Is it a good time to buy property in Buenos Aires now?

Is Buenos Aires property still cheap today?

Cheaper than at the old peak, yes. Cheap, no: the bargain phase is over.

Zonaprop puts the average advertised apartment in CABA at USD 2,484/m² in September 2026. Its index is still 11.3% below its historical dollar high, which was close to USD 2,800/m². So buyers still enter below the level reached before the long downturn.

From the bottom, the picture changes. Asking prices fell to roughly USD 2,150/m² in 2023, so they have already recovered about 16%. Whoever bought near the low has captured a good part of the rebound.

And the rebound has nearly stopped. Asking prices rose only 1.4% from January to September 2026, and September's 0.3% was the biggest monthly rise of the year.

Calling Buenos Aires “cheap” goes too far. Prices are below their old highs, but the distressed phase is behind us.

Market point	Approx. asking price	Change to current level	What we learn
Historical peak	~USD 2,800/m²	Current is ~11.3% lower	Full recovery has not happened
2023 trough	~USD 2,150/m²	Current is ~16% higher	The biggest bargains are gone
CABA average, Sept 2026	USD 2,484/m²	—	Prices have recovered a lot
January–September 2026	—	+1.4%	Very little recent appreciation
September 2026 (month)	—	+0.3%	Best month of a flat year

Are Buenos Aires property prices actually rising now?

No. Real sale prices are flat, which makes the market much less bullish than listings suggest.

The M² Real index (RE/MAX Argentina, Universidad del CEMA and Reporte Inmobiliario) tracks closed sales of used apartments, not listings. In September 2026 the average closing price was USD 2,097/m², 0.4% below a year earlier.

Earlier readings tell the same story: USD 2,200/m² in May, USD 2,108 in June and USD 2,112 in July. Some noise from month to month, no sustained move up.

Negotiation is also stable. In September 2026 used apartments closed 4.75% below their last asking price, close to the 4.49% average of 2025. Buyers still negotiate, but sellers are not being forced into big discounts.

That is one of the clearest reasons not to rush. Prices recovered from their lows, and closed sales now show a pause.

M² Real measure	Latest result	Comparison	What it suggests
Closing price, used apartments, Sept 2026	USD 2,097/m²	−0.4% over 12 months	Prices are flat
July 2026	USD 2,112/m²	Almost unchanged	No new acceleration
May 2026	USD 2,200/m²	Temporary high	One month did not make a trend
Negotiation gap, Sept 2026	−4.75%	−4.49% average in 2025	Buyers still have some room

Is the Buenos Aires property market slowing down?

It has stopped growing, but people are still buying at high volumes.

The Colegio de Escribanos recorded 6,055 sale deeds in CABA in August 2026, 4.9% fewer than the 6,370 of a very strong August 2025 and slightly more than July's 6,051. Only 2025, 2007 and 1998 had a better August in the last 28 years.

From January to August 2026 the city signed 41,583 deeds, only 2.3% fewer than over the same months of 2025.

So buyers have not disappeared. About the same number of homes change hands as last year, even though financing got much weaker.

What changed is the speed. Last year's surge has become a busy, flat market. For a buyer, that is a comfortable setup: enough activity to avoid a frozen market, without prices running away.

Have mortgages stopped driving Buenos Aires property sales?

Yes, for now. Mortgage lending dropped sharply, and cash buyers filled most of the gap.

Only 1,059 of the 6,055 CABA sales in August 2026 used a mortgage, 20.8% fewer than a year earlier. From January to August, 6,170 sales were financed with a mortgage against 9,341 a year earlier: down about 34%.

Total deeds fell only 2.3% over the same months.

From the Colegio's figures, we estimate that mortgages financed about 22% of purchases from January to August 2025, against 14.8% in 2026. Sales without a mortgage rose from roughly 33,200 to about 35,400, up about 6.6%.

Nationally the drop is bigger: banks granted 14,237 mortgages from January to July 2026 against 25,160 a year earlier, down 43% (Tejido Urbano, from central bank data).

