sab15 said:
Hey, $600 for a luxury apt. is pretty good. If I was up the food chain $7,200 upfront for the year is really not a lot of money.
Keep in mind that it's far from automatic that someone will accept a year in advance in lieu of a garantia. You may have to do some searching and negotiating, and you'll certainly need a decent command of Spanish or someone helping you who does.
There are some other expenses, usually a commission for the inmobiliaria and honorarios for the escribano that witnesses your lease. The standard (and only) term for an unfurnished rental is 2 years. The law says that you (the tenant) can break that lease after 6 months by paying two months' rent penalty and after one year by paying one month's rent as a penalty.
Keep in mind that most temporary rentals include all services, such as electricity, gas, telephone, cable, internet, etc. Like citygirl said, these will add at least another u$s50-60 a month. You will also usually have to pay the building expensas, which in some buildings, especially those with doormen or other amenities, can be quite expensive.
I'd say unless and until you're committed to your long term future here, you should get a temporary rental while deciding. Don't underestimate the amount of time and energy you will burn up trying to beat the system for what will ultimately, in areas like Palermo, be a fairly small difference in price all said and done.