Into Mexico We Go

💭 Had a dentist appointment last week, paid in pesos like I always do, didn't think twice about it. Then my USD credit card statement showed up and I did a double take. The peso's been sitting near 17 to the dollar lately — genuinely strong, stronger than it's been in a while — and paying in pesos doesn't feel like "cheap Mexico" the way it used to. Earning in dollars and converting isn't the discount people assume it is anymore. Worth knowing before you move here expecting old exchange-rate math. — Adam, in Mexico City 🇲🇽

SAT added an online path to correct a mismatch between your CURP and RFC, instead of requiring an in-person office visit. This affects anyone with an RFC — including foreign residents — whose CURP doesn't match SAT's records, which can quietly block banking, invoicing, or tax filing until it's fixed. Before you start, confirm your CURP is current with RENAPO. Then book the "Corrección o incorporación de CURP" appointment through SAT's Oficina Virtual and upload your ID page in color, under 4MB. No hard deadline on this one, but mismatches tend to surface at the worst possible moment — mid tax filing or new bank account paperwork — so it's worth checking now rather than when you're rushed.

SAT: Cómo corregir la CURP del RFC en línea

Region: Oaxaca / Central Mexico · Category: Home Cooking · Price: $3 - 5 USD

Corn tortillas dipped in a smooth, warm black bean sauce and folded or rolled around a simple filling. Simpler and more everyday than enchiladas, and arguably more satisfying. A staple of home cooking in Oaxaca and central Mexico. The bean sauce is what makes it. Nothing fancy, just deeply good.

What's in it: Corn tortillas, black bean sauce (blended black beans, epazote, garlic, a touch of chile), Mexican crema, queso fresco, sliced onion. Filling: chicken, cheese, or left plain.

The power goes out for two hours on a Tuesday afternoon. The bank line takes forty-five minutes. The plumber says he will arrive at ten and shows up at one-thirty. The noise from the street festival outside your window starts at midnight and goes until four.

There are two ways to experience all of this.

The first way is to compare it constantly to how things work at home. The power never goes out at home. Banks have systems. Contractors are punctual. There are noise ordinances. Measured against home, Mexico fails these tests repeatedly and the accumulation of small failures becomes a story about a place that does not work properly.

The second way is to stop using home as the measuring stick entirely. The power goes out and you sit on your terrace with a book and a candle and the neighbor from upstairs brings you a tamale because she heard you moving around in the dark. The bank line is slow but the teller knows your name now and asks about your cat. The plumber is late but he fixes the problem completely and charges you a quarter of what you would have paid in the US.

Neither version is more accurate than the other. They are both true. The difference is which one you are looking for.

Mexico will consistently fail to be what home was. It will also consistently offer things home never could. The expats who stay long enough to find that out are the ones who stopped measuring.

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🚚 Delivery / garrafonero (bring your empty jug): $20–25 MXN (~$1.20–$1.50 USD)
🛒 Supermarket — Walmart online, today's price: $61 MXN (~$3.60 USD)
🏪 OXXO, buying new: $67 MXN (~$3.95 USD)

Delivery wins by a mile once you're set up with a returnable jug — most services swap your empty for a full one at the door for next to nothing. Skip that system and grab water at OXXO or the supermarket instead, and you're paying close to triple for the same 20 liters. OXXO isn't actually the villain here either — it lands right next to supermarket pricing. Both run roughly 3x the delivery rate, so setting up a delivery service your first week saves real money fast.

Based on today's exchange rate of 17.00 pesos per dollar — August 14, 2026. As the peso/dollar rate fluctuates, your real USD cost will vary.

A scouting trip is non-negotiable before committing to a city. But there's a right way and a wrong way to do it. A tourist trip tells you what a city is like in its best light. A scouting trip tells you whether you could actually build a life there. The difference is in how you spend your time.

Avg rent (1BR furnished): $550-$8000 USD/mo
Cost of living: Mid
Expat friendliness: High — growing
Expat community: Smaller but active
Internet reliability: Good (40-80 Mbps)
Geography / vibe: Colonial highlands (5,971 ft)
Pueblo Mágico: No

One of Mexico's most livable and fastest-growing cities, with strong infrastructure, low crime, excellent internet, and a colonial centro that rivals San Miguel at a fraction of the price. Less international than CDMX or Merida but increasingly popular with remote workers and families. Good healthcare, modern shopping, and easy highway access to CDMX (2.5 hours).

→ Housing costs rose 8.7% nationwide as high interest rates and tight supply keep pushing up the price of buying a home, raising the bar for prospective mortgage borrowers. (Mexico Daily Post)

→ The peso briefly broke below 17 to the dollar Friday, touching its strongest level since May 2024 before settling just above the mark. (El Financiero)

→ The US fully restarted avocado export activities in Michoacán this week, following a security suspension that prompted the deployment of more than 1,500 troops and National Guard personnel to the region. (Reuters)

→ A record sargassum season is swamping Quintana Roo's beaches, with more than 105,000 metric tons cleared so far this year, already surpassing last year's record. (Reuters)

→ Housing prices climbed 7.9% nationally in the first half of 2026, rising fastest in states with heavy tourism and foreign-buyer demand. (El Imparcial)

→ Mexico logged five tourism records in the first half of 2026, welcoming 51.1 million international travelers between January and June, a 7.7% jump over last year. (El Imparcial)

→ US agriculture inspectors resumed avocado export inspections in Michoacán this week, restoring the pipeline after a security-related pause. (Forbes México)

📅 Aug 7–23 — FASMA, San Miguel de Allende
Arts festival filling the historic center with concerts, gallery openings, and film screenings through the 23rd. Free entry to most events.

📅 Aug 16–22 — FENAPO, San Luis Potosí
National fair with free admission and a headline concert most nights — Bizarrap (18th), Sin Bandera (19th), Kenia OS (20th).

📅 Aug 20–21, 1940 — Trotsky's assassination, Coyoacán, CDMX
Attacked with an ice axe in his Coyoacán home; died the next day. His house is now the quiet, lesser-visited Museo Casa de León Trotski.

📅 Aug 18, 1873 — Benito Juárez named "Benemérito de la Patria"
Congress honored the former president with the title still tied to his legacy today.

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