Rosario Tech District

City leaders envision over 100 tech-PYMEs and university research groups working in the AITR.

The beautiful City of Rosario will take another important step on its path toward economic diversification this year with the creation of the Rosario Industrial Technology Area, or AITR in Spanish. According to Agenciafe, the idea for the Tech District was conceived during the strategic planning phase of the Rosario Metropolitan Plan. That plan envisions no fewer than 100 small and medium-size business (PYMEs) clustered in the new Tech District.

Software, hardware, multimedia design, biotech and audiovisual production companies will all be courted with a combination of low interest loans and assorted tax incentives for relocation and expansion. The model has proven successful in other Argentine cities like Mendoza, San Luis and Buenos Aires where the GCBA has already attracted more than 70 companies to Parque Patricios with 130 tech-PYMEs anticipated by year-end 2011.

Sebastián Chale, Rosario’s Secretary of Production & Local Development, says the District “is an opportunity to give the city some excellent infrastructure, to promote economic development and create high-paying jobs.” He went on to describe the first phase of the project. “Those of us who have been working on this plan for the past seven months anticipate a budget of 10 million pesos (US$2.48 million) for an intelligent building that will house between 12 and 25 companies, roughly 150,000 square feet of high-tech companies, postgraduate classrooms and research centers tied to the universities.” (Full Story in Spanish)

For more information about IT opportunities in Argentina, visit our archives and download the new issue of InvestBA Privada.



Recently we took a closer look at which neighborhoods in Capital Federal posted the strongest gains in average residential price increases in 2010. The study, which was carried out by Reporte Inmobiliario, focuses on the average price of existing 2 or 3-room apartment active listings in every BA barrio.

That Palermo topped the list for another year was not nearly as surprising as the 15-20% annual gains in four southern neighborhoods benefiting from increased investment from the City of Buenos AiresBarracas, Constitucion, Nueva Pompeya and Parque Patricios. Today we present a slideshow of the Top 10 neighborhoods along with aerial maps, population data and a side-by-side bar graph comparison of the Top 10.

For more information about real estate opportunities in Buenos Aires, download IncomeBA.

Buenos Aires Real Estate Price Change by Neighborhood

With two exceptions, BA barrios posting the biggest gains were in the extreme north and south.

A new analysis of real estate price variations for 2009-2010 shows the greatest year-over-year increases in Palermo and Liniers (20 to 25%) followed by 15 to 20% gains in Belgrano, Nunez, Paternal and four southern Capital Federal neighborhoods benefiting from increased business and infrastructure investment from the City of Buenos Aires: Barracas, Constitucion, Nueva Pompeya and Parque Patricios.

Barracas is home to the new Metropolitan Design Center and Parque Patricios is the site of the BA Tech District where an estimated 130 IT companies will be operating by year’s end. The only three BA barrios posting YOY decreases were Colegiales, Recoleta and Retiro.

The data are based on a study of existing apartments in Capital Federal, and according to Clari­n the average increase in price per square foot citywide was 7.74%, although the variations by barrio ranged from annual decreases of 5% to annual increases of almost 25%.

The majority of neighborhoods (30 of 47) like Boedo, Chacarita, La Boca, and San Telmo fell in the 10 to 15% increase category. Clarín also notes the average gap between highest and lowest price per square foot in individual barrios widened to 53% with Almagro, Caballito, Palermo and Retiro showing the greatest variation between minimum and maximum price per square foot.

Brokers surveyed anticipate demand for new units in 2011 will be strongest from investors and existing homeowners looking to trade up, as mortgages remain out-of-reach for first-time homebuyers in Buenos Aires and Argentina in general. (Full Story in Spanish)

For more information about Buenos Aires real estate opportunities, download the new issue of InvestBA Privada.

Last week’s Salon del Mercado Inmobiliario brought thousands of property peddlers, purchasers and prognosticators to Palermo for the annual real estate Expo. Despite rising inflation and the political uncertainty leading up to the 2011 elections, the lingering mistrust of banks and lack of viable investment alternatives bode well for Buenos Aires real estate in the coming year. On the second day of SMI, iProfesional published a Reporte Inmobiliario ranking of BA neighborhoods based on average price per square foot of an existing 2 or 3-room apartment.

Today InvestBA presents that ranking in slideshow format with photos and Google maps. The ranking compares properties in each barrio based on median price per SF in July 2009 and July 2010. It’s interesting to note the strongest double-digit price increases occurred in the most affordable barrios like Villa Urquiza and Saavedra while the two most expensive neighborhoods actually showed YOY price declines.

As mentioned last week, the oversupply of small 1 and 2-room units is leading many developers to the more affordable BA barrios where they can build more spacious 3 and 4-room apartments. New Subte stations, shopping centers and GCBA cultural offerings are making these neighborhoods more attractive destinations for locals and foreign investors alike. (Note: Given the lack of existing 2 & 3-room inventory, Puerto Madero was excluded from the list.)

For more information about real estate investment opportunities in Buenos Aires, download the new issue of InvestBA Privada.

Salón del Mercado Inmobiliario 2010

Brokers, developers and investors are all making predictions for 2011 at this year's SMI Expo.

With SMI, the country’s most important real estate Expo underway this week at La Rural, developers and investors are trying to make sense of the post-Nestor climate and predict the state of the market in 2011. iProfesional surveyed SMI attendees and discovered a general sense of optimism considering a weakening dollar, rising consumption and high inflation cocktail tilting the scales in favor of bricks and mortar.

Another key variable is the current commodity export boom which has led many Argentine farmers to plow their new-found soydollars (locally sojadolares) into residential and commercial real estate in major cities like BA, Rosario and Cordoba, a trend we touched on back in August (Interior Motives) and confirmed during our October Expo in Rosario.

Focusing locally on Buenos Aires, iProfesional offers a breakdown of average price per square foot for new and used properties. The Top Five BA barrios for used 2 and 3 room apartments based on price per SF are Recoleta ($208), Barrio Norte ($182), Belgrano R ($180), Palermo ($175) and Nunez ($157), while the most affordable surveyed were San Telmo ($134), Villa Crespo ($131), and Parque Patricios ($105).

General consensus at SMI is there are too many small units on the market which is why developers are beginning to announce projects with larger 3 and 4-room floor plans. Considering the scarcity of available land in areas like Palermo, new developments in 2011 are more likely to emerge in barrios like Colegiales, Villa Crespo, Almagro, Chacarita, as well as Barracas and Parque Patricios which are benefiting from the new Centro Metropolitano de Diseno and BA Tech District, respectively. (Full Story in Spanish)

For more information about Buenos Aires real estate trends, visit our archives and download the latest issue of InvestBA Privada.

 

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