Choose Your Neighbors Carefully!

One thing you need to consider when coming down to buy or rent a home in Merida is your neighbors. Mexico can be a very loud place. For starters, people here run on a different schedule from Canadians and Americans. That means they don't get going in the day until around 8AM, they don't eat lunch until 1 or 2PM and they don't eat dinner until around 9PM. This means some people also stay up later here in Mexico on a regular basis.

Add that with the fact that everything here is made out of concrete, tile, steel and stone and you have sound waves just bouncing off of every house, fence and man-made structure of every kind. That means the guy 2 blocks over who decides to play his stereo until 2 AM can sound like he lives next door to you.

Also add all of this with the fact that alot of construction here in Centro and in most middle-class home developments have homes that connect to each other. That means your exterior walls, at times, are the exterior walls of your neighbors house, either on one side or both. I share an exterior wall with one of my next door neighbors. He is a major socialite from a wealthy family in Tabasco. Although we get along, at least on the surface, he functions on a different time clock than we do because he is self-employed and also family-funded if you know what I mean.

With all of this in mind....if you are choosing a home to rent or buy.....look at the construction and see if your potential home connects to your neighbors home. If you see that it is, and you have your heart set on a place, I would ask around and see if the neighbors are old or young, married or not married. Take a good look at the area, not just the home. If you know someone here who knows the area, take them to dinner on a Friday or Saturday night and have them take you to the home you are looking at and visit the neighborhood at night. See how loud the area is. Although this may not tell you exactly how things are, at least you can see if the area is generally tranquil or not.

My advice would be to try and find a home with either older neighbors or families around you. Even in Mexico these demographic groups tend to go to bed earlier and "keep it down" if you know what I mean. The other option is to buy something outside the Preferico where the population is less concentrated. But if peace and quiet is not important to you....well....don't worry about it. As for me and my family....we like to get our sleep. Vibrating walls is not something I particularly enjoy.

Saludos

JEB