The rental crisis in Tulum has spiraled out of control… and the story is the same in Cozumel. Working people—waiters, housekeepers, construction workers, shop employees—don’t know what to do anymore: prices are rising uncontrollably while wages remain the same or worse.
📈 In just five years, rents have increased by up to 200%. What used to cost 5,000 or 8,000 pesos now goes for 15,000, 18,000, or even 20,000, even in working-class neighborhoods.
In Tulum, in areas like La Veleta, a luxury townhouse reaches 35,000 pesos, while an empty apartment is now around 8,000.
💸 Who can afford that?
A worker earning between 8,000 and 12,000 pesos a month simply cannot afford a “formal” rent. Prices are set in dollars for foreigners and tourists, while local wages remain in pesos.
The scales are completely tipped against the people here ⚖️❌
🏨 Airbnb and vacation rentals have completely broken the market: 7 out of 10 new homes are for tourism, not for families.
The result? Fewer homes to live in and more silent displacement of those who sustain the city with their work.
🚧 The consequences are already visible in Tulum in the 14 informal settlements, where some 2,500 families live paying “cheap” rents of 2,500 to 5,000 pesos, but without drainage, streetlights, or basic services. That’s not development, it’s neglect.
⏰ Many workers now travel more than an hour daily from the outskirts to get to their jobs, while the city center fills up with empty apartments or those rented by the night.
❌ There is no real plan for affordable housing.
❌ There is no protection for the local population.
❌ There is no balance between tourism and a decent life.
📢 Tulum is growing for tourists, but its people are being driven out.
The question is uncomfortable but necessary:
👉 Who will work in these cities when no one can afford to live in them?
Source: qrinformativo
