Chapter 2: House-hunting
Looking for your nest
Put aside your ideas of how house hunting works where you came from. Things may be very different for you here. For example, many people make a trip to Buenos Aires to find accommodations before the actually move here. If you expect to spend a week, or whatever time you have allowed, in a daily series of visits to all the possibilities, you may be disappointed. Appointments must be made for each and every viewing and the scheduling will be dependent on the owner’s availability. This can be very time consuming and means that you will only see one or two in a day and on some days, none. Also keep in mind if is very difficult (or impossible) to schedule viewings on Saturday and Sunday. Sometimes a Saturday time might work but not usually. Keep a record of all the apartments and/or houses you have seen as they may be listed with several real estate agents.
Bear in mind that the role of the real estate agency/agent (inmobiliaria) may not be the same as you are used to. It is very important you never assume anything, like the oven having a broiler. You have to ask questions and you have to personally make sure everything works and that it actually exists. If you are told there’s a back-up generator for power, ask to see it. Remember to old rule, “Buyer Beware!” On the other side of the coin you may need to repeat your priorities several times (I need 4 bedrooms not 3, I need to have a pool, I need to have a large living room/reception area for entertaining…). They sometimes forget the “needs” and focus on the special aspects of the house.
It is exceedingly important to get all the conditions and agreements in writing. Don’t accept a verbal agreement, for instance, to paint the kitchen. Put everything in writing and never sign anything until the document is to your complete satisfaction, with every single item spelled out. You may worry that you are about to lose the “perfect place” in wrangling over details, but a very specific written agreement will save you many potential headaches and/or disappointments in the long run. Again, it would be a good idea of a walk through the property with a list and digital camera.
Where?
You will also have to decide whether you want to live in the city or in the suburbs. It’s a very personal choice. Some choose the suburbs, or further out, because they want to live close to their children’s school; or they want to live where it feels and it looks like a residential area. Other choose the city because they feel more secure in an apartment house with a doorman (portero) who screens the entrance; they want to avoid the long and tedious commutes to the office in the city; they want to have easy access to all the activities, restaurants, and theaters that the city has to offer; and they want the experience of public transportation system of the city. There are more and more apartment buildings springing up in the northern suburbs that would allow the apartment lifestyle and services but closer to the schools or further out of the hubbub of the city center.
The most popular areas within the city, listed in geographical order starting with downtown and, roughly running along the river out toward the General Paz Highway, which defines the city limits are:
Barrio Norte, Recoleta, Palermo, Palermo Viejo, Belgrano R (further inland, on the other side of Av. Cabildo) and Belgrano C (on the river side of Av. Cabildo).
The suburbs, also stretching outwards along the river starting form General Paz Highway are: Vicente Lopez, Olivos, La Lucila, Martinez, Acassuso, San Isidro and Beccar.
If you enjoy country living, there are many country clubs such as Hurlingham, which is approximately 30 to 40 minutes from downtown. Also available are many “gated communities” and country clubs stretching north along the Pan-American Highway that provide additional security.
A new lifestyle choice for many is Nordelta. Please see more here.
Some ways to find a house
1. Contact a real estate agency (inmobiliaria). Many companies and embassies have the names of agencies they normally use. Other sources are the local newspapers in English and Spanish.
2. Check the classified advertisements in the Buenos Aires Herald, and English language newspaper, although some of the ads are in Spanish. Many agencies that deal mainly with expatriates advertise heavily with the Herald. Homes or apartments for rent may also be found in La Nación and Clarin. Advertisements are arranged by neighborhood or district, so you need to know in which area you prefer to look. (For a list of common abbreviations use in the ads, see Chapter 20 – Telephone Numbers & Vocabulary
3. Ask around – someone you meet might know of a vacant apartment in his or her block. Another way is to ask the “portero” (doorman) of a building the appeals to you. Recently, owners have hung signs from the balconies (even as high as the 20th floor) advertising the apartment is for lease or sale and the name and the phone number of the agent.
4. Watch for garage sales as it normally means that someone is leaving, and that a home or apartment might not yet be rented. These sales are called “ferias americanas” or are listed as “ausentándose del país.”
What to look for when choosing a house or apartment
This is a major hurdle to clear in getting ready to live in Buenos Aires for there is no greater demonstration of cultural differences than in the home. Keep in mind as you look you are in an urban area where standards may very. Many of the apartment buildings that look charming and quaint appear to be very poorly maintained. Peeling paint, soot-stained exteriors, dim entrances, broken stairs, and chipped tiled floors are just a few characteristics of these older buildings. One expatriate wife wailed that she felt like she was going back in time to London in the 1950s. If you are looking at the newer buildings and houses, beware: you will need to pay close attention to details. As you look at a house remember that the landlords rarely “maintain” the houses/apartments when no one is living there so look at them as they CAN BECOME rather than as they are. This is when the negotiating list mentioned before becomes important.
Heating (“calefacción”) In some houses and apartments the cost of heating may be included in the rent or maintenance charges, In apartment building there may be restricted hours of operation and there may be no individual heat control for separate apartments. Many modern flats have radiant or under floor heating (losa radiante) which many produce very dry conditions. You may need to find some way to humidify the area for the comfort of your family as well as tour plants. In houses, the most common heating system is circulating hot water with radiators fueled by gas or oil. Check that the system is working. Gas heating tends to be cheaper than oil or electric. Any heating system may need to be supplemented with electric heaters, bottled gas heaters or fireplaces because gas pressure can become reduced during cold spells.
Cooking (cocina) Most stoves and ovens both in the city and in the suburbs use natural gas. Much of the shortage problems and pressure fluctuations have been solved with the privatization of the natural gas distribution companies; however, a quick lighting of the gas cook top or oven will tell you a lot: how well maintained the appliances are (many are filthy); if the flame is orange or green, the problem lies with the gas distribution company, not the appliance; and sometimes a thorough servicing by the manufacturer is in order. There are more imported models of ovens available now; previously the oven manufacturing in Argentina was limited to just a few companies. Parts such as broiler pans or lights might be missing. Be sure to bring a reliable oven thermometer and don’t try baking bread until you know your oven well. Argentina is closing importation of foreign made appliances when these products are produced locally. It may be difficult and costly finding a replacement parts for foreign made products.
Water (agua) Here again, much of Buenos Aires now has a reliable water supply provided by the national utility company. Aguas y Saneaiento Argentina Sociadad Anonima (AYSA) has replaced antiquated pipes. Check with the “portero”, however, to see how reliable the water supply is in your area. Many of the larger buildings have large water tanks on the roof. In some homes water is stored in underground tanks, when the faucets are turned on an electric pump is activated supplying the house with water; when there is a power blackout no water may be available for several minutes or hours. As you are looking at the houses ask to see where the water pump is and the tank.
Drinking water from the tap seems inadvisable since water in the city and certain communities is heavily chlorinated, but also many houses and building have old lead pipes and so do suburban areas so they may be affected by contamination. Consider bottled water from the supermarket or purchasing water in 10 or 20-liter plastic containers from any of the water companies listed in the telephone book. Also very effective is any portable purification system that takes normal tap water and filters out chemicals, for example, Brita or PSA (which is readily available in Buenos Aires). In some...
