Buying in Mexico City (CDMX)

Buying splits CDMX along clear lines. The western half, Miguel Hidalgo and Cuajimalpa de Morelos, is the premium side: the towers of Santa Fe, gated hillside streets and the highest prices in the city. The south, from Álvaro Obregón into Coyoacán, is where gardens, volcanic rock and cobbled colonial cores are. The flat central grid of Benito Juárez buys the shortest commutes of the three.

What to consider before buying

Two things shape a purchase here more than the finishes. The ground comes first: the old lake bed on the east side behaves differently from the firm volcanic rock of the west and south, and construction rules tightened after the 2017 earthquake, so the year the building went up and its structural paperwork are worth reading closely. Heritage listing comes second: Centro and much of Roma are catalogued, which defines what you are allowed to change.