That also shows what could restart price growth: if lending comes back while cash demand holds, the market gains a whole extra layer of buyers. A foreigner with only foreign income should not count on these loans: we found no confirmed access to UVA mortgages for non-residents.

January–August	2025	2026	Approx. change
Total sale deeds	~42,560	41,583	−2.3%
Mortgage deeds	9,341	6,170	−34%
Mortgage share of sales	~21.9%	14.8%	−7.1 pp
Sales without a mortgage	~33,220	~35,410	+6.6%

Can buyers still negotiate on Buenos Aires apartments?

Yes, but don't expect desperate sellers.

The best evidence comes from closed sales. According to RE/MAX, UCEMA and Reporte Inmobiliario, used apartments sold 4.75% below their last asking price in September 2026. The same gap averaged 7.04% in 2022 and 4.49% in 2025.

That is worth fighting for. On a USD 150,000 apartment, 4.75% is about USD 7,100. Paying the listing price can give away several years of appreciation at today's pace.

Flat closing prices help you. Sellers may still anchor on the rebound after 2023, but closed deals give them little proof that values are still climbing.

Push hardest on flats that have sat online for months, need work, carry high expensas (the average CABA building charge was ARS 379,774 a month in September 2026, about USD 245) or are priced at the top of their barrio with nothing special.

You do not need the whole market to fall if you buy the right apartment several points below an optimistic asking price.

Are Buenos Aires rental yields good enough for investors now?

Much better than a few years ago, but 5.70% gross leaves little room for a bad buy.

Zonaprop puts the CABA gross rental yield at 5.70% in September 2026. At that level, gross rent repays the price in about 17.5 years.

The comparison with the downturn is striking. In 2020 Zonaprop's citywide yield was about 2.3%, about 43 years of rent to repay the price. Today's ratio between rents and prices is about two and a half times better.

That gives landlords some return while they wait for prices to move, instead of needing appreciation to make the investment work.

But 5.70% is gross. Vacancy, repairs, expensas left to the owner, management and buying costs come off. For a non-resident, so does tax: the 2026 exemption on long-term rents (Decree 406/2026) clearly covers resident individuals, but for non-residents the decree is silent, so plan on 21% of gross rent withheld unless an adviser confirms otherwise. That alone takes 5.70% to about 4.5%, plus the yearly 0.5% wealth tax (Bienes Personales).

So treat 5.70% as a starting point, not a reason to buy.

Period	Gross rental yield	Approx. gross payback	What changed
2020	~2.3%	~43 years	Property was expensive relative to rent
CABA average, Sept 2026	5.70%	17.5 years	Much better rent-to-price ratio
After 21% withholding (non-resident)	~4.5%	—	Before vacancy and other costs

Are Buenos Aires rents still rising faster than inflation?

No. Rents still rise fast in pesos, but slightly slower than prices in general.

Zonaprop puts the average rent for a two-room apartment at ARS 898,154 a month in September 2026, about USD 580. That is 28.7% more than a year earlier, while inflation was 33.4% over the same twelve months (INDEC).

This year looks similar: rents rose 20.8% from January to September against about 23.6% inflation. In real terms, the same flat rents for about 2% less than in January and about 3.5% less than a year ago.

The reason is supply. Since the 2023 rental law was scrapped (DNU 70/2023), owners came back to long leases: rental listings are about 3.6 times their February 2023 low (La Nación, October 2026). Landlords set contracts freely, but they compete with many more apartments.

So don't build an investment case on rents beating inflation. The better argument is that Buenos Aires now has a working rental market and a healthier rent-to-price ratio than a few years ago.

Is buying a Buenos Aires apartment better than continuing to rent?

For someone staying many years, often yes. For someone just trying to escape today's rent, not really.

The 5.70% gross yield is a shortcut: a tenant pays roughly 5% to 6% of the property's value in rent each year, depending on the barrio and the flat.

An owner avoids that rent, but owning is not free. The cash tied up could earn something elsewhere, and the owner pays buying costs, maintenance, expensas, taxes and, one day, selling costs.

