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Buenos Aires, a low cost city for foreign investors - Clarin
March 01, 2007
A Real Estate business study on the value of property in the main cities of the world
Buenos Aires, a low cost city for foreign investors
By Daniel Gutman |
The average price of building per square meter is U$S 1500. In New York it is around $12,000 and in London $18,000. Those living abroad appreciate the quality/price relation of houses and living style.
Encouraged by prices which are very tempting at an international level, combined with the attractiveness of this City, there are more and more foreigners buying property in Buenos Aires.
Faced with prices that climb up to 12,000 dollars per square meter in New York and 18,000 in London, Buenos Aires is far behind, with an average of 1500 dollars.This is what appears in a report prepared by the consultant Reporte Inmobiliario, who say how the media of different countries encourages people to invest in properties in Buenos Aires, defined as hyper competitive in quality/ price relation,compared with the sums handled elsewhere.
"Buenos Aires offers some of the finest properties in the world ", said the London newspaper The Sunday Times last January, which also quotes an article of the Australian International Living, placing the Argentine capital in the 10th place in quality of life, ranking with 193 other cities.
The first thing foreigners like of Buenos Aires is the prices. Those who come and settle with the purpose of buying property are mostly Spaniards, Italians and Americans, who often have an income in their countries which is worth much more here in purchasing value. They find in Buenos Aires an attractive city, with mild weather,
entertainment, and an active cultural life. “And where you also find a renovating air which at least in Europe does not exist", says architect and builder Gustavo Kancyper.
"Foreigners prefer rather small apartments, with a vanguard design, a lot of air, light, sun, a terraced balcony. And they love the “parrillas”, he added.
Foreigners generally buy in the most expensive areas of the city, where today prices are already over 1500 dollars (the average given in the report). In Puerto Madero and Recoleta, in fact, a square meter could climb up to 3000 dollars. In the new towers going up in Belgrano, Núñez and Caballito, the price might be over $2000 dollars. Some foreigners buy as an investment but others stay, such as American Michael Koh, who now is precisely devoted to renting and selling apartments.
"There was something in Buenos Aires—he wrote in his company website— that I really loved. I could not describe it to my friends just with words. I liked lots of different things in this city. Its fashion, its sense of style, its architecture, the food, the lovely women. It is an extremely safe city, something which contradicts the warnings they gave me before I traveled."
The sense of security and the attractions of Buenos Aires are no small thing at the hour of investing in property. In fact, other cities in Latin America have better prices. In San Pablo, for example, the square meter averaged 1000 dollars, and in México DF, 900.
Koh says that when he was renting his first apartment in Argentina, he was deceived by real estate agencies: "Argentines —he says— do not have the concept that what counts is not that the client comes but that he comes back. They try to get the maximum profit out of the first transaction". And he adds that he met other foreigners who had also been cheated, but in spite of it, "they were not sorry about their purchase, and loved Argentina".
For Mayra Brill, a travel agent, "foreigners who buy apartments and stay in Buenos Aires are generally retired people or young people with an income in Europe or in The United States. Some sell their houses and buy something better here which is out of their reach in their countries. Besides prices, what they like most about Argentina is the warmth of the people".
Nevertheless, the story is not the same for all. Laura, an American living in Argentina with her French husband, has a blog where she tries to advise foreigners who are thinking of coming to live in Buenos Aires.
"Prices —she warns— are slowly going up, particularly food and housing. In addition there is always the problem of finding a guarantee if you plan to rent instead of buying a house...Have all this in mind when you hear how cheap it is to live in Buenos Aires".
Martín Grinberg, of Open Prop, a real estate business, says that "foreigners who come to buy here usually have relatives or friends in Argentina. Hardly anyone would buy if he did not have a special link with the country. And more than once they are not people who intend to stay but leave the apartment to rent to other foreigners. Despite the fact that there are now many doing the same thing, it continues to be very good business".
March 01, 2007
A Real Estate business study on the value of property in the main cities of the world
Buenos Aires, a low cost city for foreign investors
By Daniel Gutman |
The average price of building per square meter is U$S 1500. In New York it is around $12,000 and in London $18,000. Those living abroad appreciate the quality/price relation of houses and living style.
Encouraged by prices which are very tempting at an international level, combined with the attractiveness of this City, there are more and more foreigners buying property in Buenos Aires.
Faced with prices that climb up to 12,000 dollars per square meter in New York and 18,000 in London, Buenos Aires is far behind, with an average of 1500 dollars.This is what appears in a report prepared by the consultant Reporte Inmobiliario, who say how the media of different countries encourages people to invest in properties in Buenos Aires, defined as hyper competitive in quality/ price relation,compared with the sums handled elsewhere.
"Buenos Aires offers some of the finest properties in the world ", said the London newspaper The Sunday Times last January, which also quotes an article of the Australian International Living, placing the Argentine capital in the 10th place in quality of life, ranking with 193 other cities.
The first thing foreigners like of Buenos Aires is the prices. Those who come and settle with the purpose of buying property are mostly Spaniards, Italians and Americans, who often have an income in their countries which is worth much more here in purchasing value. They find in Buenos Aires an attractive city, with mild weather,
entertainment, and an active cultural life. “And where you also find a renovating air which at least in Europe does not exist", says architect and builder Gustavo Kancyper.
"Foreigners prefer rather small apartments, with a vanguard design, a lot of air, light, sun, a terraced balcony. And they love the “parrillas”, he added.
Foreigners generally buy in the most expensive areas of the city, where today prices are already over 1500 dollars (the average given in the report). In Puerto Madero and Recoleta, in fact, a square meter could climb up to 3000 dollars. In the new towers going up in Belgrano, Núñez and Caballito, the price might be over $2000 dollars. Some foreigners buy as an investment but others stay, such as American Michael Koh, who now is precisely devoted to renting and selling apartments.
"There was something in Buenos Aires—he wrote in his company website— that I really loved. I could not describe it to my friends just with words. I liked lots of different things in this city. Its fashion, its sense of style, its architecture, the food, the lovely women. It is an extremely safe city, something which contradicts the warnings they gave me before I traveled."
The sense of security and the attractions of Buenos Aires are no small thing at the hour of investing in property. In fact, other cities in Latin America have better prices. In San Pablo, for example, the square meter averaged 1000 dollars, and in México DF, 900.
Koh says that when he was renting his first apartment in Argentina, he was deceived by real estate agencies: "Argentines —he says— do not have the concept that what counts is not that the client comes but that he comes back. They try to get the maximum profit out of the first transaction". And he adds that he met other foreigners who had also been cheated, but in spite of it, "they were not sorry about their purchase, and loved Argentina".
For Mayra Brill, a travel agent, "foreigners who buy apartments and stay in Buenos Aires are generally retired people or young people with an income in Europe or in The United States. Some sell their houses and buy something better here which is out of their reach in their countries. Besides prices, what they like most about Argentina is the warmth of the people".
Nevertheless, the story is not the same for all. Laura, an American living in Argentina with her French husband, has a blog where she tries to advise foreigners who are thinking of coming to live in Buenos Aires.
"Prices —she warns— are slowly going up, particularly food and housing. In addition there is always the problem of finding a guarantee if you plan to rent instead of buying a house...Have all this in mind when you hear how cheap it is to live in Buenos Aires".
Martín Grinberg, of Open Prop, a real estate business, says that "foreigners who come to buy here usually have relatives or friends in Argentina. Hardly anyone would buy if he did not have a special link with the country. And more than once they are not people who intend to stay but leave the apartment to rent to other foreigners. Despite the fact that there are now many doing the same thing, it continues to be very good business".
