Whether you rent long-term or own your own home here in Puerto Morelos, one of the things youâll need to know how to manage is paying your utilities. Thankfully we live in a time when there are lots of options both in-person and online, so stick around and weâll go through the list.
Electricity
CFE (ComisiĂłn Federal de Electricidad) is THE electricity company in Mexico, as itâs owned by the federal government. Your CFE bill is frequently required as proof of address for other transactions, so it is important to get it set up well and to hang on to the paper copies of the bill each month.
When you purchase a new home here, youâll need to go to a CFE office in CancĂșn to request a contract. Hereâs a link to the official CFE informational brochure in Spanish, but in my experience youâll need to take the following documents along including:
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- For new construction, a letter youâll receive at closing on CFE letterhead stating that the property is ready for electricity to be installed – if in a fraccionamiento, it should be accompanied by a page with a chart of all the homes/condos in your area of the neighborhood – make sure you find yours on the list. Bring a photocopy.
- Cedula Catastral – a green piece of paper on Ayuntamiento de Puerto Morelos letterhead showing the property address and specifications about the size of construction, lot size, and value of the home, among other things – youâll get this at closing. Make sure to bring a photocopy.
- If you have an RFC number (a Mexican tax ID number that is being required for more and more processes here, even if youâre a temporary resident and donât have any tax responsibility), bring that paperwork as well so your RFC number can be added to your account. This will be important to have on your account later if/when you go to sell your house (but the explanation is for another post on another day!), but it is NOT necessary at this time to get your CFE account up and running. You can do it as soon as you get your RFC number down the road too.
- Your actual passport and a photocopy of the main data page of your passport.
- Once youâre there, youâll need to fill out a form that can be obtained at the CFE office titled âSolicitud para la prestaciĂłn del servicio de energĂa en baja tensiĂłnâ. I really wish it were available online, but it is not. The form is a bit confusing, but the staff members will often help guide you through what needs to be filled out (there are portions that can remain blank). This form needs to be signed by you at the bottom, so if someone else is going for you please make sure you sign it while youâre still here in Mexico.
- If you canât go to CFE in person and have someone else who will go for you, youâll need to type up or find a âCarta Poderâ or power of attorney form online to print out. In the end it will need 4 signatures: yours, the person who is going in your place and 2 witnesses. Everyone MUST sign exactly as it appears on their passports or it will be rejected. Make sure to make a copy of the form that all 4 of you have signed. In my experience it does not have to be notarized.
- All 4 of you who signed the Carta Poder must send a copy of their main passport page along too.
- Know that you may have to go more than once, even if you bring all of the paperwork above with you. They are very strict with documentation requirements.
- Once youâre at CFE and they review and approve all the documentation, theyâll give you a paper receipt with large handwritten letters/numbers on it (your contract number – be sure to take a photo or write that down somewhere you can find it again later). Youâll take that paper home, put it in a ziplock baggie and tape it to the spot outside where the meter should go so that CFE will see it when they come out to install the meter.
- If they donât install the meter within the timeframe they tell you to expect (it used to be a week, but I know recently theyâve been telling people theyâre out of meters so it has been as long as a month!!), have your account number handy and call 071 from a Mexican phone number and you can ask for updates on the status.
- Of the various CFE offices in CancĂșn Iâve been to (Google for the current list), Iâve always had better luck at this location:
- CFE (ComisiĂłn Federal de Electricidad) Zona CancĂșn (Designated as A on the map below)
- Address: Av. JosĂ© LĂłpez Portillo 45, 77524 CancĂșn, Q.R.
- Hours: ATM-like machines open 24 hours; Office hours are reduced – I believe 8am-3pm in most locations
- Phone: 998 373 7103
- CFE (ComisiĂłn Federal de Electricidad) Zona CancĂșn (Designated as A on the map below)
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The bills are available on the CFE app digitally, otherwise, they come around and leave paper copies in the front door or the front gate of your property (or possibly with admin if youâre in a gated community) every 2 months. CFE has a detailed explanation of the bill here in Spanish, but I also found this detailed CFE bill explanation in English.Â
Basically youâll want to pay attention to your client number (nĂșmero de cliente), the amount due (total a pagar) and your usage (check for the teeny tiny arrow on the colorful bar on the front of the bill – the closer you are to red the higher your usage and the closer you are to being put into the DAC category ( âDomestic High Consumtionâat a MUCH higher rate). If you added your RFC number to your account, check that your RFC number appears on the back of the bill in the area to the right of the QR code.
