Buy a house in BA?

[desde_Holanda]

I know several argentines who bought apartments with their own money. Generally they bought their first one for $30k or so, then traded up on equity over time- Exactly the way I did it in the USA.
But its absolutely true that many argentines inherit apartments.

In my small building, 2 apartments sold in the last few years, both to professional single women who go to work every single day. Hard to say where people get there money, and if its inherited, but plenty of argentines start small and work up.

current price for the average home in the USA - the ENTIRE USA- is $400,000 plus.
Which doesnt make argentina seem so overpriced to me.

My opinion, based on owning a home in BA, is that the desirable apartments and homes will hold their value- but, to me, that means two things- a good neighborhood, and an older, well built home. The new apartments are terribly built, and will not last 20 years before needing major work. But my 120 year apartment has original, quality, windows, doors, floors, tile, and hardware. Good older buildings hold their value, as they are irreplaceable at any cost these days.

Actually my wife and I have just a month ago agreed on buying a beautiful old house in Caballito, very nicely renovated. We know the owners very well, long time friends with the family and very nice people. I won't say we get a bargain, but this is not about return on investment. It's about living in a house we love, in a neighbourhood we like very much, and in a street we also like. It will lock a substantial part of our assets in 'stones', but actually i don't care what the value will be in about 10 years. We plan to have wonderful times in that house.

 

[Ceviche]

Actually my wife and I have just a month ago agreed on buying a beautiful old house in Caballito, very nicely renovated. We know the owners very well, long time friends with the family and very nice people. I won't say we get a bargain, but this is not about return on investment. It's about living in a house we love, in a neighbourhood we like very much, and in a street we also like. It will lock a substantial part of our assets in 'stones', but actually i don't care what the value will be in about 10 years. We plan to have wonderful times in that house.

Good Decision.

 

[Alpinista]

So middle class people, doctors, engineers etc who don't come from a family with means just have to rent forever?

In any ogher country doctors, engineers etc are not considered middle class but at least upper middle class.
Even though, consider the following example: you earn 200k pesos a month, which is a very high local salary. Given the high taxes etc, it would be very hard to save 500 usd a month (but possible if you are single). If you manage this, it would take you 30 years to buy a 180k usd apartment in caba (which is not luxury even).

 

[FrankPintor]

We must know different people.

I know somebody who just bought a tiny apartment in Palermo, as an investment, a couple of months ago. I know another young-ish couple building a home in Maschowitz. No Macri mortgages.

We looked at Ingeniero Maschwitz, very convenient to Buenos Aires city, close to the delta, train station, nice town centre with a fossilized whale I believe, if a bit overrun by all the new arrivals. It seems they have serious problems with potable water supply and sewage though. A 700m2 site out there would have set you back about $18k in March, though the estate agent said at that point that the price was going up by $1000 a week. Not sure how that ended.

 

[desde_Holanda]

We looked at Ingeniero Maschwitz, very convenient to Buenos Aires city, close to the delta, train station, nice town centre with a fossilized whale I believe, if a bit overrun by all the new arrivals. It seems they have serious problems with potable water supply and sewage though. A 700m2 site out there would have set you back about $18k in March, though the estate agent said at that point that the price was going up by $1000 a week. Not sure how that ended.

Don't be too optimistic about the proximity to Capital Federal. Traffic gets worse every year with all the new barrios cerrados they are developing in the north. And I wouldn't say Maschwitz actually has a town centre, it's too small for that.
Apart from that all, I do understand people that wants to live in the province instead of CF. Just a totally different life, so it depends on what you're looking for. And indeed, houses are cheaper. We love living in the city, but yes: that's personal.

 

[Ries]

My friends who moved to Maschwitz and are building have a toddler- and are sort of self-employed right now- so commuting is not a big factor. For raising a kid, its nice out there. But I agree, for me, the city is the reason I live in Argentina.

One factor that often goes ignored- zoning. The zoning of a lot of barrios in Buenos Aires have changed recently, allowing high rise, or at least mid rise (8 stories) construction. This benefits the developers, which, in Argentina, is a pretty small group of the wealthy. It doesnt help most people, as new construction always costs more than existing- new apartments are much more expensive than 100 year old ones.
I am seeing a lot of amazing older Casa Chorizos, including some stellar art deco architecture, sell for a half million USD, because they can then build 14 units that sell for between $300k and $500k US. Plus two storefronts on the ground floor.
There is one by my house, on Coronel Diaz, that was on the market for 1.4 million- beautiful house from 120 years ago, and the value was all in the land.
This is an intentional law that was passed to benefit somebody.

It hurst most people.
What the city should be doing, in my opinion, is building small scale- 20 to 50 unit buildings- that are built with state backed loans, and are co-ops like Co-Op City in NYC, where there is a lid on future sales prices, to avoid speculation. Its a concept that is proven, for decades, all over northern europe, but it doesnt profit developers...

 

[¡Sencillamente yo!]

I would hope my name is on the deed considering I paid for half the house (it is). I know a few people who own their house not through inheritence. There was a time just after the default in 2001 that you could get a mortgage that became extremely cheap just a few years later. Paying off the house became easy. If you were in a position to get on the ladder during that time, as my wife and her then husband were, they had paid the mortgage within five years. I know a lot of people who did the same.

You can pay off a fixed rate loan in a massive inflationary environment lickety split!

 

[¡Sencillamente yo!]

I know several argentines who bought apartments with their own money. Generally they bought their first one for $30k or so, then traded up on equity over time- Exactly the way I did it in the USA.
But its absolutely true that many argentines inherit apartments.

In my small building, 2 apartments sold in the last few years, both to professional single women who go to work every single day. Hard to say where people get there money, and if its inherited, but plenty of argentines start small and work up.

current price for the average home in the USA - the ENTIRE USA- is $400,000 plus.
Which doesnt make argentina seem so overpriced to me.

My opinion, based on owning a home in BA, is that the desirable apartments and homes will hold their value- but, to me, that means two things- a good neighborhood, and an older, well built home. The new apartments are terribly built, and will not last 20 years before needing major work. But my 120 year apartment has original, quality, windows, doors, floors, tile, and hardware. Good older buildings hold their value, as they are irreplaceable at any cost these days.

Building materials of 120 years ago are archaic and are a time capsule compared to what is available today. In fact, the materials that are available today, out the materials of 20 years ago to shame. JMTC

 

[¡Sencillamente yo!]

Actually my wife and I have just a month ago agreed on buying a beautiful old house in Caballito, very nicely renovated. We know the owners very well, long time friends with the family and very nice people. I won't say we get a bargain, but this is not about return on investment. It's about living in a house we love, in a neighbourhood we like very much, and in a street we also like. It will lock a substantial part of our assets in 'stones', but actually i don't care what the value will be in about 10 years. We plan to have wonderful times in that house.

Desde, You have the correct viewpoint for the place you live. It's not an investment as much as it is your home and the place you take your shelter from the world. Good for you.

 

[Ceviche]

We love living in the city

Me too