I've just got back from Rio, where the price of apartments varied from the ridiculously cheap (by Western standards) to the ridiculously expensive (by Brazilian standards). It all depends on how much the owner or agent you're dealing with tries to rip you off (normal business pratice and sounds less bad in Brazil than it does in the UK)! Anyway I'll cut to the chase. Don't buy or rent anything in advance. Get out there, deal with people face to face, smile and strike a deal. It's a BEAUTIFUL country.