.Argentina
For Vacation, Chile For The Good Life
Vacationing
In Argentina And Buying In Chile ~ by Bill Lanphar
|
|
....
| This article
originally appeared in the May 2004 issue of Escape From America Magazine. |
|
.
| Just
Spent 3 months in the Patagonian region of Chile and Argentina, a place
beautiful beyond any other I have ever visited. Argentina is a great place
to vacation right now because your dollar goes far.
I spent a week
in Baralochie which is a very exciting place to just hang out and enjoy
the views and great nightlife. You can learn to tango and like all of Latin
American, Baralochie is up most of the night: the tango lessons don't even
start until 11 at night.
I was in a
grand old hotel on the sixth floor with great views of downtown Baralochie.
It cost me $15.00 a night. I went on tours and didn't drive my car for
a week; I ate out every meal and I don't think I ever spent over 50 dollars
in a single day and that was for two of us because my girlfriend was with
me.
Argentina is
a great place to vacation, but if I were to move to Latin America and wanted
to buy a home and start a business, I would have to choose Chile over Argentina
- and this is in fact what I've done. I think the economy and the legal
system in Chile are much more solid than in Argentina. Chile has laws that
protect foreign investment and foreign property ownership. Chile is a very
pro-business country and very good about rooting out corruption and putting
an end to it - something not done in Argentina. |
|
|
|
The
view from above of Barilochie, Argentina
|
|
|
.
|
|
|
Beautiful
coastline of Chile
|
|
|
|
|
|
View
near my home in Futaleufu on Lake Espolon
|
|
|
|
|
..
I know there
are many places that are touting Argentina as the best place to buy property
on the planet right now, but for my money I'll stick with Chile, because
even though the cost of living is higher in Chile I think the land prices
are still less expensive than in Argentina. Chilean property is a steal
in some areas: the average traveler will only look into the normal tourist
destinations, what people don't know, and need to know, is that presently
there is an economic boom in Southern Chile that foreign investors are
paying very little attention to.
The city of
Puerto Montt, for example, has almost doubled in population over the last
ten years. The Government is doing all it can to build an infrastructure
to support the growth and there are other towns that are going to go through
the same transformation, and the opportunity for the adventurous investors
are unlimited. I have just made arrangements to borrow as much money as
I can get my hands on, because I believe the return on every dollar invested
in Chile right now is much better than anything I've ever heard about in
the States. Chilean residents are in many ways very much like people in
the States - many of them work in Santiago - the capital - but hate the
pace of life.
You always
here Chileans saying that I wish I could move to the South in order to
escape the traffic and stress of Santiago - they remind me of people in
the States who want to escape the high-speed life in LA and move to Montana.
As in the U.S. many people are relocating far from the urban centers to
enjoy a higher quality of life and as in the States, this is causing some
growing pains in the south of Chile. Because this has happened much more
rapidly in the States and much earlier, it is very easy to see as a North
American what is needed in the south of Chile to accommodate the influx
of people: there are many types of services that are not yet being offered
but for which there is a high demand.
.
|
|
|
View
from the $15 room in Barilochie
|
|
|
The
needs are so similar that it's very easy for a North American to go to
Chile and do what you do here in the States and do it well. I feel in my
line of business I could do great in Chile but after 18 years I'm tired
of it and cannot really get excited about doing more of the same, so I
have decided to begin anew in Chile and am excited about the potential
returns. I won't mention what my financial projections are because in an
economy like the States, where 10% is a good return, the returns you might
find in Chile seem impossibly good. But that's the beauty of foreign markets,
you can stumble into remarkable opportunities if you just keep snooping
around and picking peoples brains.
People have
a different take on life in Chile: I must have been told 10 times in casual
conversations that the most important thing in Chile is friends and family
and then business. I would have to say it is true because most of my leads
came from very successful people that had great ideas, knew what worked
but didn't want to get involved, because they already had enough to do
and didn't want to clutter their life with more work. |
.....
