# Living Cost in Mexico City?



## hyperborean (Mar 9, 2010)

Hi I'm thinking of moving to Mexico City and I was curious about living costs. About how much per month would you need to live comfortably? In Buenos Aires I can rent a decent studio in the best part of town, with internet included, for about $750 and then spending about another $800 a month lets me live quite well, I'm just wondering if about $1500 a month sounds right for Mexico City. Also what's are the best parts of town to live in, I see a lot about Polanco, but I don't know.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Welcome to the forum. I'm sure that some of the members from DF will be able to answer your concerns.


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## stevenvillatoro (Jan 25, 2010)

Polanco is beautiful and has convenient metro access. I'm out of touch with the prices but those you mentioned sound reasonable – will leave that to others. I lived in BsAs for a short time... what part of town are you in, and do you like it? What motivated the change to the DF? (Another good choice.)


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## Rodrigo84 (Mar 5, 2008)

$1500 will get you plenty with some bedrooms. Studios do exist but in nicer areas the smallest you can get is probably going to be a one bedroom. My cousin had a 3 bedroom, 3 bath apartment in the western suburbs in Interlomas and it went for around that price, so for something much smaller you could do quite well. I think some of the townhomes in Santa Fe (not near the mall but further west up the mountain) can be had for around $800 or so per month.

I'd have to know about where you're going to work to give you an idea, but Polanco is in the middle of everything and nightlife is happening there if that is what you like, plus excellent restaurants. Other areas close to there are Lomas de Chapultepec and Tecamachaclo (they have some apartment buildings around there, particularly around Paseo de Las Palmas) and by the Army base near Tecamachalco. Sante Fe and Interlomas are a bit of a stretch (and you do need a car there).

Further south from downtown would be Del Valle and that is very dense for apartment buildings and prices can vary widely from say $400 all the way up to really super elegant penthouses running 4 figures. If you were in Del Valle, you'd want to be close to Insurgentes Sur (most apartment buildings are) and public transportation works there.

On other living costs, it depends.

For instance on my cousins 3 bed room 3 bath apartment in Interlomas:

Gas: about $50 US
Water: $25 once every 2 months 
Electricity: $15 (sometimes higher, but there were subsidies)
Telephone: I remember around $50 or so per month (some people just go cell)
Internet: High speed Telmex is around $30 per month (it is possible to have a cell and no landline and run a dry line to get high speed)

So you can imagine getting something much smaller would be a lot cheaper.


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## hyperborean (Mar 9, 2010)

stevenvillatoro said:


> Polanco is beautiful and has convenient metro access. I'm out of touch with the prices but those you mentioned sound reasonable – will leave that to others. I lived in BsAs for a short time... what part of town are you in, and do you like it? What motivated the change to the DF? (Another good choice.)


Thanks! Well I just got bored with BA, it's a good city but I'm tired of it for now. I lived in Palermo before near the jardin botanico, now I was living in Recoleta. I heard some good things about Mexico City but I'm not sure...I'm just afraid it will be crowded/polluted, etc., and I heard that Mexican girls are even snottier than Argentine (!)

Otherwise I'd ask about nice beach towns in Mexico to move to, but it's even harder to find one that's good.


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## hyperborean (Mar 9, 2010)

Rodrigo84 said:


> $1500 will get you plenty with some bedrooms. Studios do exist but in nicer areas the smallest you can get is probably going to be a one bedroom. My cousin had a 3 bedroom, 3 bath apartment in the western suburbs in Interlomas and it went for around that price, so for something much smaller you could do quite well. I think some of the townhomes in Santa Fe (not near the mall but further west up the mountain) can be had for around $800 or so per month.
> 
> I'd have to know about where you're going to work to give you an idea, but Polanco is in the middle of everything and nightlife is happening there if that is what you like, plus excellent restaurants. Other areas close to there are Lomas de Chapultepec and Tecamachaclo (they have some apartment buildings around there, particularly around Paseo de Las Palmas) and by the Army base near Tecamachalco. Sante Fe and Interlomas are a bit of a stretch (and you do need a car there).
> 
> ...


Thanks for this info! Just to clarify...I definitely do NOT have $1500 to spend on an apt, I was hoping to spend more like half that. Is Polanco very crowded? I was looking on craigslist and I see apts. advertised near parks, etc., is there like a central parks area that's good? What is the intersection of Reforma and Insurgentes like? There was an ad on craigslist but they're not letting me post the URL yet.


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## tanderson0o (Aug 30, 2009)

Chapultepec is Mexico City's equivalent of Central Park in NYC. Polanco is adjacent to this park.

The intersection of Insurgentes and Reforma is primarily a business district and is a very safe area in Mexico City.


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## Rodrigo84 (Mar 5, 2008)

Google Earth and maps.google.com have street views for Mexico City and some major Mexican cities now.

Here is the intersection of Reforma and Insurgentes

There's not really much of a place that an expat would live.

One thing I should mention the electricity figure should be $15 every 2 months (yes it can be that cheap with subsidies).


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## Rodrigo84 (Mar 5, 2008)

Here are some maps of Polanco.

The apartment areas are 2 distinct areas. A west border of Arquimedes to Mariano Escobedo with Reforma on the south and Ejercito Nacional on the West. Here's an example at the intersection of Horacio and Schiller

Another area of apartments bounded by Ejercito Nacional on the north, FC (railroad) Cuernavaca on thew east and Avila Camacho on the west). Here's an example of that area at the intersection of Horacio and FC Cuernavaca


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## Rodrigo84 (Mar 5, 2008)

Polanco is not very crowded unlike other areas. Traffic tends to kind of go around it via Ejercito Nacional, Mariano Escobedo, Avila Camacho (Periferico freeway) or along Reforma. I've known expats who enjoy it because it is within walking distance of nightlife, restaurants and there are several large suparmarkets within maybe a block of each other there (Superama is one that comes to mind).

Here's a good example of smaller-sized apartment buildings by, Parque Uruguay


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## hyperborean (Mar 9, 2010)

Rodrigo84 said:


> Polanco is not very crowded unlike other areas. Traffic tends to kind of go around it via Ejercito Nacional, Mariano Escobedo, Avila Camacho (Periferico freeway) or along Reforma. I've known expats who enjoy it because it is within walking distance of nightlife, restaurants and there are several large suparmarkets within maybe a block of each other there (Superama is one that comes to mind).
> 
> Here's a good example of smaller-sized apartment buildings by, Parque Uruguay


Thanks for your useful posts!
One more thing...is craigslist the best place to find an apt. for a few months' stay?


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## tanderson0o (Aug 30, 2009)

I would not consider craigslist the best place to look. I think you would be better served to perhaps stay in a hotel for a week of so and scout the local availability. The rental I found was not advertised anywhere other than a large sign on the property advertising it for rent.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

That's very good advice anywhere in Mexico. Searching local classifieds and 'pounding the pavement' looking for "Se Renta" signs is the way to go. It is said that fluent Spanish and lots of connections also helps keep the rent lower.


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## Rodrigo84 (Mar 5, 2008)

I would use craiglist as a guide to pricing. Eluniversal.com.mx has listings.

I agree with RVGRINGO 100% on looking locally, you will get a better deal. My cousin got the apartment in Interlomas because a friend at work recommended the building to him and his landlord was a very nice person and they worked out some terms such as clauses if he had to move due to promotion. He looked at other places but actually had me and some of the relatives come along as 'guides'. Those local connections/friends are invaluable.

My cousin would often turn to me to help negotiate things (even though he's fluent) just because Mexican to Mexican would lower the price. It's no joke as they say.


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