As featured in Fortune: why Lance moved his home base to Puerto Vallarta

On October 25, 2026, Fortune published a first-person commentary by Lance Fulford in its Commentary section: I didn't move to Mexico to save money. I moved to buy back my future.

In it, Lance describes why, after more than three decades in California real estate and nearly 25 years of visiting Puerto Vallarta, he made the city his home base. The decision was shaped by family: caring for his former partner of 38 years, Sandy, through a serious decline in health, and seeing first-hand what long-term care asks of the people closest to us.

"The future I had been planning for was suddenly happening inside my own home."

What the essay covers

• Housing. A two-bedroom rental in San Francisco at $3,800 a month, compared with a larger four-bedroom home with a pool in Puerto Vallarta for about $3,000.
• Access to care. How quickly specialist appointments could be arranged in Puerto Vallarta, and what private care cost in practice.
• Insurance. Why Original Medicare generally does not cover care in Mexico, and how Lance combines U.S. coverage with separate international insurance.
• The trade-offs. Distance from family, unfamiliar systems and language: the reasons a move abroad is not right for everyone.

"No geography protects us from illness or grief."

If you are weighing a move

The advice in the piece is practical. Before relocating, understand your insurance, your emergency arrangements and your ability to pay upfront for care. If you are thinking about a home in Puerto Vallarta, or about selling in San Francisco before a move south, Lance is glad to talk it through.

Read the full essay on Fortune →