Abstract

Touristic coastal and colonial intermediate cities in developing countries are preferred destinations among international retirement migrants searching to improve their standard of living. Previous research on International Retirement Migration (IRM) discusses the effects of the arrival of international migrants with higher acquisition power on housing market prices and the accentuation on residential segregation in retirement destinations; however, this discussion remains mainly at a theoretical level based on qualitative studies. This study focuses on the spatial distribution of international migrants in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; the evolution of this distribution in the last 50 years; and the influence that the real estate business related to this population has had on the local real estate market. We argue that spatial-based approaches and statistical data are required to point out more specifically the pressure that this kind of migration exerts on the retirement destinations. The significance of this study lies, on one hand, on the data used (records of the Municipal Archive, Population and Housing Censuses, records of foreign buyers, and a market study that we carried out); on the other, on the fact that it estimates the size and spatial location of international retired migrants in San Miguel de Allende over time, and its effect on the real estate market. Results show that a process of displacement is taking place from the Historic Centre to the urban periphery related, in part, to rising house prices. Estimating the size of the market of foreign property buyers in IRM destinations would allow local and national governments to develop and implement oversight processes and financial mechanisms over a market that remains highly unregulated.

Resumen

Las ciudades turísticas intermedias costeras y coloniales en los países en desarrollo se encuentran entre los destinos preferidos entre los migrantes internacionales de retiro que buscan mejorar su nivel de vida. En algunas investigaciones previas sobre la Migración Internacional de Retiro (MIR) se discuten los efectos de la llegada de migrantes internacionales con mayor poder adquisitivo en los precios del mercado de vivienda y la acentuación de la segregación residencial en los destinos de retiro. Sin embargo, esta discusión permanece principalmente a un nivel teórico basada en estudios cualitativos. Este estudio se enfoca en la distribución espacial de los migrantes internacionales en San Miguel de Allende, la evolución de esta distribución en los últimos 50 años y la influencia que los negocios de bienes raíces relacionados con esta población ha tenido en el mercado inmobiliario local. Se argumenta que las aproximaciones espaciales y la información estadística son requeridas para identificar de manera más detallada las presiones que este tipo de migración ejerce en los destinos de retiro. La relevancia de este estudio radica, por un lado, en la información utilizada (registros del Archivo Municipal, Censos de Población y Vivienda, registros de los compradores extranjeros, y un estudio de mercado que se realizó), y, por otra parte, que estima el tamaño y la ubicación espacial de los migrantes internacionales de retiro en San Miguel de Allende a lo largo del tiempo, y sus efectos en el mercado inmobiliario. Los resultados muestran que está teniendo lugar un proceso de desplazamiento desde el Centro Histórico hacia la periferia urbana relacionado, en parte, con el incremento en los precios de las viviendas. La estimación del tamaño del mercado de compradores extranjeros en destinos de la MIR permitiría a los gobiernos locales y nacionales desarrollar e implementar procesos de supervisión y mecanismos financieros sobre un mercado que permanece poco regulado.

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