Dampness Problems in Apartments

Dampness has always been every house’s worst enemy and it means a big headache for its owners. Whether you live on an apartment or a house, dampness can appear anywhere. For this reason, we will mention the main types of dampness that can appear at home, its causes and possible solutions or ideas to get rid of it.

Firstly, there are three main types of dampness:

- Dampness from foundations or the moisture of the land: This type of dampness appears when the proofing against it hasn’t been done properly during the construction of the house or building. This type of dampness goes from bottom to top and it transmits through the walls’ material.

- Dampness in rooftops: In this case there is dampness in the roofs or the higher areas of walls. This is generally caused by a breakage in the roof lining or tiles. Moreover, dampness can be generated in this area if too much water accumulates due to the obstruction of the gutters or if they have a bad inclination.

- Dampness for pipe breakage: This type of dampness is really common in all apartments and houses. When a pipe breaks, the water starts to filter on the walls, and it can grow really fast, so it should be fixed quickly.

The solution to these problems will depend on the type of dampness you’ve got, its size, etc. Before doing anything, it is recommended you seek for advice from a specialist. One thing you should never do is cover the humidity, in order to make it look as if it has never appeared.

The options to solve dampness today are varied. In the first place, it is always recommended to clean the drain pipes, sewer pipes and the like every year to avoid obstructions. Moreover, it is also recommended to paint the dividing walls and regular walls with waterproof painting (especially in the outdoors). Also, make sure the lower parts of your walls are properly waterproofed; if not, there are some new systems to do it.

If your house suffers from foundation dampness, the solution is quite complex and expensive, so you should definitely ask for a specialist’s opinion and see what he/she thinks is best to do.

 Lastly, now there are some special sheets that allow your wall to breathe so that dampness doesn't accumulate for the case of those walls that have moisture and it is not a problem of yours, but your neighbor’s.

Even though dampness can be complicated to handle, it can be solved, and the sooner you solve it, the better (and cheaper) it will be. Nevertheless, as we have mentioned previously, you should ask for the specialist’s help.

Housing Census in Palermo and Belgrano

The neighborhood of Palermo is one of the most populated of the City of Buenos Aires. For many decades, many citizens have chosen to live in Palermo, and this has caused the continuous growth of the neighborhood. Moreover, during the last few years, due to the popularity that the construction business had, the number of houses in Palermo has raised even more. According to a report made by the “Ministerio de Desarrollo Urbano" [Department of Urban Development] in the City of Buenos Aires, there are 5 neighborhoods that sum 43% of the total of constructed houses in the last decade. Palermo is one of these neighborhoods, and it has 13,6% of the total. According to the census done in 2010, the number of houses in the neighborhood of Palermo sums 141.377. If you compare this number to the one resulted in 2001 Census (94.467), the number of houses in Palermo has increased 46.910 in ten years.

One of the aspects of this increase in the number of houses in Palermo is that it has appreciated some areas of the neighborhood that didn't use to be popular.

Another neighborhood that has grown a lot in the number of constructed houses is Belgrano. Belgrano has increased a 6,7% in the last decade, which means a lot if we compare its size with Palermo's.

For many years, many companies have decided to set in Belgrano and Núñez, which has helped the neighborhood grow. Moreover, many people have decided to move into the northern region of the City of Buenos Aires, and Belgrano is one of them. Likewise, many who work in the "Zona Norte" of Buenos Aires chooses Belgrano as its residence neighborhood, because it is within the city, but near work and it has also easy access to the downtown area of the city.

According to the 2010 Census, the number of houses in the Commune no 13 (which includes the neighborhoods of Belgrano, Núñez and Colegiales) has reached 129.745.

So, even though the construction activity has slowed down during the last months, there are still some constructions going on, which can increase the number of houses in the neighborhoods of Belgrano and Núñez.

Ranking of constructing companies in Argentina

The construction boom became really popular about two or three years ago in the City of Buenos Aires. At that time, the construction businesses started to create bigger and more buildings, like they’ve never done it before. Due to the number of construction businesses that appeared, all of them tried to stand out from the rest in order to get more clients, construct more buildings and, above all, to become more prestigious around the country, and why not, around the world. Argentina has a great variety of construction companies. We will now mention some of the most prestigious construction businesses of the country. The results given were taken from a research done by the market research company in Argentina, D’Alessio.

