How much is it to build a house in Yucatan: Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen, Cancun, Merida, etc?
Alfonso Galindo - I Go Yucatan
I’ve remodeled and built several houses in Yucatan. The cost depends on the construction material that you use. It depends on the architect that you us. I’d hate to say this, but sometimes, it depends if you’re Gringo or not. That’s why it’s always best to learn what the local rates are in pesos, never in dollars or in euros, because you’ll never ever realize if you’re getting ripped off or not. And if you’re always converting from... I’ve remodeled and built several houses in Yucatan. The cost depends on the construction material that you use. It depends on the architect that you us. I’d hate to say this, but sometimes, it depends if you’re Gringo or not. That’s why it’s always best to learn what the local rates are in pesos, never in dollars or in euros, because you’ll never ever realize if you’re getting ripped off or not. And if you’re always converting from dollars and euros to pesos or comparing what a particular house would cost in New York or in Paris or Santa Barbara, everything’s going to seem cheap to you and you won’t know if you’re overpaying for an item. Average cost of construction depends on what you want, including your amenities, whether you’re in the city, on the beach, or in the country. All those prices vary in addition because you have to bring materials sometimes from different regions. A fair honest price would be around 5,000 Pesos (US $312.5) to 8,000 Pesos (US $500) a square meter to build a home (approximately $29 / square foot to $47 / square foot), for roughly track home quality. The difference is, in Mexico, they build with concrete and blocks so I can say that the quality of the construction is much better than it would be if they used the standard stucco and plastic house like in the US. Here, the houses are built just like the Mayan Temples, where you build out of concrete and stone. Houses in Yucatan tend to last a very long time.
The materials and style of your home depends on the region of Mexico. Some people like using granite, or marble tiles. You probably know the very famous, beautifully decorated Spanish houses in some regions of Mexico that become quite popular in California. But here in Yucatan, they’ve gotten so good at working with cement that they make kitchen counters, bathrooms, and floors out of it; everything is made out of cement. They’ve learned how to decorate the concrete with glass and so many other composites that they put into it – paint, different polishes, acids, etc.,-- that you wouldn’t even know it was cement. It’s quite amazing what they could do with cement here that I don’t see a need why, unless you’re going for a certain architectural style, someone would want marble or granite when they can have something that it much more functional and to some degree much more beautiful, all at a much lower price.
(One of Alfanso Galindo's properties on Sisal Beach in the Yucatan Riviera, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted September 12, 2015
Doug Willey - Doug Willey, Independent Real Estate Consultant
How much it is to build a house in Yucatan is like asking how much does a car cost. Well, are you buying a Volkswagen, a Beamer, or a Rolls Royce? What kind of car do you want to buy? It’s the same thing with building a house. You can build a normal, two-bedroom, two-bathroom home and have it done nicely with aluminum windows, high-pressure water, hot water, etc. for US $100,000 or less. This cost doesn’t include the land; just the...
How much it is to build a house in Yucatan is like asking how much does a car cost. Well, are you buying a Volkswagen, a Beamer, or a Rolls Royce? What kind of car do you want to buy? It’s the same thing with building a house. You can build a normal, two-bedroom, two-bathroom home and have it done nicely with aluminum windows, high-pressure water, hot water, etc. for US $100,000 or less. This cost doesn’t include the land; just the building.
There are different ways that you can save money on building your house here. For example, here in Yucatan, you can have your countertops done in polished concrete. They pour the concrete, put in a dye to make it any color you want and buff the concrete until it turns out to be almost like marble. It’s beautiful but it costs 1/3 of the cost if you would get marble.
You can also go to the other extreme. To give you an example, last year, I had a client from Alabama. She called me and said that she wanted move to Mexico and build her own home. She asked if I could find her an ocean-front lot. Luckily, her timing was perfect. One of my clients that I had sold a lot to had decided that he didn’t want to build. He decided to just get rid of the lot so I contacted him, and he said, “If you just give me my money back, then she could have it for exactly what I paid for it.” So I contacted my client and told her that I found her an oceanfront lot. It was a super deal at $70,000. She said, “Okay. I’ll take it.” Of course I sent her pictures of the lot and all that.
