An Open Letter to Potential Investors

David English
President
English & Associates

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 in Argentina.

Sadly, in the ten 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.