1- Techint, Engineering and Construction: Techint provides engineering services, supplies and construction around the world. With more than 60 years in the market, this company provides the best service, plus a great added value.

2- Benito Roggio e Hijos: This company has been running in Argentina since 1908, and it has all the technical conditions, resources and experience in order to carry out all types of jobs, with the best quality. Benito Roggio e Hijos had been in charge of many well-known projects on a national and international level.

3- Constructora Sudamericana: The values of this company are based on professionalism, compliance, personalized attention and the highest quality.

4- Caputo: This construction company has more than 70 years in business and it offers to fulfill its duties in dully time and in proper form, plus its great experience, which continues to grow daily.

5- Criba: With the vision of being the most trustful company of Argentina, Criba has been recognized as the constructing business of the year according to the AEV awards. Criba dedicates to all areas of the architecture business, and it provides quality services.

And the list goes on, with construction businesses such as José Cartellone Const. Civiles S.A., Dycasa, Petersen, Thiele & Cruz SA, Gerlach Campbell, Grupo Pescarmona, and more. All of the construction businesses do everything they can to provide the best service, not only to become more prestigious, but to satisfy their clients, and make an outstanding job.

5 reasons to choose a location

When it comes to renting or buying a house or an apartment, there are many things to consider and analyze. Each reason to choose a certain neighborhood or area will depend, of course, on the taste and needs of each persons. Nevertheless, since the reasons tend to be more or less similar when it comes to choosing locations, we will now mention 5 reasons to choose a certain location to live.

One important reason to have in mind when choosing a location is its accessibility to other places. For example, how far is it from the different means of transport, shops, etc. If a house or apartment is far from everything, it may not be the best choice for some people, especially for those without a car.

Another reason to take into account when choosing a place to live is its security. A house may be really pretty but it could be located on a bad area. Security nowadays is something to have in mind. For example, if the street is dark or too quiet at night, it could be dangerous. On the contrary, if the area is well lighted and it’s a bit busy, it could be safer (or at least it seems like that).

A third reason to choose or not to choose a location of a house can be the distance to work. Many people consider this an important issue, since they don’t like to be travelling for hours, and having to combine with different transportations.

Moreover, another thing to have in mind when choosing a location is the traffic and the possibility of parking your car (if you have one). If there is no garage in the building or house, and the area where you live is too crowded and filled with cars all day, it could be a disadvantage to live there, since you may waste a lot of time looking for a place to park your car.

Lastly, another reason to have in mind when choosing a location for your house is the commercial options it offers. Those people, who enjoy going out at night, or going to restaurants and the like, might want to have these types of shops and places nearby, including restaurants, pubs, bars, etc.

As we have mentioned previously, location and the reasons for choosing or not a location to live will depend on each person’s tastes and needs.

 

Insurance for your home content

Nowadays, insecurity is more than a bad feeling, is a fear that many people have in Argentina. In the past, living in an apartment gave people some confidence and the idea of safety; these days, no one is safe from being burgled. For this reason, today there are many insurance plans that protect your home and your belongings.

Some home insurance plans, besides protecting your house against fire, earthquakes, and others, also protect your electrical appliances and possessions at home, against burglary (or maybe against breakage).

Moreover, there are some insurance policies (according to each company) that cover some of your electrical appliances and equipments from your home against theft, like the TV, the computer, the DVD player, among others.

Before insuring your house and/or its contents, make sure you make a deep search among the different insurance companies in order to see what the options are. Likewise, you should ask for a detailed description of all the exceptions that each insurance policy has, since it may be cheaper than other plans or companies but because it doesn't cover all the things you want, or the percentage of coverage is not the one you expect to be.

Currently, the different ways of hiring an insurance policy are easy: you may ask for a quotation and hire the insurance policy over the phone, through the web, or in person.

Bear in mind that the monthly price of the insurance for your home and its content not only will it depend on the amount of stuff you have, and the risks you want to ensure your home against, but it will also depend on the size of your house.

Insurance policies may protect you against fire, hail, hurricanes, tornados, burglary, and/or theft, civil liability, rubble removal, and it can also protect your electrical appliances (some policies include some of them and others are to be paid separately), among other options.

Nowadays, hiring an insurance policy for your house and its content is something normal and to have in mind, if you haven’t hired one yet, since it is a good way of protecting your possessions against any adversity.