blackiethecat
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- Mar 28, 2015
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If anyone has any issues with a landlord or rental agency in Buenos Aires there is a wonderful organization called the Unión Argentina de Inquilinos that will assist you for a nominal fee and which saved me from paying $1,300 to an unethical rental agency. It is a consumer advocacy group affiliated with the Defensa del Consumidor. Sorry for the length here but I need to put everything in proper context.
For 10 weeks I had a basketball sized hole in my bathroom ceiling in Palermo Botanico where I am paying an above market price for a relatively short-term rental. Water from the bathroom above me dripped through this hole 24 hours a day and eventually cockroaches and mosquitoes found their way through the hole. And in time there were 4 inch mushrooms growing out of the ceiling to wall corner. Pieces of the ceiling constantly collapsed and fell into the bathroom floor. It was disgusting.
After 10 weeks of stories from the rental agency I demanded a new apartment. Eventually we agreed that I would stay in the current apartment in return for a free month’s rent and repairs being completed within 10 days. But when it came time to sign the extended lease the rental agency made the excuse that the employee who gave me the extra month was not authorized to do so. I then agreed to a 50% discount just to avoid further turmoil. However, the 50% discount turned out to be not 50% at all since the rental agency did not lower May’s rent to a lower off-season price as they said that they would. Finally, to add insult to injury, the rental agency wanted me to pay their PayPal fees.
I went to the Defensa del Consumidor which referred me to the Union Argentina de Inquilinos. At their office I presented my case, the documents, the emails and the photos to Doctora Janina Martinez who carefully reviewed the situation and contract. Her fee was 500 pesos which she said she would return if she could not resolve the situation in my favor. She called the rental agency and owner and 'educated' them with respect to the law and to tenants’ rights. The end result was that I received the free month that I was initially promised and thus I saved $1,300.
Walking into Doctora Martinez’s office I mentally handicapped my chances of success at about 5%. But for just 500 pesos it was worth a try. After many years of living across South America I never thought that an Argentine attorney would actually help an American versus an Argentine business. Fortunately, Doctora Martinez is an ethical person who advocated on my behalf against an unethical rental agency that was trying to squeeze me for every peso. Without her help I surely would have been cheated by the rental agency. I hope that no one goes through the rental Hell that I did but if you do, I highly recommend La Unión Argentina de Inquilinos organization and Doctora Martinez. Just make sure that you have all the documents and photos.
La Unión Argentina de Inquilinos
Paraná 236, Piso 1º, Depto. 2.
Teléfonos: 4371-2630/5774.
Lunes a Viernes de 14:00 a 19:00 hs.
[email protected]
For 10 weeks I had a basketball sized hole in my bathroom ceiling in Palermo Botanico where I am paying an above market price for a relatively short-term rental. Water from the bathroom above me dripped through this hole 24 hours a day and eventually cockroaches and mosquitoes found their way through the hole. And in time there were 4 inch mushrooms growing out of the ceiling to wall corner. Pieces of the ceiling constantly collapsed and fell into the bathroom floor. It was disgusting.
After 10 weeks of stories from the rental agency I demanded a new apartment. Eventually we agreed that I would stay in the current apartment in return for a free month’s rent and repairs being completed within 10 days. But when it came time to sign the extended lease the rental agency made the excuse that the employee who gave me the extra month was not authorized to do so. I then agreed to a 50% discount just to avoid further turmoil. However, the 50% discount turned out to be not 50% at all since the rental agency did not lower May’s rent to a lower off-season price as they said that they would. Finally, to add insult to injury, the rental agency wanted me to pay their PayPal fees.
I went to the Defensa del Consumidor which referred me to the Union Argentina de Inquilinos. At their office I presented my case, the documents, the emails and the photos to Doctora Janina Martinez who carefully reviewed the situation and contract. Her fee was 500 pesos which she said she would return if she could not resolve the situation in my favor. She called the rental agency and owner and 'educated' them with respect to the law and to tenants’ rights. The end result was that I received the free month that I was initially promised and thus I saved $1,300.
Walking into Doctora Martinez’s office I mentally handicapped my chances of success at about 5%. But for just 500 pesos it was worth a try. After many years of living across South America I never thought that an Argentine attorney would actually help an American versus an Argentine business. Fortunately, Doctora Martinez is an ethical person who advocated on my behalf against an unethical rental agency that was trying to squeeze me for every peso. Without her help I surely would have been cheated by the rental agency. I hope that no one goes through the rental Hell that I did but if you do, I highly recommend La Unión Argentina de Inquilinos organization and Doctora Martinez. Just make sure that you have all the documents and photos.
La Unión Argentina de Inquilinos
Paraná 236, Piso 1º, Depto. 2.
Teléfonos: 4371-2630/5774.
Lunes a Viernes de 14:00 a 19:00 hs.
[email protected]
