change in rental laws?

[sergio]

Unless the law has changed, it is not a requirement to be a permanent resident to get a regular rental. I signed two regular two year rental contracts before I was a permanent resident (I had a renewable DNI). I had to get guarantors - my employer provided the first; the second I found myself. Fortunately I knew a family here who owed me a big favor and were willing to sign. I repeat: I was NOT a permanent resident but maybe the laws have changed. Nikad, please comment. Anyway if I had not known this family there would have been NO WAY that I could have found guarantors. You have to be VERY WELL connected to get a guarantor.

Martin...I agree, the money the government will lose from utility increases has to come from somewhere. I don't know, though, that foreigners will be targeted. Are foreigners such an important part of the economy? The proposed changes in the rental laws would appear to be a way of obtaining higher taxes but I believe there will be a LOT of opposition. Investment in property ("bricks") has long been the Argentine way of surviving and preparing for retirement. Will the government end this? Surely the implementation of such a law would lead to massive sales. Who is going to agree to increasing the fiscal value to allow for higher rents? And who will go along with such a low ROI?

As for the utility rates, I believe they are rolled back until September at which time the rollback is reduced to 70% of the original hike. The government will then have to increase rates gradually, something they would have been wise to do in the first place.

 

[jp]

I'm not a permanent resident, and I signed a 2 year contract without any problems. Company stood as guarantor and corporate lawyers signed and witnessed the whole thing.

Laws clearly designed to benefit the people on the bottom levels of society - people without means to buy their own property, and subject to the whims of the property market. Also presumably puts the brakes on rampant property inflation and spiralling rents. So in that respect they're measures to promote stability and avoid housing market boom and bust.

Can see why its being proposed. The side effects of its implementation might see it backfire though.

 

[sergio]

JP, Do you know anything about rent control laws in New York? The plan was originally intended to do what you stated. Instead people have stayed in apartments, many in the best parts of Manhattan, for incredibly low rents. Alistair Cooke lived out his days in a huge flat facing Central Park paying less than one-fifth the real value. http://www.spoa.com/pages/03rent-control.html
The proposed law would backfire just like New York rent controls.
Anyway, why should owners subsidize renters? Are they responsible for inflation?

 

[2GuysInPM]

Thanks for the article nikad. It's an interesting read.

The law seems to mandate the use of bank accounts for the owners to collect their rent money. (Thus, a clear way for the government to track rental income that is normally done today cash "en negro".)

It also talks about the exclusion from this law, of furnished rentals for the purpose of tourism (ie, temp rentals). But limits the temp rental period to 3 months. (I believe it is currently 6 months, if I am not mistaken).

Many other interesting regulations and clauses...

I like the paragraph that says:

The suply and demand market for rental does not work, because prices go up vertiginously when demand grows, but virtually do not go down when demand decreases.

as part of the prefix for proposing more government intervention in the rental market.

 

[John.St]

No, guarantors are INDIVIDUALS. That is why it is almost impossible for an expat to get a regular rental. Expats who are new to Argentina do not have close friends or relatives who are willing to make such a huge commitment. The risks can be tremendous.

You can often buy a guarantia through your lawyer - mine has told me that she can easily arrange it if necessary - it's like buying an insurance.

 

[nikad]

My bad, here is the law and it says nothing about being a perm resident http://www.inforemate.com/rc/pdfs/ley23091.htm it is possible that some RE agencies try to get you to sign a temp contract as they usually charge more for those

 

[nikad]

You can often buy a guarantia through your lawyer - mine has told me that she can easily arrange it if necessary - it's like buying an insurance.

Generally RE agencies are able to tell and they reject them 99% per cent of the time, it is a lottery though. See in the past, 2 garantias were required, I once talked to this man who used a property of his and bought another garantia. Well, it turns out that the real one was rejected and they told him it was bought, and the bought one looked clean to them ( crazy stuff happens here )

 

[John.St]

Generally RE agencies are able to tell and they reject them 99% per cent of the time, it is a lottery though. See in the past, 2 garantias were required, I once talked to this man who used a property of his and bought another garantia. Well, it turns out that the real one was rejected and they told him it was bought, and the bought one looked clean to them ( crazy stuff happens here )

Sure about this?

My lawyer is not just a lawyer but also a close friend of a friend, so for her there is more at stake than just money, if the garantia is rejected.

 

[nikad]

When they ask at Registro de la Propiedad, typically bought garantias have been used several times, chances are that your lawyer/friend a) only used a garantia everyonce in a while and do it because he knows you are no scammer, or B) he plans to sell the property anyway, so he signs whatever, sells, and if you don´t pay it is not his problem

 

[John.St]

... chances are that your lawyer/friend a) only used a garantia everyonce in a while and do it because he knows you are no scammer, or B) he plans to sell the property anyway, so he signs whatever, sells, and if you don´t pay it is not his problem

Your a) as our common friend has a general idea of my financial status and knows that defaulting on a debt is not a risk.

My second solution could be to deposit 10-15-20,000 pesos on a shared account, drawing right only with combined signatures from dueño + me || dueño + my abogada || my abogada + dueño's lawyer.

I can also use my present dueño as a reference to the new one - we are friends and I know I can trust him (tested), but unfortunately he doesn't have a vacant apartment the size I need when I move my furniture to Argentina.