US Retirement Migration to Mexico: Understanding Issues of Adaptation, Networking, and Social Integration

Geographical mobility among retired US migrants living in the Northwestern region of Mexico bordering California, US

“…Geographically, the Mexican government has identified at least 12 destinations for US retirees including colonial towns, metropolitan areas, coastal cities along the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico, as well as semitropical locations in the Southern part of the country (Rojas et al, 2014). Official figures (INEGI, 2010) show a concentration of these immigrants in certain states in the country's interior (Jalisco and Guanajuato) and along other coasts (Yucatán, Quintana Roo and Sinaloa); current research has studied the behaviour and lifestyles of foreign retirees residing in interior regions (Sunil et al, 2007), but in contrast little is known about those who have settled in border and coastal areas.…”

“…Compared to the north to south retirement migration in Europe, US retirement migration to Mexico presents a unique case of geographical proximity in that the sending and receiving countries are connected by one of the Brought to you by | MIT Libraries Authenticated Download Date | 5/10/18 3:49 AM longest borders in the world (Rojas et al, 2014). In this case, being only a few dozen kilometres from their country of origin has encouraged these people to retire 'to another country' (20 out of 29 lived previously in California, which is the most populous US state with 39 million people in 2015), and this proximity gives them the feeling of living between two worlds and the assurance that if anything happens to them they can return to 'their own country' quickly:…”

Transnationality and Social Integration within Lifestyle Migration. A comparative study of two cases in Mexico and Spain

“…The majority of literature within this theoretical approach, in addition to case studies, take the perspetive of the transnational migration of economic migrants from south to north However, recent research (Lizarraga 2012;Gustafson 2008;Rojas et al 2014;Croucher 2009) shows that transnational lifestyle migrants also perform social and political transnational practices between places of origin and destination. The time of permanence in the origin and destination in this case is largely attributable to better climate in the receiving community.…”

“…Given that both locations analyzed in this study are Spanish-speaking regions, we consider language proficiency to be an important practice of cultural integration, because the better a migrant can speak the local language, the more likely they are to interact with the local community (Rojas et al 2014). The survey results showed that relatively few respondents from either community could speak Spanish, with U.S. residents of Mazatlán slightly more likley than their British counterparts in El Campello (14 percent of U.S. and 4 percent UK citizens), perhaps owing to the demographic weight of Spanish migrants on the other side of the border in the sending communities of border states, most heavily represented in our sample.…”

“…Through this networking, immigrants share information with each other about the receiving community, and they meet local friends who can help them adapt to the culture of the receiving community. Membership in these organizations also enable lifestyle migrants to gain experience participating in volunteer work with the local society, which may further facilitate their incorporation (Rojas et al 2014). In Mazatlán and El Campello there are several of these types of organizations.…”