SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Xavier Ibarra Quintana, president of Mexico’s National Chamber of Housing and Industry Development, said more than 475,000 homes are needed in the state of Baja California.
“We’re talking about people who don’t have a home or place to live,” he said. “And there are many who live in areas with no public services or safety.”
The biggest reason for the housing shortage, Ibarra Quintana said, is the lack of land available for development and the high price for it.
“Since 2021 and 2022, cost of housing construction has gone up by 55 percent,” he said.
Ibarra Quintana pointed out that construction materials such as rebar have nearly doubled in the past two years.
“Now, it’s more expensive to build a house than what it will be worth when you’re done, so people and companies are more reluctant to build something,” he said. “All of this is pushing housing prices up creating a void for affordable housing, we need to find a way to make homes more available.”
Another factor, according to Ibarra Quintana, is the ongoing migration of people from north of the border seeking less expensive housing in Mexican border cities such as Tijuana.
“The added demand is generating an inflation in housing prices,” he said. “Finding homes for the sake of the public and social interests has become very difficult.”
According Mexico’s Federal Mortgage Society, real-estate prices in Baja California have gone up by almost 18 percent when compared to last year.
