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Does Argentina offer more than Paris? - Buenos Aires Herald
Chicago residents Mark Warden and his wife Mary Beth found a steal on the ideal second home, offering a retreat from the bitter Illinois winters, great culture and stunning architecture. The only catch is it takes an overnight flight to Buenos Aires to get there.
The couple paid about US$150,000 last year for a 90-square-meter, one-bedroom apartment on Rodriguez Peña in Recoleta. The experience went so smoothly that the Warden’s are now closing on another place – in a century-old building – that cost just US$60,000.
“I was surprised at the sophistication of the city,” said Mark Warden, a retired president of an Illinois community college. “This could be any place in Spain or Italy.”
The Warden’s aren’t the only ones who’ve opted to move farther south than Florida in their search for a second home, trading in the comforts of a US lifestyle for the rich cultural experience Buenos Aires offers.
With real estate prices soaring across much of the United States, Canada and Europe, investors increasingly are buying up everything from apartments in downtown Buenos Aires to farms in the countryside and even wineries that dot the basins of the Andes Mountain.
The rush is fueled in part by the 2002 devaluation of the peso – once pegged one-to-one with the dollar – that has meant that an apartment in the heart of the city can go for not much more than what a luxury car might cost back home.
Cheap prices aren’t all that is fueling the trend. Buenos Aires offers world-class restaurants, museums boasting European masters and modern health care services that have landed the city on the covers of many world travel magazines.
“It offers pretty much everything for everybody,” said María Reynolds, who along with her husband, Paul, runs Reynolds Propiedades, an agency that assists foreign buyers. “If you like tango, there’s tango. There is also polo, lots of golf courses and the weather and food are fantastic.”
Bargain prices
The obvious draw for many is price. In Paris, the costs are about US$8,000 to US$9,000 per square meter. In New York’s Manhattan, the average cost per square meter is US$10,000 to US$12,000 and in some parts of London the numbers can exceed US$18,000 per square meter.
In contrast, Puerto Madero – Buenos Aires’ hippest, not to mention most expensive, new neighborhood that lines the water – the cost is about US$3,000 a square meter.
Homes in the more established Recoleta, with a feel of New York’s Upper East Side, range from about US$1,400 to US$2,600 per square meter. Barrio Norte is an even better deal with at US$1,100 to US$1,300 per square meter.
While costs have been climbing in recent years, many believe the market will continue to rebound, pushed in part by the now soaring tourism industry. The number of visitors is growing roughly 10 percent per year with more than four million tourists expected to visit this year.
Chicago-born businessman Michael Koh helps international investors and second-home seekers buy real estate through his company ApartmentsBA.
Koh, who bought his first house here in 2003, said he now buys an average of two to three properties a week. His team of 35 employees helps handle everything for clients from showing properties and writing sales offers to overseeing the closings, renovations and decorations.
His business has boomed. What started as buying apartments for individual investors has morphed into working for investment funds, buying land and building new homes and now undertaking the acquisition of dated buildings to transform them into high-end hotels.
“You can buy cheap real estate and make money anywhere in the world,” Koh said. “The good thing about Buenos Aires is it is real estate you will actually use.”
María Reynolds said her family’s bus helps international investors and second-home seekers buy real estate through his company ApartmentsBAcused on temporary rentals, handling only a few sales each year.
The company, which now sees more than 100 sales a year, offers seminars twice a year for prospective buyers looking to navigate the bureaucracy.
To facilitate overseas buyers, Reynolds has developed a property management arm of the business as well as provides interior decorating services for clients looking for a hassle-free investment.
“We see quite a stable demand. It has not gone down,” Reynolds said. “On the contrary, there is more international promotion. We see more foreigners becoming aware of this possibility.”
How it works
Buying real estate in Argentina can be daunting for overseas investors. Mortgages are nearly nonexistent, meaning transactions are done in cash. Also, sellers rarely will want to register the actual sales price hoping to avoid taxes.
Unlike other countries, however, overseas buyers here can purchase a home in their name and are guaranteed the same protections as local buyers.
Yearly expenses include property taxes and a 0.75 percent wealth tax that is based on the value of the property. Property owners that rent also need to withhold 21 percent of the income to pay rental taxes.
Prior to selling a property, the government may do a check of the utility records to see if the property was occupied. If a owner hasn’t paid the rental taxes, then the government will assess what it believes is owed in taxes.
For those looking for a stress-free move, businesses have sprung up that will handle most everything. Cliff Williamson runs Transpack Argentina, a relocation firm that will pack your house up anywhere in the world and import it to Argentina.
Williamson also runs Latin American Homecoming, a subsidiary that handles everything from picking clients up at the airport to providing profiles of neighborhoods and schools. His business even offers a 24-hour hotline for late night emergencies.
“We’re moving in a lot of people,” said Williamson, who averages about 400 moves into Latin America a year, many involving corporate relocations.
Chicago-based flight attendant Anne Elizabeth fell in love with Buenos Aires 30 years ago, but didn’t have the resources then to make an investment.
A year and a half ago, she came back to visit, rekindled her love with the city and ended up buying a one-bedroom apartment in a century old building just a few blocks from the Recoleta Cemetery. Designed by a French architect, she said, the building has a sister in Paris.
Elizabeth spent US$93,000 to buy the unit then spent another US$40,000 renovating it, including a complete overhaul of the kitchen and bathrooms with granite, appliances and cabinets. Her taxes, regime and utilities, she said, never exceed US$250 a month.
