What causes someone to move away from the country where they were born to a new and unfamiliar place?
That was the question that prompted me to write my first book in 2019, Why We Left: An Anthology of American Women Expats. At that point, I’d been living in the Pacific coast town of Mazatlán for more than a decade. I’d met many other expats who’d also moved to Mexico, and it was always interesting to hear why. I'm about to publish another anthology, Going Expat: Mexico, and the motives for moving to Mexico remain much the same.
Here’s a look at some of the most common reasons for moving to Mexico, as told by the women who contributed their stories to my books.
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How To Move Out of the U.S.
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1. Embracing a Relaxed Lifestyle
Nancy Seeley, who has lived in Mexico since 1995, took an early retirement to pursue her dream of a more relaxed way of living.
“The frenetic pace of life in the working world was taking a toll on my overall well-being,” she recalled. “And although my job did provide feelings of satisfaction and accomplishment, they were being overshadowed by this steadily growing realization that I was not living my dream of charting my own path without a boss telling me what to do.”
Nancy moved first to Zihuatanejo and then to Mazatlán, where she lives now. “I can happily say that today, at 74, I have no regrets.”
“Mexico’s slower pace has helped me unhook from some of the dysfunctional aspects of the American lifestyle that are rooted in capitalism,” said Ann Woodward, who was “location independent” from 2011 until settling in Puebla four years ago. “My worth is not determined by my productivity. I can be more present when I meet with others and enjoy the time we spend together because I’m not anxious, distracted, and rushing to accomplish the next item on my to-do list.”
“Once I settled into Mazatlán, gone was the hustle and bustle of everyday life in the United States. Gone was the dependency on my car and the two-hour-plus commute to job sites around the Bay Area,” said artist Glen Rogers, who’s lived in Mexico for 22 years.
“I was delighted with my new lifestyle of walking everywhere: to the local mercado to buy fresh fish, fruit, and vegetables, to the nearby Plaza Machado with outdoor cafes and strolling musicians, and to the beach, just a few blocks from my home, where I could meet friends to watch the sunset. What was not to love? I had found my paradise: a beautiful, inexpensive place for an artist to live and work.”
2. Lower Cost of Living
“In the U.S., there’s a sense of needing more money, whereas in Mexico, the attitude is, ‘We have everything we need,’” said Woodward. “The cost of living here is lower than the U.S., and substantially lower when it comes to things such as rent. And a modest income in U.S. dollars here fosters a feeling of abundance instead of struggle and lack.”
PC Nordhoff and her husband moved to a small town on the Gulf of Mexico and said their retirement in Mexico began as more of a necessity than a spur-of-the-moment life choice.
“I knew we would have to continue working until we were 70-plus just to get by had we decided to stay in America,” Nordhoff recalled. “At that time, our ‘lifestyle’ was nothing more than working steadily just to pay the bills and worrying constantly about making ends meet every single month. In other words, no real quality of life as we grew older. I felt depressed and desperate every time I thought about the future.”
“We chose Mexico because of the lower cost of living, the proximity to the U.S., and the beauty of the beaches,” she added. “This is definitely our paradise and has become, without a doubt, our home.”
3. “It Felt Like Home”
I was one of those people who’d never considered moving to Mexico, but on my first visit to Mazatlán, that perspective suddenly and unexpectedly changed. While there on vacation, it spoke to my heart; there’s no other way to explain it. Somehow it felt like home, and I knew this was where I would end up. I knew I could be happy living there. That was 18 years ago.
Corrie McCluskey had a similar experience. “When I first came to Oaxaca in 2008, I immediately knew that this was ‘my place,’ and that I was meant to be here for the last third of my life,” she wrote in Going Expat: Mexico. “I knew this would be my forever home, to create an art life for myself again, where I have time and space to take my art as far as I can.”
The first time Glen Rogers visited Mazatlán, she said, “It was love at first sight.”
“Here was the place of my dreams—a beautiful historical city on the ocean. I went to see a realtor as if in a trance, and said, ‘Find me a little house.’ For under $30,000 U.S. dollars, I bought a place in the beautiful Centro Histórico. My realtor later told me I got the prize for the fastest sale.”
4. Escaping Political and Social Tensions
Many expats cite seeking relief from the challenges of gun violence and political tension in the U.S. as key motivations for their move abroad.
“Mexico was calling to us, with a different culture, language, traditions, celebrations, and lifestyle,” said Jeanne Carr from San Miguel de Allende. “And we were both tired of the fractious, destructive politics of our country that insinuated itself into every corner of our lives.”
Wendy Wyatt Googled “real estate in Mexico” following a tragic incident in her hometown, where nine African American churchgoers lost their lives in a racially motivated attack.
“I was tired of crying nightly while I watched the news or in the morning on my way to work. Selfish, senseless murders were taking a toll on me,” said Wyatt, who moved to Paamul, just south of Playa del Carmen, in 2017 with her husband, Heath. “Not to mention the fact that I was soon to start walking into a job every day and seeing a picture of the new Commander-in-Chief who I was deeply ashamed of.”
5. Affordable Healthcare
“When we left the States to come to Mexico, I was worried about getting sick, getting health insurance, and finding a doctor and a dentist,” said Wyatt. “Within three months, we had a doctor make a house call (which seems to be the norm) to check out my rash and my husband’s blood pressure—for a whopping $38 U.S. dollars! We were able to see the doctor on the day we called to make an appointment. What is America doing wrong with healthcare?!”
Karen Blue, who’s lived in Ajijic, a small town on Lake Chapala, for 30 years, has written two books about the expat experience. Now 81, she’s considering moving to an assisted living facility due to health issues.