That makes short holds hard to justify. With closing prices 0.4% below a year ago, someone buying today and leaving in two or three years cannot count on appreciation to cover all that.

Over seven, ten or fifteen years the math improves: costs are spread out, rent is avoided for years and even modest appreciation adds up.

For a settled household, buying can make sense now. If you are not sure you will still live in Buenos Aires in a few years, renting is perfectly rational.

Are high construction costs making existing Buenos Aires apartments more valuable?

They help. Expensive building is one of the best supports against another big price collapse.

Zonaprop's September 2026 report puts dollar building costs in Buenos Aires up 18.5% since January and about 21% over 12 months. In January, Zonaprop already had them more than double their late-2023 level and more than three times the 2020 low.

The cause is the strong peso: INDEC's construction-cost index rose 31.3% in pesos over the year to September 2026, while the dollar barely moved. Reporte Inmobiliario put a standard building at about USD 1,324 per built m² in August 2026, before land, taxes, fees and profit.

Meanwhile asking prices for existing apartments rose 1.4% since January. New builds already show the gap: in Q2 2026 a new two-room flat asked USD 3,215/m² against USD 2,343/m² for a used one, a 37% premium (IDECBA).

Developers can answer with cheaper land, thinner margins or slower projects, so high building costs do not automatically push resale prices up. And if the peso weakens sharply, dollar costs fall with it.

Still, a good existing apartment that needs little work looks more attractive when building the same thing from scratch costs much more.

Does the Buenos Aires neighborhood matter more than waiting for lower prices?

Yes. Choosing the barrio changes the return far more than waiting for a 2% or 3% dip in the city index.

Price gaps inside CABA are huge. Zonaprop's September 2026 figures put Puerto Madero at about USD 6,165/m² and Palermo at USD 3,409/m², against about USD 1,057/m² in Lugano. TuLugar puts Núñez at about USD 3,238/m².

Yields move the other way. Zonaprop has Puerto Madero at only 3.2% gross and names Lugano and Parque Patricios as the best-yielding areas; on Zonaprop's asking rents and prices, a 50 m² flat in Lugano grosses about 9.7%. TuLugar puts Palermo at 4.7%, San Telmo at 6.1% and Belgrano at 4.2% and Núñez at 4.7%.

So picking between two barrios can move your gross return by several points before you do anything clever with the flat itself.

Palermo, Núñez and Puerto Madero charge for location, services and international recognition. Rents are higher there too, but nowhere near enough to match the price premium. High-yield southern barrios come with more vacancy, tenant and resale risk, which the gross figure does not show.

Neighborhood	Asking price (Sept 2026)	Gross yield	Better suited to
Puerto Madero	~USD 6,165/m²	~3.2%	Prestige and parking dollars
Palermo	~USD 3,409/m²	~4.7% (TuLugar)	Liquidity and broad demand
Núñez	~USD 3,238/m² (TuLugar)	~4.7% (TuLugar)	Premium residential demand
San Telmo	—	~6.1% (TuLugar)	Mix of income and tourist demand
Lugano	~USD 1,057/m²	~9.7% (our calculation)	Maximum gross yield, more risk

Is buying in Palermo or Puerto Madero still worth it?

It can be, but you pay for quality and liquidity, not income.

Puerto Madero makes the trade-off obvious: about USD 6,165/m² for a 3.2% gross yield. Palermo costs about half as much per m², but its 4.7% still trails the 5.70% city average.

Buying there is a bet that prime areas stay easier to rent to well-off tenants, easier to understand for foreign buyers and easier to resell than cheaper parts of the city.

That is a fair bet if your priority is keeping value in dollars rather than maximizing monthly income.

But there is less room for error. At a 4% gross yield, overpaying by 10% wipes out about two and a half years of rent.

Focus on what is hard to copy: good light, outdoor space, a good layout, low noise, sensible expensas and the right block within the barrio. A fashionable postcode alone is not enough.

