Punta del Este: real estate agents expect the change of government in Argentina to reactivate the sector

The flagship resort of Uruguay and the surrounding areas, which contain the highest cost per square meter (m2) in the country, is on its way to stop being a summer area to become one to live all year round.

The covid-19 pandemic and the strict quarantine imposed by the president of Argentina, Alberto Fernández, contributed to many inhabitants of that country recently settling in eastern Uruguay. However, the prolongation of the crisis that the neighboring country is going through produced a certain cooling in the development of the property market in Punta del Este.

“We are waiting for a greater flow of Argentine investment, which will surely come about with the change of government in that country in the coming months,” said the president of the Punta del Este Real Estate Chamber —a union that brings together some 200 companies— , Javier Sena, in dialogue with Café & Negocios.

Although “in the last year the movement is sustained and stable”, which has given “return to investors” who bet on this area of ​​Uruguay, “we are waiting for the instability in Argentina to decrease so that the flow of business is more fluid ”, Sena explained. The businessman asserted that the inhabitants of that country continue to be the origin of the main investors in the east. Then, among foreigners, they are followed by Brazilians, Europeans and North Americans. The interest of the latter two is clearly growing, Sena said.

Jose Ignacio Lighthouse.

The Uruguayans, for their part, see this area of ​​the country with better eyes to buy real estate, which are being encouraged to buy recently completed units and well, said the businessman. Likewise, the president of the union expressed that the chamber has been working with different banks with the aim of expanding the benefits to acquire units in Punta del Este.

For Sena, the apartments with sea views in Playa Mansa and Playa Mansa and the mansions that are located within a radius of between 15 and 20 minutes from the city center are currently the most coveted.

Regarding the profile of the users, Sena explained that since the pandemic “everyone who comes to buy a property in this area fulfills both functions: business and housing. They look for a good view, access to services and houses near the peninsula because this makes it easier for them to live and rent”.

According to data from the real estate portal InfoCasas to which Café & Negocios had access, the areas are ordered as follows by volume of queries:

In turn, the data analyst for that platform, Diego Eizmendi, explained that a square meter in José Ignacio can comfortably cost up to US$6,000, and that the difference between the units located on the seafront of the Mansa and Brava are usually important. In this sense, he exemplified units of Playa Mansa: a property located in front of the sea amounts to US$3,600 per m2, while one located on Avenida Roosevelt has a value of US$2,900 per m2.

To put it into perspective, the area with the most expensive properties in Montevideo are those close to the Punta Carretas Golf Club and their prices are around US$3,800 (m2). Those of Carrasco and the private neighborhoods of Canelones, meanwhile, tie in a value of US$ 3,291 (m2), according to the InfoCasas report.

Eizmendi agreed with Sena regarding the performance shown by the eastern real estate market. For the data expert, queries through this portal during 2022 and so far this year have remained stable in Maldonado.

At the same time, sales fell in January and February 2023 compared to the same months last year. During this high season, the portal registered around 2,900 concretions, which meant 10% less than the 2022 season.

However, at this point, the president of the union said that between January and so far in June of this year the real estate market grew by 10% compared to the same period in 2022.

According to the latest data on sales in Maldonado provided by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), during the first quarter of 2023, 1,852 sales of real estate were registered, 10.7% less than those that took place in the first quarter of last year ( 2074). It is worth clarifying that it does not break down by location, but rather takes all the transactions by department.

Hotel Enjoy Punta del Este.

Punta del Este recovers its premium place

On the other hand, after the pandemic Punta del Este returned to its original place as a “premium destination” because in recent times it had become “overcrowded”, they pointed out, meanwhile, from the real estate developer CRIBA, a company that is in charge of the construction of 250,000 m2 in works both in Montevideo and in Punta del Este, among which are several complexes of towers for luxury homes such as Le Parc and the next Shopping Atlántico in the eastern city.

In turn, the developer added that the profile of those who buy or rent in Punta del Este has changed. Before it was a place mainly to have fun during the summer, while today it has become a city for the whole family and for the whole year.

“The social and proximity phenomenon” that the resort offers, since after the pandemic many upper-middle and upper-class Argentines settled in the place, contributes to the expansion of Punta del Este, they added.

Although the supply of units is growing, “the rise in real estate prices registered by the city made it become sophisticated and not massive as it became in the pre-pandemic,” they stressed. “Currently the user demands quality standards; properties with amenities are no longer a differential, but this public already has them” as something incorporated, they added.

The costs per square meter are between US$4,000 and US$6, they agreed, and they also stated that Argentines continue to be the biggest driver of investment in eastern Uruguay.