.

If people can rent their places furnished short term for a high price they will so the most desirable areas are going to be expensive. It is that simple.

Meanwhile Cancun the town is like any other Mexican town, walk around and ask around and you will find something but if it is in an agency or the internet you probably will pay more. In that area you will not be anywhere near the beach or the tourist zone.

By the way it is true for the whole coast, the tourists and foreigners look for places on the beach or near it, if you want someting cheaper go where the local live somewhere a little inland.

By the way it has very little to do with your origin but how much money you are willing to spend.
We stayed in a friend´s condo in Akuma and the people renting thre where a mix of foreigners and Mexicans all had enough money to afford renting thre then we walked away from that area to check where the local lives and that was away from the beach in crummy litle places.
Cancun is larger so they are nice place and crummy places but most people who live there live full time or are foreigners who forgo living near the beach where everything is expensive for what you get.


----------

