Ana Luisa Sanchez Maccise, a Mexican citizen, is neither seeking a path to US citizenship nor living a fitful undocumented existence. Yet she lives and works in Houston, where she sends her son to a local private school. She has another home in Mexico City, where her husband still works. He visits his family in Houston regularly.
Maccise is among a small but growing group of Mexican citizens who are creating parallel lives in this sprawling city north of the border. Dallas and San Antonio are other cities of choice.
Their motives are more than economic. They are also seeking a safe haven for themselves and their families, away from the threats of kidnapping, ransom and even murder that are routinely directed at wealthy Mexicans.
"Right now in Mexico City, the situation is not good because of safety problems," Maccise, 43, said. "You can be robbed anytime in any restaurant. You can't drive a nice car. You can't wear a nice watch. So I really like the US because I feel free."
Maccise lives and works in Houston on a business visa issued as a result of the North American Free Trade Agreement. A treaty provision allows visas for those making a significant investment in a new business and also for those with Mexican companies doing business in the US, along with their spouses and children.
US State Department statistics, not broken down by city, show a national increase in the most popular business visa to 72,613 last year from 57,721 in 2002.
Making the move from Mexico to Houston is both a cultural and logistical challenge, and an industry of professionals has grown up around the need for real estate agents, immigration lawyers, bankers and others to ease the way.
Mariana Saldana, a broker and owner at the Uptown Real Estate Group, is in no small part responsible for Maccise's life in Houston. Saldana, 56, directed her to an immigration lawyer and helped her to rent space in the Galleria, a shopping mall in Houston, where Maccise runs a franchise of the Tane jewelry store.
Tane specializes in expensive handmade jewelry and silver and gold art from Mexico. Saldana even arranged for telephone and cable service for Maccise.
"We're one stop," she said. "If you need a Mercedes, I send you to a Mercedes dealer. A Porsche, I send you to a Porsche dealer. We're like a concierge company. We have gardeners, a pool guy, everything they need. They don't have to pick up the phone."
Saldana has helped potential buyers find private schools for their children and even called a locksmith when a client forgot her key when taking her child to a community pool.
She said 80 percent of Uptown Real Estate's business is with Mexicans who have a net worth of up to US$100 million. Many pay cash for their homes and are unaffected by market cycles.
Mexicans prefer Houston, Saldana said, because luxury homes there cost less than those in California, Miami or even Mexico City. And from Houston, there are some 40 daily flights to Mexican cities, with at least 20 to Mexico City, a two-hour trip.
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
CANCER: Jose Mujica earned the moniker ‘world’s poorest president’ for giving away much of his salary and living a simple life on his farm, with his wife and dog Tributes poured in on Tuesday from across Latin America following the death of former Uruguayan president Jose “Pepe” Mujica, an ex-guerrilla fighter revered by the left for his humility and progressive politics. He was 89. Mujica, who spent a dozen years behind bars for revolutionary activity, lost his battle against cancer after announcing in January that the disease had spread and he would stop treatment. “With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our comrade Pepe Mujica. President, activist, guide and leader. We will miss you greatly, old friend,” Uruguayan President Yamandu Orsi wrote on X. “Pepe, eternal,” a cyclist shouted out minutes later,
Myanmar’s junta chief met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the first time since seizing power, state media reported yesterday, the highest-level meeting with a key ally for the internationally sanctioned military leader. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup in 2021, overthrowing Myanmar’s brief experiment with democracy and plunging the nation into civil war. In the four years since, his armed forces have battled dozens of ethnic armed groups and rebel militias — some with close links to China — opposed to its rule. The conflict has seen Min Aung Hlaing draw condemnation from rights groups and pursued by the
RSS