Question to local members

[Scottishgaucho]

I've lived here for over 16 years and just recently joined Expats after being given the nod about it from my fellow Glaswegian. 👍
I used to be a contributor to that other forum but got fed up reading the rantings from certain Argentine born members trying to force their blinkered political opinions on everyone else. I don't understand why an Expat forum allows such people to take part to be honest.

 

[Sunny]

I am here in Malaga, Spain. From the UK originally but met and fell in love with a Porteña and moved to BA but she wants to move to Spain now that most of her friends have left. Soon, all her family is moving out of Argentina and moving to Spain. They are finally throwing in the towel.

Wishing you all the best of luck. I know Andalucía well. Fell in love with Ronda, Mijas, Ubrique, though all the pueblos blancos in Málaga and Cádiz are gorgeous. Nerja also, such a lovely place. An old friend from El Limonar, Málaga, tells me things are not looking good for Spain now, I hope this is just temporary.

 

[GlasgowJohn]

I am here in Malaga, Spain. From the UK originally but met and fell in love with a Porteña and moved to BA but she wants to move to Spain now that most of her friends have left. Soon, all her family is moving out of Argentina and moving to Spain. They are finally throwing in the towel.

I went to the 1982 World Cup to see Scotland In Malaga for two weeks and stayed for three years!

Went back again in 1992 for 17 years , my last place of residence in Europe before coming to Argentne

 

[Vince]

Wishing you all the best of luck. I know Andalucía well. Fell in love with Ronda, Mijas, Ubrique, though all the pueblos blancos in Málaga and Cádiz are gorgeous. Nerja also, such a lovely place. An old friend from El Limonar, Málaga, tells me things are not looking good for Spain now, I hope this is just temporary.

Spain is no walk in the park but I guess compared to Argentina things are very good there. Several of our friends have moved to various parts of Spain.

 

[Scottishgaucho]

Spain is no walk in the park but I guess compared to Argentina things are very good there.

Indeed. Just being part of Europe and having the Euro is a big plus compared to here. My wife has friends from here who moved to Spain years ago and they love it.

 

[Vince]

Indeed. Just being part of Europe and having the Euro is a big plus compared to here. My wife has friends from here who moved to Spain years ago and they love it.

Exactly correct. There are so many opportunities for Argentines in Spain. All our friends that moved there from Argentina had EU passports so they easily found jobs and it is stable there. I don't believe any of them make significant amounts of money but they some sort of normalcy so they are very happy. The economy never has been too great in Spain but it sure beats 200%+ annual inflation!

 

[Sunny]

Spain is no walk in the park but I guess compared to Argentina things are very good there. Several of our friends have moved to various parts of Spain.

These days nowhere is a walk in the park, unfortunately. Even the best places in the world are experiencing serious issues.
BTW, If you speak Spanish, look up Marc Vidal.

 

[Wally]

These days nowhere is a walk in the park, unfortunately. Even the best places in the world are experiencing serious issues.
BTW, If you speak Spanish, look up Marc Vidal.

Agreed. I acknowledge Argentina has a world of problems and issues. But cost of living here even with the inflation is reasonable, especially if you own your own property. Truth of the matter is that I couldn't afford to live in the States now at the same quality of life that I have in BA. I dine out to eat several times per week, we have a maid that comes several times a week. Have good healthcare. I don't need a car here. Expenses are fairly low. I don't know of any major city in the US that I could have a similar quality of life.

 

[VINO]

Agreed. I acknowledge Argentina has a world of problems and issues. But cost of living here even with the inflation is reasonable, especially if you own your own property. Truth of the matter is that I couldn't afford to live in the States now at the same quality of life that I have in BA. I dine out to eat several times per week, we have a maid that comes several times a week. Have good healthcare. I don't need a car here. Expenses are fairly low. I don't know of any major city in the US that I could have a similar quality of life.