Could buying costs wipe out the return on a Buenos Aires property?

On a short hold, yes. Buying and later selling can eat several years of modest appreciation.

In CABA a buyer usually pays 6.4% to 9.4% of the price with an agent, or 2.8% to 4.6% without one: notary 1% to 2% plus VAT, certificates and registry 0.2% to 0.4%, half of the 2.7% stamp tax (3.5% above ARS 226.1 million, about USD 146,000), and a buyer's broker fee of 3% to 4% plus VAT.

On a USD 131,000 apartment, that is about USD 8,400 to 12,300 just to get in. Selling later costs about another 5.4% (agent plus half the stamp tax), so a full round trip runs about 12% to 15%.

Some owner-occupiers pay less: a sole and permanent home is exempt from stamp tax up to ARS 226.1 million. Investors and non-residents buying a second unit do not get that.

These costs matter more today because closing prices are slightly below a year ago. A flat gaining 1% a year needs a decade or more to pay back a 12% to 15% round trip.

Avoid buying an average apartment today with a two-year exit plan, unless the price is clearly below market or you can add value with a renovation.

Could Argentina's currency still hurt a Buenos Aires property investment?

Yes. Apartments are priced in dollars, but long-term rents are paid in pesos.

The currency is much cleaner than during the years of capital controls. On 22 October 2026 the official, MEP and blue dollars all sat within 2% of each other, around ARS 1,550, which makes prices and transfers easier to follow.

But the landlord's mismatch remains. A flat can stay worth USD 131,000 while its peso rent buys fewer dollars after a devaluation. Today's two-room rent of ARS 898,154 is about USD 580; at the ARS 1,614 the central bank's market survey (REM) expects for the end of 2026, the same rent would be about USD 556.

The reverse is happening now. The wholesale dollar rose only about 4.9% from January to October 2026 while prices rose about 23.6%, so peso rents and expensas are worth more in dollars every month.

So the apartment behaves like a dollar asset, while its income stays exposed to the peso. Ask for a higher yield than you would on dollar rent elsewhere.

Could Buenos Aires property prices fall again?

They could, but the market does not look like the start of another 2019–2023 slide.

The weak points are real. Closing prices are 0.4% below a year ago. Mortgage deeds are down about 34%. Rents trail inflation. The IMF cut its 2026 growth forecast for Argentina from 3.5% to 2.1% in October 2026. And Argentina carries more currency, inflation and policy risk than mature markets.

But the conditions behind the last slump are not back.

Sales are close to last year's level, and sales without a mortgage rose about 6.6% by our count. Gross yields are about two and a half times their 2020 level. Building costs are high, which makes new supply expensive.

A recession, a currency shock or another credit squeeze could still push dollar prices lower. We just don't see enough evidence today to call a big fall the most likely outcome.

The more likely risk is boring: prices could go nowhere for a while.

What could make Buenos Aires property prices start climbing again?

Cheaper, easier mortgages. Credit is the clearest source of demand that has gone missing.

Total deeds are almost at last year's level even with mortgage deeds down about 34% from January to August 2026.

Rates have come down. Banco Ciudad offers UVA + 6.5% for a first home of up to 80 m² until 31 December 2026 (7.5% otherwise), Banco Nación UVA + 6.7% to eligible salary clients and UVA + 12% to others, and BBVA 7.5% to 11.5% over UVA (October 2026). The state pension fund (FGS) also lent banks ARS 400 billion in September and October 2026 for mortgages capped at UVA + 7.5%.

Lending is picking up from its lows: national originations rose from 1,968 in June to 2,527 in July 2026 (Tejido Urbano). That is still well below last year, so no credit boom yet.

If it keeps going, it adds buyers to a market already signing about 41,600 deeds in eight months with little mortgage help. Add expensive new construction and prices still below the old peak, and the next leg up becomes believable.

That is the risk of waiting years for 2023 prices: getting them back probably needs another crisis, not a normal correction.

Is the strong peso a reason to wait before buying in Buenos Aires?