“Even if I could afford assisted care in the U.S., I would choose assisted care in Mexico,” said Blue, who retired from a career in Silicon Valley. “Not only is it much more affordable, but the Mexican culture has a great respect for the elderly and infirm. They treat us like family.”
Virginia Saunders, who moved to Puerto Vallarta in 2017, explained how living in Mexico has positively impacted her health. “Our life here has surpassed our expectations in nearly every way,” said Saunders. “We’ve had the freedom to reinvent ourselves completely. From hiking, swimming, and paddleboarding to taking Pilates and painting classes, we stay active. We walk on the beach, volunteer, read, write, cook, create art, and spend quality time with friends.”
She added, “What we don’t do is sit in traffic, worry about how we’ll afford health insurance, or dread Mondays.”
6. The Mexican People and Culture
“For years, I had a vivid dream of living in Oaxaca, a place filled with rich culture, deeply ingrained Indigenous traditions and customs, enormous creativity, an amazing art scene, food, music, and a beautiful landscape,” said McCluskey, who eventually moved to a small pueblo outside Oaxaca City.
“I dreamed of immersing myself in the culture and learning to assimilate, leaving behind the hustle culture and stress of the U.S. and opening myself up to new life-altering experiences. I wanted to grow as a person and dive into the unknown, to let go of the old and create a new life.”
Amanda Turner, who moved to the lakeside town of Ajijic and started a business, echoed similar sentiments.
“Mexico has done something for me that I could never repay. It has nurtured self-interests I never knew I had, like gardening, cooking, and living a healthy lifestyle,” she said. “But the best thing is that my anxiety has mostly disappeared, which was one of my goals. What I thought was a frightening place actually turned out to be one filled with people who instantly treat you like family. When they say, ‘Love thy neighbor,’ in Mexico, it’s truly a way of life.”
7. The Weather
Joey McCune and her husband, Mitch Moore, have lived in the Yucatán jungle for seven years. Among the many things they love about their life in Mexico, the weather tops the list.
“Life is incredible here. We love our home, we love the warm, embracing culture, we love the lower cost of living and fantastic healthcare, and we love all of the beautiful sunshine!” said Joey. “I don’t think I can ever move back to a place without sunshine after living in Mexico. Coming from Seattle, I didn’t know how much I needed it.”
For others, Mexico’s climate has been life-changing.
Nancy Seeley, who moved to Mexico in 1995, found relief from the harsh Midwest winters she had endured for years.
“Increasingly over the years, I’d come to abhor Wisconsin’s cold, often gloomy, frequently blustery winter weather until I realized I truly suffered from seasonal affective disorder (SAD). I found myself cringing when turning the calendar to November,” she said. “It was time to do something about it. Mexico was—and is—the answer.”
Final Thoughts: Transformation, Fulfillment & Joy
There are many concrete reasons why moving to Mexico appealed to these women—lower costs, better weather, and a relaxed lifestyle—but what comes through again and again are the deeper themes of transformation, fulfillment, and joy. Across all 50 chapters of Why We Left: An Anthology of American Women Expats and Going Expat: Mexico, contributors expressed profound gratitude and happiness at making the decision to move.
For many—including me—the pull to Mexico was an unexpected surprise.
“Until I stepped off a plane into brilliant, balmy Zihuatanejo sunshine 37 years ago, on a spur-of-the-moment vacation to a place I’d never heard of, I had not for a moment considered leaving Wisconsin, where I’d lived my whole life,” recalled Nancy Seeley. “But I can honestly say descending those airstairs was a transformational moment for me, and the following week was equally cathartic. Over the space of just seven days, the trajectory of my life completely changed.”
Others experienced newfound confidence and freedom to pursue their innermost dreams and creativity. Goals that had eluded them in their lives in the U.S.—like being healthy, happy, and living a simpler life—easily materialized in Mexico and became their new normal.
“We know that we’re blessed, and we feel extremely fortunate to be in the position we’re in,” said Virginia Saunders from Puerto Vallarta. “Our friends here come from every background and circumstance, but one thing we all have in common is that our lives here are better than they were before. Both of us are healthier, thinner, fitter, happier, and mellower than we’ve ever been. We love the people, the culture, the food, the music, the lifestyle, the birds, the flowers, the sunsets—you name it. Hardly a day goes by that one of us doesn’t say, ‘Pinch me,’ to the other.”
For some, the decision to move came as a wake-up call—a chance to prioritize joy and well-being. Before moving to Mérida in 2019 and starting her own business, Amy Jones asked herself, “When is it time to start living and enjoying my life? If not now, when?”
“I spent my whole life doing. Now, I wanted to experience being,” she said. “I needed affordable health care. I craved fruits and vegetables that tasted like I remembered from my childhood. I wanted color, history, and culture. I desired an easier, simpler, slower, more fulfilling life and lifestyle. That’s what I’ve found living in Mérida. My home is Mexico, and I’m here to stay.”
Moving to Mexico isn’t always easy, and there are certainly challenges—stumbling through a new language and culture, adjusting to a different climate and way of doing things, and leaving loved ones behind. Yet, despite those hurdles, those who’ve made the move say they wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Do I ever regret taking this plunge? Never!” said Jeanne Carr, who’s lived in San Miguel de Allende for two years. “I love everything about living here: the culture, the people, the language (which I’m still learning), the weather, the cost of living, the never-ending discoveries about myself and the country we now call home. Here, I feel vibrant and alive, like my life has just begun.”
For these women, moving to Mexico wasn’t just about finding a new place to live—it was about rediscovering themselves, embracing a new way of life, and finding joy in the everyday. Mexico offered them the opportunity to build a life they love, one filled with purpose and happiness.
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