Buying Property in BA Province – Questions About USD Transfers

[Zeus]

Hi everyone,
My wife and I are currently in the process of buying a house in Buenos Aires Province, where we plan to live. We both have residencia temporaria and have already started the process of getting the necessary USD into the country.
I was wondering if anyone here has gone through this recently?
More specifically:

• Did you have to provide proof of where the funds came from to complete your purchase?
• If you transferred the money to a dollar account in Argentina, how was that experience?
• Have there been any recent legal or procedural changes that affected your transaction

Thanks in advance for any insights, any info is super helpful!

 

[Ron]

You don’t necessarily need to bring the money into a bank account in Argentina. The funds can be transferred directly to the seller however you both agree, whether it's through international bank transfers, digital wallets, or even crypto. In the property deed, it’s simply declared that the transaction took place. You don’t need to have residency or a DNI either; having a CDI number (which you can get at the tax office) is enough.

 

[CecilM]

Best of luck with your home purchase, wishing you all the best! We bought our property a few years ago, so I’m not completely up to date on the most recent legal changes or USD transfer processes.
That said, one thing that hasn’t changed is that your notary (escribano) will likely require proof that the funds came from a legal source (i.e., not money laundering).
In our case, we provided a notarized and translated letter from our U.S. accountant confirming the origin of the funds, and that was accepted without issue.

 

[noname]

Yes, that explanation above is pretty accurate. Just to add a bit of context: usually, when someone buys real estate here, about 30% of the property’s value is paid in what they call “white” money, that’s the official amount on the books, and the rest is typically paid in “black” money.
If the seller has an offshore account, sending that part of the payment abroad is pretty straightforward. In fact, you can transfer 100% offshore if needed. A good notary will usually ask you to declare the official value (that 30% or so) just to keep things clean, but in that case, there's no need to justify the full amount.
Expect to spend around $30K–$50K in extra costs like notary fees, commissions, and so on.
If you already have a temporary residency or DNI, you’ve probably already dealt with proving the origin of your funds and have everything set up with your local bank, so that part shouldn't be an issue.

At the end of the day, the bank you're wiring the money to (in Argentina) is the one that can give you the most precise info.

 

[Melibaires]

Here are some threads that talk about this:

Newcomer Thread 'Buying a property in Argentina'

Nov 11, 2024

I’m interested in hearing thoughts on buying property in Argentina these days. I’ve been renting for years, but it’s becoming tougher to manage with rent increasing every three months, monthly HOA fees, and local prices getting out of hand.

• PerryP
• buying buying a property property
• Replies: 22
• Forum: ExPat Life

• 

Real Estate Sales Thread 'My First Real Estate Purchase in Buenos Aires in 2002 after the Corralito'

May 14, 2025

My First Real Estate Purchase in Buenos Aires in 2002 after the Corralito

Ok, I researched the real estate buying process for a few years. I built up relationships. I understood the laws and I looked at about 50 apartments before I bought my first apartment. I told myself that I wouldn’t get cheated or conned. After walking into a loft apartment in Recoleta I knew I would purchase it.

I was accompanied by my realtor, the seller’s realtor and the owner, Carlos was also there that morning. It barely had any furniture in it. The owner was a young bachelor in his mid-30’s. He was very...

• earlyretirement
• buyer beware buying apartment buying home buysellba cons corralito first purchase got cheated home real estate realtors
• Replies: 2
• Forum: Real Estate Sales

• 
• 

T

Thread 'Apartment buying process confusing in Buenos Aires. Do I need to use the seller's realtor?'

Aug 28, 2024

I am in the process of buying an apartment in Buenos Aires. It is a frustrating process here! I contacted a realtor to show me some possible listings while I was in town. I was only in town one week but I thought I would be able to see all the apartments that I had on my list. But I only saw 2 apartments the entire time I was there. The process is totally different than buying in the States. I was surprised.

It seems like everything here is not efficient and they don't really have open houses. On some visits I had an appointment and then the owner cancelled the showing at the last...

• tootsi
• apartment buenos aires buyer's agent buying buying apartment escribano realtor seller's agent
• Replies: 112
• Forum: ExPat Life

•