No. Dollar prices barely react to a slow fall of the peso; only what you pay in pesos would get a bit cheaper.

The wholesale dollar hit a nominal record of about ARS 1,527 on 21 October 2026, yet it has risen only about 4.9% since January, while consumer prices rose about 23.6% from January to September. Buenos Aires got more expensive in dollars this year.

Dollar listing prices barely react to a slow depreciation: the REM survey expects about ARS 1,614 at the end of 2026, a move of roughly 4%. A sudden jump would be different: sellers who need cash then cut prices.

What to do: don't wait for the peso to weaken if you found the right flat. Negotiate from closing prices (about USD 2,100/m²), get renovation quotes in dollars rather than pesos, and keep cash beyond the price for expensas and works, which cost more in dollars every month.

Did the 2026 tax changes make it a better time to buy in Buenos Aires?

For resale, yes. For renting out as a foreigner, not clearly yet.

Since 1 January 2026, individuals selling property, residents and non-residents, pay no income tax on the gain (Law 27.802, regulated by Decree 406/2026 published on 1 June 2026). The old 15% tax on gains from property bought after 2018 is gone for individuals. Companies are not covered.

Long-term rents to a tenant's permanent home are now tax-free for resident landlords. For non-residents the decree is silent, so plan on 21% of gross rent withheld, plus 0.5% a year of wealth tax paid through a local representative. Tourist rentals are not covered at all.

What to check: buy in your own name rather than through a company if resale is your plan, and get an Argentine tax adviser to confirm the rental exemption in writing before you count it in your yield.

Could the fight over the rent law in Congress change the case for landlords?

Not for now. A bid in Congress to overturn DNU 70/2023, the decree that ended rent control, failed in October 2026.

The session called for 15 October 2026 never started: 121 deputies showed up, 129 were needed for a quorum. The free-contract rules stay: owner and tenant agree the term, the index and the currency.

The rental supply that came back under those rules is why rents now trail inflation: listings are about 3.6 times their February 2023 low. Old contracts still indexed to the ICL rose 31.5% over the past year, close to inflation.

What to do: sign leases with a clear adjustment index and period, budget for a few weeks of vacancy between tenants, and keep an eye on Congress: deputies can try again, and new rules would change the leases you sign next.

Is it a good time to buy property in Buenos Aires now?

Yes, selectively. It is a good time for a cash buyer or a long-term owner, but not the bargain of the 2023 bottom.

Prices have recovered enough to show the downturn ended, while closing prices stopped rising (USD 2,097/m², −0.4% over 12 months). Sales are strong (41,583 deeds from January to August 2026), but fewer mortgages mean less competition. Gross yields are 5.70% citywide, against about 2.3% in 2020.

Buyers still get about 5% off at closing (4.75% in September 2026), which matters a lot when the market itself barely moves.

Expensive construction makes a big price drop harder to imagine, and a mortgage recovery could bring more buyers back.

We would still avoid three kinds of purchase: overpriced premium flats bought only for the address, flats bought to resell within a few years, and buys on credit where a UVA loan eats the return (a UVA balance rose about 18% in dollars from January to September 2026 because of the strong peso).

For everyone else, waiting for Buenos Aires to become obviously cheap again probably means waiting for another Argentine crisis. Today you get fair prices, better rental math, active sales and enough hesitation among buyers to negotiate.

Buyer	Our view today	Why
Long-term owner-occupier	Good time to buy	Flat closing prices and a long holding period
Cash investor	Good time to look actively	Less mortgage competition, about 5% room to negotiate
Yield-focused investor	Selected barrios only	5.70% gross citywide, more in the south, about 4.5% after non-resident tax
Premium-area investor	Be demanding	Easy to resell, but 3.2% to 4.7% gross
Short-term buyer	Usually avoid	12% to 15% round-trip costs
UVA borrower	Compare carefully	UVA + 6.5% to 12%, balance rises in dollars when the peso is strong
Buyer waiting for a crash	Probably waiting too long	Sales, yields and building costs don't point to a collapse