Hey expats,
I am putting a spreadsheet of expenses together and I want to know the minimum cost for an apartment in a neighborhood like Boca, San Telmo or Constitucion. I am figuring out the bare minimum to live here. I checked craigslist, but they all seem to be ads for Palermo or Recoleta.
Anybody know any average?
La Boca I would avoid, it is fine during the day but at night dodgy. Barrancas same thing, I wouldn't want to walk around at night. San Telmo on the other hand can end up quite expensive as it has become trendy. For cheaper neighbourhoods that aren't terrible for walking around in at night I would try Boedo, San Cristobal and Parque Patricios. Check argenprop or inmuebles clarin for current prices. They are pretty well connected areas for public transport and there's a bike path from Parque Patricios through Boedo, Parque Centenario etc. Boedo I think now has Linea H through it.
If you can either get a garantia or save enough money for a few months rent to deposit in advance you can probably get yourself onto a 2 yr contract. If you have to do tourist (6 mos contracts) San Telmo tourist apartments will probably be a lot more expensive.
I'm not really sure where to look for flatshares for those areas, maybe through a Spanish school for foreigners? That's how I ended up in San Cristobal years ago when I first arrived, the place where I was taking lessons got me an apartment in the area for the first few weeks i was here.
Oh and 1)) 2 yr rental = cheaper,, but you need to buy your own fridge (and furniture)
2) You might want to try a pension in a nice neighbourhood before you actually try La Boca. The ex-girlfriend of a friend of ours lived in a pension in Palermo/Almagro for years.
http://www.pensionbuenosaires.com.ar/almagro/
http://compartir-casa-depto.vivavisos.com.ar/alquilar-habitacion+almagro
http://www.apartestudiantil.com.ar/
http://buenos-aires.guia.clarin.com/alojamiento-en-pensiones-almagro
Do a search for pension or hotel familiar and the barrio you are looking for,, you might find a room to rent. If I were you, I'd start looking in the best barrios and then go down from there -- you're more likely to find a decent environment in a better barrio.