She came down to Mexico and talked to me about getting her home built. I explained to her that there are many different contractors here but through the years, I have kind of gone through all of them and there is only one contractor that I will give my personal recommendation to. I know this guy does quality work and is fair with his prices.
My client told me a basic idea of what kind of home she wanted. She said, “I’d like to spend maybe $100,000 or thereabouts.” I said, “Sketch out or send pictures of what kind of house you want and we’ll sit down with the contractor, whose name is Hillel. We’ll start going over things and see where we’re at.”
The contractor and I had a meeting with my client. She had all these magazines. Basically, she wanted a mansion. She wanted an infinity pool in the front yard and you wouldn’t believe this home. I got the contractor building this unbelievable home and when the final figures came out, it was going to be $380,000. She said, “Okay, if that’s what it takes, then go ahead. Let’s do it.” So now she has over $400,000 in her house.
You can definitely go to any extreme that you want to go here in the Yucatan when it comes to building a house. But the average person that moves here didn’t come here for that reason. They didn’t come here to drop half a million dollars. They came here to find a nice little place to live and spend about $100,000.
Overall, there are a lot of ways that you can build a very nice home but you do it in the Mexican style. Mexicans are all about saving money and building as economically as possible.
(Patio over looking the bay in Yucatan, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted January 4, 2016
Gustavo Cisneros - Petén
The cost to build a house in the Yucatan Peninsula varies depending on what type of materials and what type of finishing you want for your house. On the beachfront, the cost would range from US $700 per square meter ($65 per square foot) to $1,200 per square meter ($112 per square foot). The price varies based on the quality of the finishing and the amenities that you have in the house such as a pool and related items. The price I quoted does not include the land, which is extra. For...The cost to build a house in the Yucatan Peninsula varies depending on what type of materials and what type of finishing you want for your house. On the beachfront, the cost would range from US $700 per square meter ($65 per square foot) to $1,200 per square meter ($112 per square foot). The price varies based on the quality of the finishing and the amenities that you have in the house such as a pool and related items. The price I quoted does not include the land, which is extra. For example, if you spend around $900 per square meter ($85 per square foot) on building a house, it would be a house with granite countertops, very nice finishing in the bathrooms, a nice kitchen, pasta tile floors, ceilings with air conditioning, etc.The height is also important. The American market is used to a certain height for their units and sometimes the Mexican height is different. It could be lower and the rooms and bathrooms are not as open as in an American home. That is why when expats come here, and depending if they have money to build something more than the basic, they spend around the $1,000 mark per square meter ($95 per square foot).
(Great room in Peten, a beach planned community in Sisal, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted February 12, 2016
Thomas Lloyd - Top Mexico Real Estate
The cost of building a home in any country can verify greatly depending on the quality of materials, finishes and added featured you select for your home. The same is true when looking to build a home in the Yucatan. Do you want to add a pool or a Jacuzzi to your home? Would you like to add standard fixtures or will you select top of the line fixtures? Will your new dream home feature imported wood or will you use local resources? All these little details can increase the total building...The cost of building a home in any country can verify greatly depending on the quality of materials, finishes and added featured you select for your home. The same is true when looking to build a home in the Yucatan. Do you want to add a pool or a Jacuzzi to your home? Would you like to add standard fixtures or will you select top of the line fixtures? Will your new dream home feature imported wood or will you use local resources? All these little details can increase the total building cost.Building a home in the Yucatan range from 9,500 pesos (around $550 USD) per square meter (about US $51 per square foot) to 20,000 pesos (around $1,150 USD) per square meter (about US $107 per square foot). The cost of building a home greatly depends on you and what you envision you dream home to look like.
(Terrace with a pool in a Playa Bambu homes, Yucatan, Mexico, pictured.)
Posted April 27, 2016