(hopefully) coming in May! Accommodation question!

[e-rose]

Hi, I'm Laura. 20yr old british student.
I am hopefully going to be coming to Buenos Aires May-July next year.
I was wondering about the cost of accommodation and where is the best place to look? (most of what I get when I search online are holiday apartments and far too expensive!)
cheers

 

[kateg]

Unfortunately, the rental system in Argentina requires a guarantee. Most real estate agencies and owners require it to be from an immediate family member here in capital. You can purchase a guarantee (dont tell the person renting it to you) but this is a risk. You pay one month rent for the guarantee which the person has probably sold at least 20 other times. If the person renting to you checks up on it and finds that it is as such, they will reject you. About 50% of purchased guarantees get rejected. On top of that, it is not very common to find furnished apartments. Hence two ways the tourists rental came about.
Otherwise you can try searching the Clarin for an owner renting, having a friend in BsAs go and try to convince them to rent to you, maybe in exchange for a higher monthly rent.
Alternatively, you can also check craigslist.com. The rents here are still a bit inflated, but I think a little less than at the agencies.

 

[Fishface]

e-rose, please consider your safety as number one priority - this might come as a bigger expense by living in a 24hrs security guarded building - but it is worth it. People/visitors generally underestimate the 'inseguridad' here.

 

[steveinbsas]

e-rose, please consider your safety as number one priority - this might come as a bigger expense by living in a 24hrs security guarded building - but it is worth it. People/visitors generally underestimate the 'inseguridad' here.

This is the best advise about living here you will receive.

 

[e-rose]

Thanks,
so, further to that, I've been in South America before so I have some idea of what it's like, but not Buenos Aires - in terms of safety (and especially being a girlie) - how does BA compare? Say to the rest of South America, or to somewhere like London?