Reply #13: The exchange rate

[Warpy]

Poor folks in Mexico with no prospects can come here, live in horrible conditions for a few months to a few years, and save the dollars they get their hands on. When they return to Mexico (and a study not too long ago showed that most do), they can exchange a paltry sum of dollars for enough pesos to allow them to start a small business in Mexico.

A few come here to stay, and hope they can get their children educated and on the road to the US version of success.

Conversely, retirees who could afford only a trailer in Florida or Arizona for their golden years find their money goes a lot farther in Mexico, again because of the exchange rate. They find they can rent luxury housing and afford a much more lavish lifestyle than they could here, paying US prices in US currency.

That is pretty much it.