I talked to
a lot of people in Chile that work for large companies. I did most of my
brain picking with people in the Salmon Farm Industry which is huge in
southern Chile. They see problems everyday: one job a foreigner might be
able to do is helping companies solve their problems. Take Ice for example,
do you know how much ice the fish farm industry needs every day: Tons and
tons and Tons of it. Access to ice is a problem in some areas so you fill
that need and make your money with a product that doesn't last and has
to be re-bought every day.
You don't have
to be a rocket scientist to run a ice machine, pretty simple. I was thinking
of getting into thatand while looking around for the best place to start
I came across a much larger need that is so rewarding I'm not even mentioning
it in this article because we are still in the beginning stages of the
venture and I don't really want to give the Idea away.
My next article
I will lay it out and I'll know by then if it can be done.
.
| Enough
about business. None of this would even be a consideration if I didn't
love the country and the people so much. I don't know why but when I'm
in Chile I'm filled with hope, and love the people; there seems to be such
a bright future in Chile. It’s nice living in a place that nobody hates;
they really don't have to worry about whether someone is going to sneak
a suitcase bomb into Santiago. Chileans always ask me: "do you love my
country isn't beautiful"? Chileans are very proud of Chile and they should
be; it's a very nice place to raise a family and do business.
I also spent
some time in Valparaiso this year and what a beautiful city to explore.
I would say it’s very much like San Francisco without the weirdness. It
reminded me of San Francisco in the early Sixties. Art is important, you
find artists on the street painting, there are people performing plays
and playing music: instead of the whole town being concerned about the
homeless, as in San Francisco, you find the locals taking care of stray
dogs. When Valparaiso became a world heritage site the mayor decided the
city needed to do something about the stray dog problem. |
|
|
| Many people
have asked what my home looks like: you can have one just like it for around
$25,000. |
|
|
..
Well that
was the day that looked like doomsday for stray dogs in Valparaiso but
it turned out to be their meal ticket for life. The people were so up in
arms about the possibility of exterminating the stray dog population that
they formed a kind of Underground Railroad for dogs. Taking them in at
night when the dog catchers did the dastardly deeds and putting them back
out in the day.
As you walk
the streets you will see little bowls of water and dog food on paper plates
- these are for the stray dogs. I saw a lady combing out three different
dogs that I'm quite sure were strays. It's a beautiful city with a big
heart, beautiful architecture and a stunning view of the Pacific Ocean.
I also saw
some beautiful real-estate between Valparaiso and Santiago; the prices
were higher than in the south but you have beautiful Mediterranean weather
year round and that special peace that you find in the rolling hills of
high desert country. I walked around in that country and I felt a very
spiritual energy. I know after three months of business and travel I found
it a very restful and regenerating place.
..
|
|
|
Having
fun in sidewalk cafe in Valparaiso, Chile
|
|
|
Both
places I saw were around 250,000 dollars a piece, one had 34 hectares of
land with a beautiful home; it was part of a private community that owns
1700 hectares of land.
The other place
had two beautiful homes on a large lake with a caretaker’s home. This home
is a showpiece with one of the most beautifully landscaped yards I have
ever seen: years of planning and thought had to have gone into it. Both
places would sell for a million or more in the States but that's the beauty
of property in Chile: it is very inexpensive compared to much of the world.
Now if you
need a contact in Chile to help you get started buying a place or putting
together a business plan I would suggest you contact my friend and partner
in Business Andy Grimberg
His email is:
Agrimberg@hotmail.com.
To phone from the States the number is 011 56 97 579807 |
.
My Email is
BL@interbel.net
and if you have any questions you feel I may be able to answer or if you
would like photos of some of what I've talked about feel free to drop me
a line, I would just like to say one thing: please be as specific as you
can. I get many emails and people ask me to just tell them all I can about
Chile or all I can about land and those are very hard emails to answer,
if you tell me your age and what you're trying to accomplish, what kind
of place you want: full time or just a place half the year, or are you
looking to start a business - these details will increase my ability to
answer your questions.
.
. |
