Negotiating Home Rentals in BA

[profe]

Hello,
I am a newcomer to BA (San Isidro). We are staying in temporary furnished rental for 2 months. My wife and I wanted to know if generally home rental prices are negotiable and if so what kind of reduction can you normally get?

For example we are looking to rent homes in San Isidro up to $2500 USD. If a home is listed for $2500 how low can we go?

Thanks!

 

[French jurist]

Do you seek a temporary rental or 2 years rental?
Will you be able to pay in USDs?
If looking for long term, will you have a "garantia" (someone from here owning a house who will act as such)?
If looking for long term without garantia, would you be able to give 30.000 USDs at once? (one year rental + the deposits, etc.)

 

[TrevorCito]

Hi Profe,

From my experience here there is no set discount percentage you can expect to receive when negotiating the rent on a department. Some owners are willing to negotiate because they might need to rent their apartment more urgently whereas others might not be willing to negotiate at all. The easiest way to find out would be to talk with the agent (and owner if possible) to ascertain their 'need' to rent and negotiate from there.

Beware though because many owners find tenants through real estate agents who are generally paid an up front commission (often one month rent) rather than an ongoing monthly percentage. If you request a steep discount, an unethical agent may not actually pass on the request to the owner so it might be in your interest to negotiate the discount directly with the owner.

Another factor that might make negotiating a healthy discount difficult is the fact that most homes are owned outright rather than mortgaged so there is little economic pressure to rent in a hurry. In Australia and other countries with access to easy home loans, owners often have to cover interest payments and are therefore more willing to negotiate discounts. This is not the case here.

I know some home owners who more than happy to let their apartments sit vacant than rent at discount. This to me defies logic but after having lived in Argentina for over 7 years I have come to accept that the laws of the universe and economics invert when you enter Argentine airspace.

Regards and good luck.
Trev