An Expat Talks about Moving to Oaxaca, Mexico

What is the name of the city or town that you are reporting on?

Oaxaca

Name three things that you wish you had brought and three you wish you had left at home.

Wished I had brought: (1) Cortizone cream (2) Sharpe Kitchen knives for cooking (3) Yoga Mat. Wish I would have left at home: (1) Luxury bags (2) jewelry (3) sweaters.

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BlueCross BlueShield Global Solutions

BlueCross BlueShield Global Solutions (BCBS) offers global health plans for international assignments or trips lasting 6 months or longer. With access to over 1.7M medical providers in 190 countries around the world, BCBS provides members with solutions and industry-leading digital services - ensuring top-quality coverage to people who live, work, study and travel internationally.
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What advice would you give someone preparing to move to your area about the actual move, choosing a neighborhood and finding a home?

Be patient and get comfortable with a little uncertainty in your travel plans. Realize you do not have to make every decision before you get down here and that things have a way of working out. Get to know your area slowly by checking out the local restaurants and seeing how local people live. Determine your likes and dislikes and explore different parts of the city slowly. You'll easily be able to make a decision on where to live based on the understanding of your needs when you get here.

What type of housing do you live in? Is this typical for most expats in your area?

We will be moving into a furnished casita where the landlord lives on the property. From our experience and from other expats we have spoken to, this is pretty typical. Most expats we know do not have animals with them. Bringing pets who are quite needy, has some challenges we never expected. from finding the right food to filling their prescriptions, it has been a challenge that I would love to write about.

How did you choose your neighborhood and find your home or apartment?

We initially moved into a long-term airbnb (2 months) to give us ample time to find an apartment that would accept our two loveable dogs. Finding a dog-friendly airbnb was difficult because we couldn't book our trip to far in advance as we had to work around scheduling our visa appointments in the US. The neighborhood we ended up in is a little outside our desired location, but we were easily able to find someone here to help us secure more long-term housing.

Are your housing costs higher or lower than they were in your home country? What is the average cost of housing there?

Housing costs are definitely lower than in our home country (NTC), but given our limited Spanish, we feel we are definitely paying an expat premium. With that said, the apartment is furnished very nicely, has all the amenities and all utilities are included (yes, wifi also!). We are not too upset to pay a little more of a premium for a nicer place in an area better suited for our two dogs.