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Dateline: At the end of a long (long!) trail of bureaucratic nonsense

We finally pulled it off. The house purchase. Though I had insisted on Monday the 21st, we got it done on the 22nd as Monday was a holiday. I had insisted on getting copies of what I was to sign in advance so that I wouldn’t be sitting in a room full of people, reading a legal document in Spanish for the first time while everyone sat around waiting. I figured I’d quickly check the real documents against my copy by looking at the first few words in the upper left and lower right corners. If they were identical, I’d assume no pages were changed. But as with everything else in this process, my attempts at efficiency were swiftly foiled. The copy I was provided in advance was printed on letter sized paper. The official copy was printed on legal size. So I ended up spending a fair amount of time scanning to make sure things were the same, which they fortunately were.
The seller showed up about an hour late, with a nurse and oxygen bottle in tow. Though she hadn’t had covid, she had suffered some kind of lung infection in October, and was still having trouble breathing. While waiting, my attorney said that her son, Marco, “had atole flowing in his veins,” which I found hysterical.
After we signed a million papers, I fired up my laptop and sent the funds to the various parties — sellers, notaría, and my attorney. Because international bank transfers take a couple of days to clear, I didn’t get any escrituras then. In fact, I got nothing. As we left, I commented to my attorney, “I just dropped multiples of six-figures, and didn’t get so much as one of those paper receipts they give you in Oxxo.” He chuckled and said not to worry. But I couldn’t help but thinking that if I had been scammed, there’d be precious little documentation to prove my case.
The next day I boarded a jet and flew back to Boston, with only a week to spare on my visa. Six months is the longest I’ve ever spent in Mexico continuously. I think my prior record is 3-4 months. It was good to get home, though there was a ton of chores awaiting me here. My housemate had cleaned up many of the fallen leaves in the autumn, but I still had a lot of leaves to deal with, pruning, and general yard cleanup. There’ve also been a certain number of other chores and repairs. I need to replace the brakes on my car, change the oil, and transmission fluid.
Thursday April 7th, I had an appointment with the Mexican Consulate in Boston to get a visa temporal. While I brought a ton of documentation, I figured that I wasn’t going to show them any more than necessary. After going through my bank statements, they really didn’t ask for anything else. While they call it an “interview,” it wasn’t so much as a document check in my case. They asked me almost nothing of substance. Within 40 minutes I had my passport back with a fresh, visa temporal pasted into it. Before I left, I asked, “How can I attach my car to this visa?” The guy said he didn’t know, and that I should call one of the Mexican Consulates closer to the border, or maybe the one in Chicago. Internally, I chuckled. This Is Mexico even in Boston. You’d think they’d either have a web page with instructions to direct you to, or maybe a piece of paper they hand you. Nope. Welcome to Mexico, now go figure it out yourself.
I’ve got a few more things to do before I can head south. Today I’m planning to do the fluid changes on the car. After installing new front brakes yesterday, I noticed that it wouldn’t be a bad idea to do the backs too. So I ordered them, but they won’t come until Tuesday. If past performance is any indication, they’ll arrive at the absolute last minute of the work day.
And I’m wondering about bringing stuff along with me to Mexico. I would REALLY REALLY like to have a good stereo in Mexico, something that would be difficult and expensive to buy there. I’ve been looking around for a good, used set of speakers, though I’m thinking of bringing the ones I’ve had since 2003. I’ve got several amplifiers already, and various other gear. I’m wondering how the customs people on the border will value my oddball collection of ancient gear. Some of my amplifiers are from late 50’s to early 60’s. New, they sold for something like $50 USD, though are worth considerably more now. And what about the speakers I bought in 2003 for $1,500? Speakers have depreciation curves similar to cars: steep and fast. If you have any idea how this is all handled, please drop a comment. In any case, I’m going to cross the border with a carload of stuff, though I’m not yet asking for a menaje de casa. Hopefully there will be no one at customs when I cross; that’s what happened in May of last year when I crossed with my friend, Dave. We just drove right through.
Anyway, I’m gearing up to go. If I leave Wednesday, I should be able to cross the border early Sunday morning, which seems optimal. The late blogger, “John Calypso,” always said to cross on Sundays if possible as the bad guys likely take that day off too. Otherwise I’ll try to cross mid-week, early. When I crossed in May of last year, we did it around 8:00 AM on a Thursday.
I’ll spend a little time in Ajijic on my way, and then the remodeling adventure begins. It’s sure to be full of Mexican craziness and unexpected setbacks. Stay tuned!
I’m so happy for you. Now the real adventure begins. Pro remodeling tip, if a worker says he needs to go get his tools for a job it probably means he can’t do the job and he isn’t coming back.
