Hi all, considering moving from Australia.

[SaraSara]

I'm not closed community material
My car has been broken since december, I go out and come back at night or later and walk three blocks home...Im not stupid though, I dont show off and I have three lovely, but big dogs, one of them a rottie (ppl fear them as if they were the devil)

I'm not closed community material either.

Rottweilers have a bad reputation, but can be real sweeties. I only have small and medium dogs (adopted strays), but my next one will be large - their bark is more menacing.

 

[missveronica]

Rottweilers have a bad reputation, but can be real sweeties.

Let me tell you, though this is a off-topic conversation, I had my concerns with Rotties. However, after having one I can say they are the best dog ever.
Gûnther (my rott) is sweet and quiet and very friendly...Many of my family and friends were afraid to come home but once they got to know him they love him. Of course it all depends on how you raise it.

Here's a pic of us...his viciously licking my face...

 

[missveronica]

cant seem to post the pic right
Sorry

Here's my fotolog

http://www.fotolog.com/escorpio1978

 

[marksoc]

I actually live at the edge of Garin, not far off the Panamericana Pilar branch. I'm actually between the Tortugitas exit and the Del Viso exit. A neighborhood called La Legua.

I didn't realize that anyone from the forum lived out here!

BTW - we looked at schools in the Del Viso area and saw some nice ones, just a little too far from us (Tortuguitas is a little closer with easier access) and we couldn't find a school bus company that would come to our neighborhood to pick up.

I've thought about looking for a house outside of a closed neighborhood, close to where I am now, and in Tortuguitas and Del Viso as well.

The biggest issue for me is safety. The truth is, I feel safe where I am, even in the neighborhood outside of my closed meighborhood. The people seem nice, the properties are well-cared for (for Argentina) and it feels comfortable. But we have a woman that comes to our house on occasion to help with clean ups after parties and such who lives nearby and has told me emphatically that I should never think about living outside of a closed neighborhood if I can at all avoid it. She lives closer to Garin, about 1/2 kilometer from me, and it could be where SHE herself lives, that is the big problem. But I've talked to her about nearby and she says if she had any way to live in a closed neighborhood she would do it all the time because of the problems they have all the time with gangs of kids roaming around and stealing crap, etc.

In fact, we have about 3-4 break-ins into the neighborhood every month. So far they have not gotten away with anything - our guards are very attentive and they have foiled every attempt since I've been here. But the amount of attempts make me wonder what it would be like if I lived outside, in a regular house, even with walls around the lot. I have a lot of electronic equipment (part of my job) that would kill me to replace, not to mention my data and such.

And this happens a lot in places where gated communities replaced the old neighbourhoods (the north of Buenos Aires). Life in the Western suburbs is completely different, and in the small towns such as Capilla del Señor more so. I prefer those. Of course, when you have rich closed communities and working-class almost-slums thrown together, this things will happen.

 

[Moonwitch]

Don´t come. It is a horrible country, you won´t make any money and people will scam you at every opportunity.

 

[missveronica]

Don´t come. It is a horrible country, you won´t make any money and people will scam you at every opportunity.

 

[ElQueso]

Yeah, I'm finding out that I'm not a closed-community person either.

Veronica, my wife comes from extremely humble origins - there is nothing wrong with living in a humble hood. Although she is Paraguayan but she doesn't like reggaeton, just romantic latino music.

When I came out to the northern suburbs I was told to come out here by a couple of Argentine friends that I had. They told me it was the best place to live in a house, etc, etc. I have since heard that the west may be a better place to be overall.

But when we went to look for houses, there were no inmobiliarias that we could find that deal with renting houses outside of closed barrios. Now that I have more experience, I know where to look.

I have come to realize that I don't like living like the people here live. They are haughty, rude, they mistreat their animals, they don't care about their neighbors. Not only is the place too expensive now, but I would be leaving anyway because I don't feel very welcome here.

 

[bsas]

Don't know if the original poster is still checking this message, but just in case......

One thing that you must think about before moving to Argentina, is the cyclical nature of this country. While most expats currently living in Buenos Aires have only seen the up side of this cycle, this country suffers major setbacks every 10 years or so due to the way that the politicians run the place. While the upside of these cycles is an exciting and interesting time to be in the country and a great time to make some quick profits, the downside can be extremely dangerous and very damaging to any investment such as real estate. The stage is set for a vicious down cycle in Argentina due to abysmal public finances and one of the worst presidents to ever soil the hallways of the Pink House in a country with a history of very, very bad presidents. The last time this happened in 2001, most expats fled the city in droves.

Also, do not believe the articles you read about how affordable Buenos Aires is. This was the case a few years ago, but, the country now offers few truly great deals other than highly subsidized public goods such as electricity, water, and transportation that are becoming less and less of a deal. Nowadays in general you pay prices on par with many first world cities, but getting the same quality is a next-to-impossible mission. Real estate is overpriced, of poor quality (particularly new construction), and has no place to go but down in the mid term as pricing was based on cash rich farmers and foreigners who will be quick to sell at the sign of any instability.

Never ever underestimate what a Peronist leader is capable of when they run short of cash, especially when you're easily vilified as a 'rich foreigner'.

 

[socalcouple]

As a commercial real estate investor from the states, I agree that real estate here is way overpriced/over valued. Do the math? If you can rent something for $400-$1,000/mo. why would you pay $200K and without the benefit of leverage? I came thinking maybe... but due diligence says just enjoy the upside of the culture why visiting!

 

[syngirl]

As a commercial real estate investor from the states, I agree that real estate here is way overpriced/over valued. Do the math? If you can rent something for $400-$1,000/mo. why would you pay $200K and without the benefit of leverage? I came thinking maybe... but due diligence says just enjoy the upside of the culture why visiting!

People -- meaning locals -- pay what they do for real estate here because it is the safest place to keep your money. The stock exchange is very small here, there's not a lot of trading going on, so not many people invest there. If they have opportunities, they take their money abroad. If not, they invest it in property. Also, most apartments that are going for 400 -1000 a month rental are not 200k to buy. They are more like 80-120k tops (and a 400 a month place is more likely to be 80 and below).

$200k is a very large property here with all the amenities, the rental on a place like that would be well over 1000 dollars unless your talking about a spread pretty far out of town. $200k properties account for only a small percentage of the real estate market inside of capital.