Currency exchange services - HiFx

So, you've decided to pack up everything and move to Mexico. You've got things to pack, friends to say goodbye to, paperwork to organize, and a number of other things waying on your mind. Moving to a foreign country can be a stressful process and many people overlook one of the most important issues: the exchange rate.

Whether you are an expat sent abroad to work with a large compensation package, or a retiree seeking a new life in Mexico while living on a fixed income, protecting yourself against fluctations in the exchange rate can result in big savings for you and your family.

HiFx, a currency exchange service, can help you with the purchase of a home abroad, fixed international mortgage payments, international relocation, complex international business transactions, and other money transfers.

Why choose HiFx?
Better exchange rates than your bank
Simple, jargon free advice
30,000 customers a year & growing
Fix rates for up to 2 years
Fast, highly secure services

I highly recommend contacting HiFx to find out more about how they can facilitate the currency exchange process. Visit their website at http://www.hifx.com/ for more information.

Green Retreat in San Miguel de Allende

By Alia Mansoori

Turning right off the road linking the colonial Mexican towns of San Miguel de Allende and Dolores Hidalgo, I headed into the mountains. The smooth pavement of the two-lane highway ended abruptly, and my tiny green-and-white taxi struggled over thick rocks and through even thicker clouds of dust from the arid road, toward the plateau nearly two miles away.

To the right, enormous sprinklers watered verdant patches of alfalfa for a wealthy rancher's prized horses to feed on. To the left, a leathery-skinned old man pulled a sleepy donkey along a desiccated soccer field bordered by enormous cacti.

We passed the village of Morroquin, where colorful paper flags on strings — remnants of a fiesta — blew in the light breeze, toward the smaller village of Mesita. But the nearly intolerable ride was a small price to pay for the oasis that awaited.

On 15 acres of rural Central Mexico mountainside sits the eco-conscious Sagrada Wellness, a boutique hotel and yoga retreat, where guests are immersed in everything from holistic health and cooking classes to yoga, Spanish classes, spa treatments, art and horseback riding. Architect Scott Currie and his wife, Eva Inglizian, a licensed acupuncturist and herbalist, created the Sagrada after living in San Miguel de Allende for a year and yearning for a peaceful refuge to call their own and practice their crafts: sustainable architecture and Eastern medicine.

"There's really nothing like this around here," says Inglizian, sitting in the outdoor dining area, as we ate a lunch of yellow rice, beans, sliced nopales (cactus) salad with fresh cheese, homemade corn tortillas, fresh salsa and guacamole, all made with locally grown, organic ingredients.

Touring the Sagrada grounds with Currie and Inglizian is more than a welcome tour you might get at any small hotel; it's an ode to the Earth and the marriage of the past and present.

To read more of the story, please visit:
Green Retreat in San Miguel
http://www.statesman.com/life/content/life/stories/travel/09/16/0916mexicospa.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=48

Developer and Construction Loans Available in Mexico

MexQuest Mortgage offers developer and construction loans in Mexico!
Are you dreaming of building your new home in one of Mexico's booming resort towns? Let us help you acheive your dream with our construction loan. Our knowledgable representatives will guide you through the loan process and be there for you every step of the way

DEVELOPER LOANS

MexQuest can consummate any number of transactions, including mortgage loans ranging from 5 million to 500 million dollars for multi-family, office, retail, industrial, hotel, mixed-use, and self-storage properties. Our consortium, or "pool", consists of banks, non-depository institutions, insurance companies, pension funds, savings and loans, thrifts, and private investors. We offer many major loan programs, including fixed rate, floating rate, mezzanine, bridge, acquisition, and construction funding.

Loan amounts 5 million to 500 million dollars

6 month adjustable, 2, 3, 7, 10, and full term fixed programs

Your choice of 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 year amortization schedules

Interest only options are available

Loans are available in Mexico

Closing typically is 60 to 90 days

Maximum LTV is 80% and 90% CLTV for construction

SPOTLIGHT: Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen, known to locals as "Playa", is home to some of the Riviera Maya's most amazing beaches. It is a great choice for vacationers who love watersports as scuba diving and snorkeling are only a short boat ride away. For the more adventurous traveler, Playa is home to amazing freshwater rivers and caves called cenotes.

The Quinta Avenida (Fifth Avenue) boasts an array of shops where one can find all kinds of souvenirs, candy, clothing, Mexican handicrafts, and jewelry. The shopping area is located one block from the beach and is closed off to cars, giving vacationers the freedom to stroll along and shop.

As far as lodging goes, your best bet is one of Playa's small boutique hotels. Here are a few hotels that you might check out:

Hotel Deseo

Mosquito Blue

Illusion Boutique Hotel

Acanto Hotel

Playa del Carmen is the perfect spot for those looking for a relaxing beach vacation without all the craziness of Cancun. Playa draws a more international, laid-back, bohemian tourist as opposed to its neighbor to the north, Cancun, whose tends to draw in Spring Breakers and young families.