Where to live in Santiago: El Golf, the business district

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Between the 30s and the 70s, it was a residential area mainly occupied by wealthy families, where you would find primarily mansions with extensive gardens. During the heritage days, you can visit the residency of the Brish ambassador (Gertrudis Echeñique 96) for an idea.

It is now the business district of Santiago, built at the end of the nineties and named Sanhattan (acronym of Santiago and Manhattan). It is composed mainly of commercial buildings along avenues Apoquindo and Isidora Goyeneche. Residential buildings are available around in the small adjacent streets. The name "El Golf" comes from the golf club located just north of the avenue Presidente Riesco.

As soon as you move away from the big avenues, you can find a lot of small parks. The area is very active during working hours. But after 8 pm, there is little to do. During weekends, an organic market and a few "ferias" give some animation, but do not expect many things to happen. Most shops will be closed, except high-end retailers.

As far as flats are concerned, El Golf is most likely the most expensive district of Santiago, with a few areas of Vitacura having similar prices. For some Chileans, having a postal address in El Golf is a status symbol.

What type of accommodation can you find in El Golf and Alcantara?

A lot of buildings, with an average of 15-20 floors. Apartments range from 70sqm up to an entire floor. There is a limited number of studio apartments. It mostly starts at 2 bedrooms, as the area has been designed to accommodate upper-class families. The most recent buildings are located near metro Alcantara. Some properties include a concierge and laundry services. Most properties offer a swimming pool, but only the best/most recent ones have it on the roof. Be aware: you can find a lot of buildings where the swimming pool is located next to the parking lot.

In this area, a lot of apartments for rent are furnished (around 60-70% of the market)

You can also find a few houses:

• on the north of the avenue Presidente Riesco, in the area called Cerro San Luis. They have resisted the invasion of real estate developers due to their location on the side of a hill. Yet, please note that due to this, these are often houses with several floors and a few dozen steps to climb from the entrance to the door. Avoid this area if you have young kids.
• other houses are available 4-5 blocks south of avenue Apoquindo. Yet, most nice ones are used by businesses/shops or embassies. You can find houses near the collegio Verbo Divino. This is a very traditional neighborhood, with few expatriates, as the Verbo Divino is one of the last catholic male-only colleges. Yet, if you work in Providencia and want a house in relatively good condition, located close to the metro and shops, this is a neighborhood to consider. There is a limited supply, so there might not be many properties on the market when you arrive.

If you have children, keep in mind that there is a significant amount of traffic in the morning and afternoon. As there is no international college, this will require them to take school buses daily to go to school.

Average cost of accommodation in El Golf (Las Condes)

• 1-bedroom apartment: $500,000 to $950,000
• 2-bedroom apartment: $900,000 to $1,500,000
• 3-bedroom apartment: $1,100,000 to $2,300,000
• Houses: limited supply of properties, usually between $2,500,000 and $4,000,000 if you want a modern one.

Furnished apartments are generally 20 to 30% more expensive.

We recommended the El Golf / Alcanta neighborhood of Las Condes for

• Single expats living in Chile for a short time, willing to live next to their work in a furnished apartment
• Short-term accommodation for families relocating to Chile. Being in El Golf is very convenient at first, to facilitate viewings of properties in the surrounding cities while being close enough of shopping centres so that you can walk if you don't have a car at first.
• Long-term accommodation for expatriates who want/need to be close to metro line 1

Do you want to go more in detail?

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✅ Practical tips based on 7-year relocation experience
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✅ Last updated in 2024

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