Punta del Este has long been the see and be seen hotspot in South America. In no other beach area do so many of the rich and famous from multiple countries gather to take a break from their roles as captains of industry,  fashion, and entertainment. We just posted a detailed round-up of real estate in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

For a long time those numbers were limited, but as much of the world has gotten richer—especially in the bottom half of South America—the number of people wanting to stake out their spot in this location has taken off. That has made a hot real estate market even hotter. Numbers are bandied about like “$5 million in sales per day” (I’ve seen higher reports in some magazines) and “sales up 110% since 2010.”

We’ve seen this kind of fast appreciation before in Latin America and often it hasn’t ended well. In some places prices have gone through a correction (Panama City, Roatan, Ambergris), in others they’ve fallen off a cliff (many coastal Pacific retirement communities). The difference in Punta del Este is that much of the new buyer money is not coming from the U.S., Canada, or even Europe. It’s coming from increasingly wealthier Brazilians, Chileans, and Argentines who look at real estate as their only good inflation hedge.

So while this market has some typical signs of a bubble, it doesn’t look like it could pop anytime soon. Many of the prime beach properties in Jose Ignacio are owned by old money families with no intention to sell. Even if you’ve got a few million dollars to spend, your options depend on knowing someone in the know who can access the unlisted listings. A large number of the buyers are from developing countries on the rise. Uruguay’s residency, tax, and banking laws are some of the most attractive in the world. In an area where every house and villa is occupied in high season, the rental market is excellent.

And what’s the alternative? Brazil may have better beaches, but there’s nowhere else on the continent where so many power brokers and tastemakers (and their families of course) mix it up on vacation.

See our full story on luxury real estate in Punta del Este.

Buenos Aires, Argentina is one of the most vibrant and enchanting cities on the planet. With the feel of Europe but with a Latin flair and far lower prices, Argentina’s best-known destination enchants almost everyone who lands here and more than a few start to think, “Wouldn’t it be nice to buy a little place and move here?”

Many did just that over the past decade and the ones that pounced on opportunity a decade ago made out like bandits. Those bargain basement days have disappeared for a variety of reasons: a recovering and more stable economy, a rising domestic demand as locals put money into real estate as an inflation hedge, and increasingly wealthier Brazilians buying up prime condos.

Still, Buenos Aires is a good value when you compare it to comparable major cities around the world and the reasons it is a great place to live are still all in place. You just need to be careful in your searching and buying—both in terms of neighborhoods and in terms of navigating the obstacles that can trip you up.

To get an idea of prices, pitfalls, and places, check out our latest real estate round-up on buying real estate in Buenos Aires.

(And you’ll need a place to stay when you land, so see our reviews of the best hotels in Buenos Aires.)

Way back in 2008, Luxury Latin America kicked off the real estate coverage with a story on buying a vineyard in Mendoza, Argentina. We interviewed a local expert on the subject, David English, who runs a consulting firm for groups and individuals who want to buy the right way—instead of learning through costly mistakes.

David is back in this new article we just posted, but this time we’ve highlighted some developments that have gone from “grand plan” to reality: Vines of Mendoza and La Morada. Although different in what they offer, both offer the chance to be a part owner of a winery without doing it all on your own. Call it being a gentleman farmer or vacation vintner, but these options give you the chance to produce your own wine, but leaving out the part about buying huge plots and tractors.

The value proposition is still there in Argentina, even though the word has been out for a while. A few million dollars won’t get you much in southern France or Napa Valley, but it still will go a long way in the Mendoza wine growing region.

See the full story here on vineyard real estate in Mendoza, Argentina.

Although luxury real estate is by nature expensive in any country, there can be a huge variance from place to place. I had a bizarre juxtaposition illustration of this a couple weeks ago when I watched two House Hunters International shows back to back. In the first, a couple was looking for a beachfront home in Ecuador. All three choices were fabulous and all were under $200,000. The next show I watched had a couple looking for a French home in Provence. Their budget was $1.2 million and every place was a fixer-upper dump. Once didn’t even have a bathroom!

Most of Latin America falls somewhere near the bargain end of that scale. Apart from a few exceptions like Rio de Janeiro and maybe Santiago, what you get for your money is going to be a better value than what you could find in the U.S. or Canada when it comes time to buy a luxury vacation home or a retirement home. Sometimes a much better value.

Apart from real estate though, what’s it really cost to live in these places? Answering that question is not as simple, but International Living is doing its best to help. They have just released a series of detailed budgets which give a break-down of all the major outgoings on a monthly basis in some of the world’s favorite overseas retirement hotspots.

All of them are places we cover here in Luxury Latin America: Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Belize, Panama, Ecuador and Roatan in Honduras.

They include information on things like rent, utilities, entertainment, health care and groceries, as well as tips and pointers on how to make retirees’ money stretch further.

“Most of us think about living the good life abroad but things rarely develop beyond a daydream,” said International Living magazine editor Eoin Bassett. “Resources like this can help equip readers with the information they need to bring those dreams to reality.”

The figures were put together by International Living contributors on the ground in each of the seven retirement hotspots, so this info is much more reliable than what you’ll find in a Mercer cost of living study, for instance.

“This 4,000-plus word article is a massively useful tool for anyone considering retirement overseas,” added Eoin. “But it’s really just one among many must-read resources we provide on everything from budgeting for a life abroad and buying a beachside bargain property, to getting the best deal on dental treatment or setting up a small business.”

I’m a subscriber to International Living and think it’s well worth the money. This report is free though. You can see the entire article here: Seven Easy, Affordable Retirement Spots.

We often feature real estate destinations that are all about the flash and prestige. Much of the Pacific Coast of Mexico and Costa Rica has turned into a game of one-upsmanship, which showed no signs of slowing until California’s real estate crash hit.

Mazatlan was always a bit removed from all that, despite its location closer to the U.S. than many other destinations. The bubble never got very big, so the real estate market didn’t grind to a halt. Prices are off a bit from the peak, but they were never much out of whack to start with. A million bucks goes a long way in this region.

There are many reasons for this, but one of the main ones is that Mazatlan has not been a flashy, upper-crust resort city. There’s little reason for the paparazzi to hang out here watching for celebrities. That doesn’t mean, however, that you can’t find a luxury dream home or waterfront penthouse. It just means you’ll pay a lot less for it than you would in Cabo San Lucas or the Riviera Nayarit. Apart from Punta Mita, a golf and beach development like Estrella del Mar doesn’t even exist in those places: there’s not enough waterfront land available for such a grand scheme.

So if you want a luxury vacation or retirement home but you’re a value investor at heart, take a look at our latest real estate round-up. Pacific Mexico with Personality: Real Estate in Mazatlan.