In the first half of 2023, neighborhoods such as Condesa, Reforma, Nápoles, Santa Fe and Roma, with rental prices almost double, compared to previous years.
The arrival of foreigners looking for residence in several cities of Mexico and the need for commercial spaces caused the cost of homes in some cities to rise, even reaching 50 percent more expensive, according to specialists.
The professor of construction management at the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Alejandro García Lara, argued that although the arrival of more people from other countries makes prices more expensive in the country’s capital, the government should also be blamed for not having a regulation of the real estate market.
“Many buildings that are located adjacent to the Zócalo have been transformed into commercial warehouses or even into tenements that do not have basic services, a rescue of the Historic Center is needed, not only for tourist purposes, but also for national people to live in these buildings,” he explained to MILENIO.
As well as Mexico City, also places like León and the city of Guanajuato, see that the price of housing rose due to the presence of foreigners.
This is also added to the renovation of emblematic areas of some cities, which lead to people who have lived there for years having to move to live in cheaper places, a process that is known as gentrification.
Information from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) reveals that in the first half of 2023, neighborhoods such as Condesa, Reforma, Nápoles, Santa Fe and Roma, in Mexico City, the prices in the rents of housing are almost double compared to previous years.
For example, the rent of an apartment for three people with a bathroom and no parking space has an average price of 20 to 24 thousand pesos per month, while three years ago it did not exceed 12 thousand 500 pesos, including basic services such as electricity, gas and internet.
Alejandro Garcia Lara added that the lack of regulation in applications such as Airbnb have helped to make it more accessible for people of other nationalities to settle in the best areas of the city, since the original people, not being able to maintain their standard of living, are oriented to rent or sell their heritage.
According to the UNAM, gentrification is an urban and social rehabilitation of a depressed or deteriorated area, which causes a displacement of the impoverished neighbors of the neighborhood by others of a higher social and economic level.
Foreigners in León
José Macías González, director of Inmobiliate Bienes Raíces, revealed that a large number of people from Guadalajara, Querétaro, Nuevo León and even from the capital of the country have arrived in León, Guanajuato, because they are looking to buy a house that has two bathrooms, parking space or apartments with luxury finishes.
“Here in León you can find the house you are looking for at a price that ranges from 600 thousand to 2 million, and even the rents are less than 15 thousand pesos per month, which for these people is attractive, since they have said that in their cities of origin the prices are three times what we offer them. “
Macías González added that due to the increasing number of industrial parks in the region, the number of people from the United States, Canada, Japan and China has increased, who are looking for the same thing as Mexicans, but having their salary in dollars makes it cheaper for them.
A study by Economist Intelligence (EIU) placed Mexico City as the most expensive city to live in all of Latin America, with position 81 of the 100 most expensive cities, followed by Santiago de Querétaro, which occupied position 71 and Aguascalientes 64.
It was explained that the appearance of Mexican cities in the ranking is due to the increase of foreigners who come to settle, in addition to highlighting the strength of the peso against the US dollar and a strong private investment in the real estate sector.
Source: Milenio