Agree with you completely on this. Besides most of the restaurants in the USA are horrible. Each time I come to BA I marvel at how great the food is compared to the USA.

I joined up at the end of November. I enjoy reading the plethora of information on various topics. I don't have time to participate as much but enjoy being a lurker and appreciate all the posts and information here.

 

[Sunny]

But cost of living here even with the inflation is reasonable, especially if you own your own property.

Yes, that's the thing, you've got to own your place here. We spent a small fortune on Airbnbs for 5 months before we bought our place. Now our COL is very low, compared to what it would be in the US or Europe.

 

[Sunny]

Agree with you completely on this. Besides most of the restaurants in the USA are horrible. Each time I come to BA I marvel at how great the food is compared to the USA.

I joined up at the end of November. I enjoy reading the plethora of information on various topics. I don't have time to participate as much but enjoy being a lurker and appreciate all the posts and information here.

Hi Vino! Not only restaurant food is better, the food in general tastes much better. Vegetables and fruits, which may not look as picture perfect as in the States and Europe, but they taste SO much better. For example, those big globe red grapes that we see everywhere now, are sweeter than any of the same type I had in the US; for years I wouldn't buy plums because they were hard and tasteless. This week I can't stop eating the sweet and juicy, delicious plums.

 

[VINO]

Hi Vino! Not only restaurant food is better, the food in general tastes much better. Vegetables and fruits, which may not look as picture perfect as in the States and Europe, but they taste SO much better. For example, those big globe red grapes that we see everywhere now, are sweeter than any of the same type I had in the US; for years I wouldn't buy plums because they were hard and tasteless. This week I can't stop eating the sweet and juicy, delicious plums.

Yes!! The problem in the States is that much of the food is all processed. The fruits and veggies are all GMO and fake that doesn't have as much flavor. Sure they look picture perfect but they aren't good for you or have pesticides. You nailed it @Sunny about the plums here. The chino stores have delicious fruits and vegetables here in BA.

Restaurants are head and shoulder better in BA vs. anywhere in the USA.

 

[Vince]

Yes, that's the thing, you've got to own your place here. We spent a small fortune on Airbnbs for 5 months before we bought our place. Now our COL is very low, compared to what it would be in the US or Europe.

The key to riding out crazy economic cycles here (they happen often) is to own your own property. It is very difficult in Buenos Aires if you're stuck at the mercy of renting all of your life. We rented our first year here but we knew we had to buy a place and after the initial shock of not having a mortgage, it was great not having a monthly mortgage payment. Our HOA is reasonable and utilities so far have been reasonable. Even if they go up I'm quite sure they are less than the US.

I can't imagine wanting to live in BA for the long term and not owning your own place. I know a few friends that don't and it's been disastrous for them as the owner inevitably wants to sell it or rent out short term and they are left scrambling to make a move. Moving here in BA is NOT fun with all your furniture.

 

[RN in BA]

I signed up in Dec. '23. I was going to possibly try to relocate to BA but fortunately my mom talked me out of it. I tried looking for jobs there as a Registered Nurse and I am fully bilingual but I couldn't find any decent paying jobs. The job market there is almost impossible to make a decent living wage while at the same time prepare for retirement.

Instead I will work in the USA for several more years and then possibly try to relocate down there. Although it is shocking in just a few months since I was there prices more than doubled on many things. That was a shocking eye opener to me how unprepared I was for Argentina and possibly living there and trying to relocate there.

 

[Digital Nomad]

I signed up in Dec. '23. I was going to possibly try to relocate to BA but fortunately my mom talked me out of it. I tried looking for jobs there as a Registered Nurse and I am fully bilingual but I couldn't find any decent paying jobs. The job market there is almost impossible to make a decent living wage while at the same time prepare for retirement.

Instead I will work in the USA for several more years and then possibly try to relocate down there. Although it is shocking in just a few months since I was there prices more than doubled on many things. That was a shocking eye opener to me how unprepared I was for Argentina and possibly living there and trying to relocate there.

