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Argentina Expat Forum

Where To LIve in South America

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JoeyThompson

8/15/2014 15:13 EST

My family and I are planning to relocate to somewhere in SA. We really like Uruguay because of the quality of food and life, but the jobs there seem to be far and few between.

We looked at Ecuador, but the size of our family would require us to maintain over 50K in the bank to stay more than 90 days, which would limit us greatly.

Next on our list is Argentina. Can someone tell me a little about what life is like there? What are the best cities to live in for an Expat who needs to work to make a living? I'm an commercial HVAC / Refrigeration technician, so anywhere there are coolers and freezers and/or commercial refrigeration of any kind, I'm good to go, cause there is always work.

I covet your thoughts and I thank you in advance.

JT

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TomP

8/15/2014 15:58 EST

JT,

My wife and I, two Americans, have lived in Argentina for five years while building vineyards and it is a great country. However, hoping to get is problematic.

Do you speak Spanish?

The problem is you won't earn anymore than an Argentine which isn't much. If you have any capital and you are good at twisting wrenches you might be better off buying old cars or tractors and fixing them up and then reselling for a profit. Argentina does not have an auto finance industry thus when buying a car it is a "cash and carry" society with a zillion old cars running around. Just a thought.

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SaintJohn

8/15/2014 16:29 EST

Argentina is a really bad choice for the time being.

Inflation is close to 40% per year, the country has just defaulted on its debt and nobody knows if the future will be better or worse on the short to medium time horizon.

Rental is reasonably cheap, food not expensive, but we are beginning to find empty shelves in supermarkets, and electronics are very expensive (50% luxury tax + VAT).

If your Castellano is very good, you should be able to earn around 6-700 US$ a month on a 40 hour week.

Starting your own business, as TomP suggests, is a good option, if you have a solid capital and a lot a patience (it may easily take 6-12 months to get a permanent residence visa plus all the permissions).

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tkamockingbird

8/16/2014 18:41 EST

We lived in Salta and still have things going there though we have moved back to the US. Argentina is beautiful and the people are friendly. But personal theft is a pretty major problem but it's not a violent country per se. If you don't speak Spanish you will be GREATLY hindered and frustrated. Inflation is horrible and the business climate is one of the worst in the world; very very non-business friendly because of their mountains of regulations. We have lived in Argentina twice and continue to travel there often. it's a lovely country though and if you can make it there you will enjoy it if you go with eyes wide open and understand you won't be in " Kansas" anymore!

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