You can pay CFE on the app if you have a Mexican credit or debit card. Otherwise, you can pay at any Oxxo (cash or Mexican card only!), 7-Eleven, BBVA, Banco Azteca, Walmart or any other business whose logo appears at the bottom of the back side of the bill for a small fee. If you happen to be in Cancun or Playa when your bill is due, you can take it to a CFE office and pay at one of their ATM-like CFEMatico machines as well.
LP Gas
Most homes here in Puerto Morelos use gas for cooking, and those who have dryers or hot water heaters typically opt for gas too since electricity is more costly. Homes can have either stationary tanks or portable tanks, so depending on what type your home has, youâll need to use different companies to fill your tanks.
Either way, the process is similar – you send a WhatsApp message to the company requesting that they come to fill your tank and provide your address. It is best to do this in the morning, as the tanker trucks only hold so much gas and when they empty they wonât be refilled until the next day.
When they arrive at your home theyâll either fill your stationary tank or theyâll pick-up your empty portable tank and return it the next day (make sure to write your name and address on the tank in permanent marker if itâs important to you that you get back your exact tank). For that reason, if you have portable tanks I recommend that you have 2 portable tanks so that you can swap out the empty one and still have gas to function until the refilled tank is returned. Youâll pay the driver directly when they are delivering your gas.
Companies that Iâm aware deliver to Puerto Morelos include:
- Zeta Gas Sureste – portable tanks – WhatsApp +52-998-881-3100
- Soni Gas – stationary tanks – WhatsApp +52-998-130-5171
- Gas Imperial CancĂșn – stationary or portable tanks – WhatsApp +52-998-409-0453
- Gas Tomza CancĂșn – stationary tanks – WhatsApp +52-998-898-0616
Non-potable water
Aguakan is the local water utility company. Their office is located on the street to the beach, just behind the Go Mart gas station. They bill monthly and will drop your bills off to you either at your front gate/door, or at administration in your fraccionamiento. They will alert you if they suspect a leak based on a major increase in your water consumption from one month to the next by sending an extra paper with the bill (often a different color paper).
You can pay their bill on the app with a Mexican card, at the automated teller outside their office, or you can go inside the office to a human cashier if you have questions or need help. Like your CFE bill, you can also pay Aguakan bills at places like Oxxo or Chedraui for a small fee.
Drinking Water
Weâre blessed to have water all around us here in Quintana Roo – the ocean, the humidity in the area, and the underground waterways and cenotes. It is vitally important for our ecosystem and for tourism here! The water in the area has a very high mineral count, which means that it isnât safe for humans (even those born and raised here) or animals to drink. It is even hard on plumbing due to high levels of mineral buildup. So, everyone either buys garrafones (20 liter plastic jugs like the 5 gallon jugs in the US) or a water treatment system for their home. There are several options for getting garrafones of safe drinking water.
La Ceiba – WhatsApp +52-998 253 8749; on Calle Chaca near TulipĂĄn Restaurant. You can bring your garrafones to their site and they will wash and refill them for you (this is what I do if I canât sit home and wait all day). Or you can request they switch out your garrafones at your home, just be aware it can be hours before theyâll come because theyâre busy with so many deliveries. The current cost is $22 pesos per refill or $100 pesos if you need to buy a garrafĂłn too.
You can also buy/exchange garrafĂłnes at your local Oxxo, but note that they will only exchange the brands they carry, not La Ceiba, for instance.
A third option is to bring your empty garrafones of any brand to refilling stations around town and simply refill and bring them home.
I hope thatâs all helpful information for you as you learn to handle all of lifeâs little details here in Puerto Morelos. It really is easy once you get the hang of where to go and what to do, and youâll find folks to generally be really friendly and willing to help show you the ropes. Enjoy your time here in our beautiful little town!