For her, Buenos Aires was less about the deal and more about the lifestyle. “I love walking across the street to get my fruit and vegetables from a local vendor,” said Elizabeth, who spends one week a month here. “Everybody in the neighborhood knows my name. I love that part of it.”
www.buysellba.com
World-class restaurants, museums and health-care services are luring overseas buyers to Buenos Aires
By James Scott | May 24, 2006Chicago residents Mark Warden and his wife Mary Beth found a steal on the ideal second home, offering a retreat from the bitter Illinois winters, great culture and stunning architecture. The only catch is it takes an overnight flight to Buenos Aires to get there.
The couple paid about US$150,000 last year for a 90-square-meter, one-bedroom apartment on Rodriguez Peña in Recoleta. The experience went so smoothly that the Warden’s are now closing on another place – in a century-old building – that cost just US$60,000.
“I was surprised at the sophistication of the city,” said Mark Warden, a retired president of an Illinois community college. “This could be any place in Spain or Italy.”
The Warden’s aren’t the only ones who’ve opted to move farther south than Florida in their search for a second home, trading in the comforts of a US lifestyle for the rich cultural experience Buenos Aires offers.
With real estate prices soaring across much of the United States, Canada and Europe, investors increasingly are buying up everything from apartments in downtown Buenos Aires to farms in the countryside and even wineries that dot the basins of the Andes Mountain.
The rush is fueled in part by the 2002 devaluation of the peso – once pegged one-to-one with the dollar – that has meant that an apartment in the heart of the city can go for not much more than what a luxury car might cost back home.
Cheap prices aren’t all that is fueling the trend. Buenos Aires offers world-class restaurants, museums boasting European masters and modern health care services that have landed the city on the covers of many world travel magazines.
“It offers pretty much everything for everybody,” said María Reynolds, who along with her husband, Paul, runs Reynolds Propiedades, an agency that assists foreign buyers. “If you like tango, there’s tango. There is also polo, lots of golf courses and the weather and food are fantastic.”
Bargain prices
The obvious draw for many is price. In Paris, the costs are about US$8,000 to US$9,000 per square meter. In New York’s Manhattan, the average cost per square meter is US$10,000 to US$12,000 and in some parts of London the numbers can exceed US$18,000 per square meter.
In contrast, Puerto Madero – Buenos Aires’ hippest, not to mention most expensive, new neighborhood that lines the water – the cost is about US$3,000 a square meter.
Homes in the more established Recoleta, with a feel of New York’s Upper East Side, range from about US$1,400 to US$2,600 per square meter. Barrio Norte is an even better deal with at US$1,100 to US$1,300 per square meter.
While costs have been climbing in recent years, many believe the market will continue to rebound, pushed in part by the now soaring tourism industry. The number of visitors is growing roughly 10 percent per year with more than four million tourists expected to visit this year.
Chicago-born businessman Michael Koh helps international investors and second-home seekers buy real estate through his company ApartmentsBA.
Koh, who bought his first house here in 2003, said he now buys an average of two to three properties a week. His team of 35 employees helps handle everything for clients from showing properties and writing sales offers to overseeing the closings, renovations and decorations.
His business has boomed. What started as buying apartments for individual investors has morphed into working for investment funds, buying land and building new homes and now undertaking the acquisition of dated buildings to transform them into high-end hotels.
“You can buy cheap real estate and make money anywhere in the world,” Koh said. “The good thing about Buenos Aires is it is real estate you will actually use.”
María Reynolds said her family’s bus helps international investors and second-home seekers buy real estate through his company ApartmentsBAcused on temporary rentals, handling only a few sales each year.
The company, which now sees more than 100 sales a year, offers seminars twice a year for prospective buyers looking to navigate the bureaucracy.
To facilitate overseas buyers, Reynolds has developed a property management arm of the business as well as provides interior decorating services for clients looking for a hassle-free investment.
“We see quite a stable demand. It has not gone down,” Reynolds said. “On the contrary, there is more international promotion. We see more foreigners becoming aware of this possibility.”
How it works
Buying real estate in Argentina can be daunting for overseas investors. Mortgages are nearly nonexistent, meaning transactions are done in cash. Also, sellers rarely will want to register the actual sales price hoping to avoid taxes.
Unlike other countries, however, overseas buyers here can purchase a home in their name and are guaranteed the same protections as local buyers.
Yearly expenses include property taxes and a 0.75 percent wealth tax that is based on the value of the property. Property owners that rent also need to withhold 21 percent of the income to pay rental taxes.
Prior to selling a property, the government may do a check of the utility records to see if the property was occupied. If a owner hasn’t paid the rental taxes, then the government will assess what it believes is owed in taxes.
For those looking for a stress-free move, businesses have sprung up that will handle most everything. Cliff Williamson runs Transpack Argentina, a relocation firm that will pack your house up anywhere in the world and import it to Argentina.
Williamson also runs Latin American Homecoming, a subsidiary that handles everything from picking clients up at the airport to providing profiles of neighborhoods and schools. His business even offers a 24-hour hotline for late night emergencies.
“We’re moving in a lot of people,” said Williamson, who averages about 400 moves into Latin America a year, many involving corporate relocations.
Chicago-based flight attendant Anne Elizabeth fell in love with Buenos Aires 30 years ago, but didn’t have the resources then to make an investment.
A year and a half ago, she came back to visit, rekindled her love with the city and ended up buying a one-bedroom apartment in a century old building just a few blocks from the Recoleta Cemetery. Designed by a French architect, she said, the building has a sister in Paris.
Elizabeth spent US$93,000 to buy the unit then spent another US$40,000 renovating it, including a complete overhaul of the kitchen and bathrooms with granite, appliances and cabinets. Her taxes, regime and utilities, she said, never exceed US$250 a month.
For her, Buenos Aires was less about the deal and more about the lifestyle. “I love walking across the street to get my fruit and vegetables from a local vendor,” said Elizabeth, who spends one week a month here. “Everybody in the neighborhood knows my name. I love that part of it.”
www.buysellba.com
