Nancy -  at CountdowntoMexico.com, is a frequent contributor here at BoomersToMexico.  On the subject of rentals in Mazatlan, she mentions Jen’s new house in Mazatlan.  It’s a beautiful, large place that is very affordable compared to Chapala. Check out Jen’s blog, MexScape to see pictures of it. Go to ‘Photo Gallery/Our New House’.And while you’re there, check out the pics of ‘Bike Week’. Les is from Milwaukee, where they make Harleys. Bikes are her kind of stuff, but only if they make that low throaty sound.

Nancy also suggests getting the rental price in pesos, not dollars. Good idea.

Ultimately, lifestyle will make the choice for us, but it’s nice to see what’s affordable in Mazatlan.

I hope you aren’t offended by my talking about money, but money is one of the reasons Les and I are heading South.

I’m a photographer and an overall creative kind of guy, so I’ve been looking for some ways to make a little extra money while Les and I are in Mexico. Every so often I invent some utilitraian device that makes my life a little easier. Les and I are trying to learn how to produce the last two items I came up with, a sock-like case to protect a pocket camera from scratches and dust, and a device to keep iPod ear buds from getting so tangled. It’s easy to make something for myself – it doesn’t have to be a finished product, something else to make it to sell. Hopefully, we’ll be able to sell some of these items on eBay and make a little extra cash. They really are quite handy. I’ll post some pictures when the finished products are ready.

I got my yearly Social Security statement a few days ago. Retiring at 62 (this August) I’ll get something like $1150. Les is already getting around $1375, so between us, we should be getting around $2500/month. That sounds pretty good. If the cost of living in Mexico is a conservative half of what it is in the States, and many say it’s more like a third, the we should have the equivalent of $60K to live on. That’s fantastic! We sure couldn’t get by on only $30K in the States.

But the numbers can be deceiving. We have debts back here in the States, car loans, credit cards, etc., and they have to be paid in US Dollars. So, for every dollar we have to pay in the States, we effectively lose two dollars of income in Mexico. I’m trying to get those debt payments down before we go.