David English
David
English
President & Services Coordinator
David launched English & Associates in 2003, when he recognized
a need on the part of investors from outside Argentina to have an
honest and reliable in-country firm looking
after their interests on a daily basis, particularly in the
case of real estate.
As President of English & Associates, David manages the
E&A team of consultants and serves as the initial point of contact for
clients. In addition, when clients can not be in Argentina
to close on real estate transactions, sign tax filings, or cut
checks for goods and services, David acts in their name under Power of
Attorney.
David holds an MBA
from Austral University's Instituto
de Altos Estudios Empresariales (IAE) in Buenos
Aires, which provides him with unique insight into Argentine
culture and business practices. Originally from the United
States, he has been doing business in Argentina since 1998. David is also Co-founder and
current President of the Mendoza Expats
Club, a forum for the international business community in
Mendoza.
An Open Letter to
Potential Investors
There
is a saying in Spanish – “That which is cheap ends up
costing a fortune.” Nothing could be more true when it comes
to real estate services in Argentina.
Sadly, in the eight years that I have been doing business
here, I have seen many investors from overseas rush to
purchase property without first establishing a relationship
with a professional real estate consultancy or a trustworthy
management firm. It’s a terrible disappointment when an
investor discovers that the property he has fallen in love
with is not truly for sale, that the “agent” has no right
to represent it, that it is tied up in court due to a death or
a divorce, or that there are years of unpaid property taxes.
Even worse (and much more costly) is when an investor buys a
property without first evaluating frost and hail risk, soil
quality, water supply and suitability for a specific crop such
as high-end grapes. Or, when an investor purchases and then
realizes he needs help to develop and manage his investment
but has no idea how to find an honest and reliable in-country
management team.
It’s not just individual investors from overseas who make
big mistakes. Even major foreign wineries like Kendall Jackson have come to
Argentina
thinking they could do it on their own and on the cheap,
failed and lost millions of dollars.
Examples of cheap properties that ended up costing a fortune:
-
A
Canadian who purchased 80 hectares of land at a
“bargain” price only to discover that due to a
geological fault there wasn’t any water beneath his
property no matter how deep he drilled
-
A
Frenchman who bought land with huge hidden boulders just
below the surface that could only be removed by dynamite
-
An
Australian who purchased a vineyard in a low-lying area
and lost his entire first-year crop to frost
-
An
American who paid for a property before receiving the soil
analysis results from the laboratory. 50% of his land was
unsuitable for vineyards due to extremely high salinity.
-
An
Italian who made a large down payment on a property only
to discover that the person he gave the money to wasn’t
the true seller and the agent had no right to represent
the real owner
Because
of the number of risk factors that come into play when
purchasing real estate in Argentina, engaging the assistance of honest and reliable
local professionals saves considerable time and money in the
long-run. That’s why English & Associates
helps investors locate quality properties here, evaluate
their potential, purchase without problems or last-minute
surprises, and then develop and manage the investment.
David English
President
English & Associates, S.A.
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