Mexico City authorities have unveiled a preliminary plan to combat gentrification, following a week of intense protests over soaring housing costs. The rising prices are widely attributed to a surge in mass tourism and the influx of "digital nomads" – foreigners temporarily residing in the capital.
Mayor Clara Brugada announced that the strategy includes regulations to prevent landlords from increasing rents beyond inflation. Additionally, officials plan to publish a list of "reasonable rental" proposals to guide the market.
Brugada said her government will open a discussion with residents of Mexico's capital about her plan, but that the idea is to work on a bill that includes measures to promote affordable rent.
The protest in early July was fueled by government failures and active promotion to attract digital nomads who work remotely often for foreign companies from Mexico City, according to experts. Hundreds of people marched in neighborhoods popular with tourists, but the demonstration turned violent when a small number of people began smashing storefronts and harassing foreigners.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that the protest was marked by xenophobia.
“The xenophobic displays seen at that protest have to be condemned. No one should be able to say ‘any nationality get out of our country’ even over a legitimate problem like gentrification,” Sheinbaum said back then.
Many Mexicans have complained about being priced out of their neighborhoods — in part because of a move made by Sheinbaum in 2022, when she was the Mexico City mayor and signed an agreement with Airbnb and UNESCO to boost tourism and attract digital nomads despite concern over the impact short-term rentals could have.
During the protest, some people marched with signs reading “Gringo: Stop stealing our home” and “Housing regulations now!”
The Mexico City Anti-Gentrification Front, one of the organizations behind the protest, said it was “completely against” any acts of physical violence and denied that the protests were xenophobic. Instead, the organization said the protest was a result of years of failures by the local government to address the root of the problems.
“Gentrification isn't just foreigners' fault, it's the fault of the government and these companies that prioritize the money foreigners bring,” the organization said in a statement. Meanwhile “young people and the working class can't afford to live here.”
Some anti-gentrification groups have called for a new protest this weekend.