You make a great point about difficult to find a job with a living wage here. Sure, maybe you can make enough to get by but the tricky part is saving for retirement. Fortunately I have a job where I can work remote and my employer doesn't care where I am at. The nice thing about Argentina is the time difference isn't too bad from the USA.

My girlfriend works for a European company and makes Euros. But compared to what she could make in the USA or Europe she doesn't make much at all but she owns her own place so her bills are limited.

These days nowhere is a walk in the park, unfortunately. Even the best places in the world are experiencing serious issues.
BTW, If you speak Spanish, look up Marc Vidal.

I agree with this sentiment. However, in many first world countries you can still make much more money vs. here. I met a few digital nomads here that are making enough to get by here but they aren't saving anything for when they are older. I think this is a huge problem with the younger segments of the work force today. Many of my friends are living for today but not really planning for tomorrow. Or they are but budgeting as if tomorrow is going to be the same price as today. That ain't happening.

 

[Sunny]

I signed up in Dec. '23. I was going to possibly try to relocate to BA but fortunately my mom talked me out of it. I tried looking for jobs there as a Registered Nurse and I am fully bilingual but I couldn't find any decent paying jobs. The job market there is almost impossible to make a decent living wage while at the same time prepare for retirement.

Instead I will work in the USA for several more years and then possibly try to relocate down there. Although it is shocking in just a few months since I was there prices more than doubled on many things. That was a shocking eye opener to me how unprepared I was for Argentina and possibly living there and trying to relocate there.

That sounds like a good decision. Are you in the US now?

 

[RN in BA]

That sounds like a good decision. Are you in the US now?

Yes, I am in Florida. I loved the lifestyle of Buenos Aires and think I would be happy there but I discounted how tough it would be to make money there. I assumed that as a bilingual nurse I could make a decent living wage there but just not the case. I tried a few different places and also private work as well for wealthy families but here but I feel fortunate my mom talked me out of attempting it and coming back home. I'm living with her to save money and I have a six-figure job here so it was just not smart to try to live there. I will attempt it when I have enough money to purchase an apartment there and have more savings.

 

[Sunny]

Yes, I am in Florida. I loved the lifestyle of Buenos Aires and think I would be happy there but I discounted how tough it would be to make money there. I assumed that as a bilingual nurse I could make a decent living wage there but just not the case. I tried a few different places and also private work as well for wealthy families but here but I feel fortunate my mom talked me out of attempting it and coming back home. I'm living with her to save money and I have a six-figure job here so it was just not smart to try to live there. I will attempt it when I have enough money to purchase an apartment there and have more savings.

Good thinking, and you are lucky to have your mom with you and that you can live with her. Hopefully, you'll be able to retire early and buy a place here. 🤞🏻

 

[Flamingo]

Yes!! The problem in the States is that much of the food is all processed. The fruits and veggies are all GMO and fake that doesn't have as much flavor. Sure they look picture perfect but they aren't good for you or have pesticides. You nailed it @Sunny about the plums here. The chino stores have delicious fruits and vegetables here in BA.

Restaurants are head and shoulder better in BA vs. anywhere in the USA.

What amazed me is that even fast food is very expensive. I went to visit my sister in law that lives in Los Angeles and I took her kids to McDonald's one day and I was shocked with how much even fast food there is. Meal prices here in BA have gone up but you can get very good quality meals for the same prices as fast food in the USA.

 

[JonJLA]

Yes, that's the thing, you've got to own your place here. We spent a small fortune on Airbnbs for 5 months before we bought our place. Now our COL is very low, compared to what it would be in the US or Europe.

Signed up in November but mostly just lurk. I purchased an apartment here many years ago. I mostly just rent it out on Airbnb but I hope to someday retire to Buenos Aires so I like to keep tabs on what is going on there. I don't get there as much as I would like to but I enjoy the city. I hope once I am ready to retire there, the economy is stable.