I finally got my house sale completed after 5 months. Three days to get an offer, five months to get my money. Be happy you don’t need a fidiecomiso, the bank was the reason for the delay.
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Hola Theresa,
Thanks for the tip. I’m sure remodeling and dealing with workmen is going to be a source of continuing hilarity. At least as viewed years later, after the sting of missed appointments, delays, etc., have been overcome. Congratulations on getting your house sold. I’m sorry it took so long to get your money. Alas, the gears turn slowly SOB. Saludos and thanks for the comment.
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Congratulations! I can’t wait for the renovation stories to start. Hope the reno goes faster and smoother for you.
If you are keeping your house in the US, are you l going to live part time US and Mexico or rent out your US house?
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Hola Cathie, Thanks for the congratulations. I’m praying for a smooth remodeling process too. But since I’ve done it once before here in Boston, I’m pretty sure it will be filled with the normal surprises, delays, extra costs, etc. The good news is that I can dedicate myself full-time to the task, unlike when I remodeled my house in 1997 and was in the thick of my career. As for my house, I’ll spend some time here and some time in Mexico City for the present. I have a housemate in my front bedroom here, so the house is looked after. Saludos and thanks for your comment.
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Alert! Last I heard Mexico didn’t allow electronics to be brought in, even used o
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Hi Christine,
Well, they clearly allow electronics, as you can see from the list of permitted goods carried duty-free, which among other things includes laptops (1 per person), cell phones, portable music players, etc. The question is how much duty they want on my old stereo. I suspect I’m going to find out the hard way. Cheers and thanks for stopping by.
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That the Mexican consulate in Boston recommended you phone another one is no shocker. Mexicans are infatuated with phone calling, i.e. personal communication. Face to face, even better. Email and websites, not nearly so much as we are. Cultural differences.
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When they told me to phone another consulate, all I could think of was when I called the Boston consulate, no one really wanted to talk to me or answer my questions. I suspect it will be the same at other consulates. Cheers!
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Re the TIP, see https://www.mexperience.com/temporary-import-permit-tip-vehicles-mexico/
Re the menaje de casa, see https://consulmex.sre.gob.mx/boston/index.php/consular-services/64-household-goods And note that you’ve only got 6 months from the date of your first entry.
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Hola Jenn, Thanks for the tips. I appreciate it. And yes, I realize I have only 6 months for the menaje de casa. Hopefully I’ll either not need it, or the house will be done enough to start moving stuff in. But aside from my stereo gear and a dining table that my parents brought over from Denmark, I’m not sure if I need to move much more. By the way, I have no idea why your comment went to moderation. Cheers and thanks for stopping by!
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Oh, dear, but this should come as no surprise to me. You’re one of those who want to bring their entire life’s possessions on moving to Mexico. Sure will be a hassle. I recommend a suitcase or two, as I did it. Start fresh down here. ¿No? As for speakers, Amazon MX will send Bluetooth speakers quickly, and they sound quite fine.
Congrats anew on the homeownership.
“Atole flowing in his veins”? I don’t get it.
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Bring my entire life’s possessions? Haha…I think I said that I’d mostly leave my things behind here in Boston. I’m not even selling my house here, so I need much of the stuff here. But never mind.
As for Bluetooth speakers, well, I have a lovely pair that I bought in 2016 and had shipped to Mexico. But they aren’t enough to fill a room with high-quality sound. I’m into fairly esoteric gear, and that’s very expensive to ship to Mexico, if you can even get it.
As for “atole flowing in his veins,” it means he’s someone who’s chronically late/slow.
Thanks for the congratulations and thanks for stopping by.
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Our experience with the menaje de casa was that, as long as it was listed, it came through duty-free. We had my husband’s amp & speaker cab for his guitar, no problem. And as the partner of an audiophile, bring the vintage gear if you can find a way. Give it garage sale/thrift shop values and if there’s a manufacture date on the serial # plate, so much the better. It seemed to us that the important thing was to disclose it, not the valuation. Like everything Mexican, “your mileage may very.” Felicidades!
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Hola Deborah,
Audiophile husband, eh? Count me in that group. My issue isn’t with the menaje de casa, but rather the things I want to bring before I do the full menaje de casa. Because my houses need to be remodeled, I don’t want to move a lot of stuff now. Though I do realize I have to do it within 6 months. Hopefully by then the dust will literally have settled. Meanwhile, I think I’ll just write up a list of my stuff with the estimated value and use that as a starting point. Obviously I’d prefer to spend as little on customs duty as possible, but I don’t want to do anything that would get me in trouble either. Where in Mexico did you all end up? Cheers and thanks for your comment.
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