The most expensive middle class housing rents in Latin America are in Mexico

Mexico City and Guadalajara are the metropolises of Latin America where workers require more minimum wages to rent middle-class housing.

“A minimum wage is not enough to rent a middle-class home in 16 of the 17 cities analyzed in Latin America,” warns Lamudi, a portal dedicated to real estate in Mexico.

A worker in Mexico City requires 1,295 dollars (or 3 minimum monthly salaries) to rent a home in the Narvarte neighborhood, while in Córdoba you need 296 dollars (or 1.5 minimum monthly salaries) to live in the Alberdi neighborhood. , Add.

Renting a middle-class apartment costs $1,281 in the Chapalita neighborhood of Guadalajara, a city located in western Mexico, the study indicates Latin America: How many salaries does a middle class rental cost?

The arrival of 2024 brought adjustments to the minimum wage in most Latin American countries, just as the inflationary footprint of 2023 maintains a constant discussion about income and expenses in each home.

At a regional level, “Mexico stands out for having the cities with the highest rental costs, such as Guadalajara and Monterrey, while the most affordable options are found outside the capitals of Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina such as Cali, Guayaquil and Córdoba,” he says. the company that helps buy, rent or sell properties.

Lamudi calculates what a household’s monthly income should be, in dollars, so that the rent for a home does not exceed 40 percent of their earnings.

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a household that spends more than 40 percent of its monthly income on housing (rent or mortgage) incurs a housing cost overload.

To comply with the OECD recommendations regarding paying a maximum of 40 percent of income for rent, a household in Mexico City (Narvarte) requires an ideal remuneration of $3,236 per month, while in Córdoba (Alberdi ), it takes an average of $740.

According to Lamudi, cities such as Panama City, Córdoba, Rosario, Medellín, Bogotá and Arequipa observe a common phenomenon: renting a middle-class apartment requires between 1.5 and 1.8 minimum wages.

An example is Panama City (El Cangrejo), where the average rent is $1,130 and in Rosario (Our Lady of Lourdes) it is $342. Both figures are equivalent to 1.8 minimum wages in their respective countries.

In Medellín (La América) and Bogotá (Modelia) they have incomes that range between 523 dollars and 510 dollars, which represents approximately 1.6 Colombian minimum wages. Meanwhile, in Arequipa (Cerro Colorado) the average rent is 417 dollars, equivalent to 1.5 minimum wages in their countries.

In Cali (Valle del Lili), the average rent is 403 dollars or 1.2 Colombian minimum wages. While in Quito (Ponceano) and Guayaquil (Alborada) the average price is 485 dollars and 434 dollars, equivalent to 1.1 and 0.9 minimum wages, respectively.

These are the salaries required to rent a home in 17 cities in Latin America