The Dominican
Republic has gotten a great deal of exposure on the EscapeArtist.com
Website. We've dedicated entire issues of our web-Zine to the island nation.
There is good reason for this seeming one-sided presentation.
The D.R.
has
a lot to offer. It is the second biggest island in the Caribbean, with
both the highest and lowest points of Caribbean Basin land on it's shores.
It has the city of Santo Domingo, a bustling metropolis with 3.5 million
inhabitants, which includes a Zona Colonial that contain
the oldest and perhaps most beautiful streets and architecture in the new
world. It has beaches that are without equal, it has mountains and mountain
valleys, it has rivers and lakes. It is one of a kind. In addition
to it's natural assets, it's a cheap place to live, with easy accessibility,
easy residency requirements and low cost real estate.
John Schroder,
our Dominican Republic Guru, knows a lot about the D.R. - ...an investment
banker who escaped from Wall Street to the good life. Where did John escape
to? You've got it, he's in the D.R. where he's become as Dominican as sugar
cane and Fuente cigars.
When you
think of the Caribbean, you think beaches, beaches, and more beaches.
The reality is, plenty of beautiful beachfront property does exist, but
there literally is an opportunity to become a “country squire” as
well. Sound too good to be true? We took a “look
around” at what was available in the Dominican Republic real
estate market recently and found some very reasonably priced building lots
and acreage for our clients. Some of these properties are located
in the beautiful mountain region near Santiago. We also found some new
homes and new residential projects in sections of the Santo Domingo area
that may be ideal for an inexpensive get-a-way or retirement home.
New City
– Old Story There is a
story I am reminded of, that involves a gentleman who decided to purchase
an orange grove about 30 minutes outside of Los Angeles in the 1940’s –
1950’s.
The man made
quite a bit of money, but his stroke of luck had nothing to do with oranges.
The
story starts off with the purchase of his first orange grove.
The gentleman
in our story, which we shall call the “country squire”, wanted to
own a small farm in order to grow oranges.
He wanted to
be sufficiently far enough away from the city of Los Angeles to
have his farm, yet close enough for access to all the things he liked about
the city. After a few years had passed, he started to notice the
city of Los Angeles “creeping up” on him.
He also started
to receive very lucrative offers from real estate developers interested
in building new housing developments on his property. The gentleman finally
did sell his land at a handsome profit and decided to move 45 minutes further
away. The exact same thing happened to him again.
That is when
he started to get an idea about where to buy property and the fundamentals
of the real estate market in a growing city.
To a large
extent, this is the same thing happening in the capital city of the Dominican
Republic, Santo Domingo de Guzman. This modern city with 3.5 Million
people is expanding to the north and east primarily. This being the case,
there are a number of new residential home developments and building lots
available at much less expensive prices
then within
the “city center”. Investors can find small building lots
200 square meters in size in the San Isidro section of the “Zona Oriental”
for
about US $ 6,000. Many might even prefer to purchase a double lot,
which would provide 400 square meters of land for about US $ 12,000.
If you would
prefer to purchase a small but comfortable brand new home, I can suggest
the newer residential sections of Lucerna & Cancino, also in the “Zona
Oriental”. Such new homes can be purchased for about US $55,000
at current exchange rates. While these 3 bedroom homes are not would can
be called “extravagant”, for the money they make for a very reasonably
priced second or retirement home.
Close enough
to visit the shopping malls, the new “PriceMart” & movie theaters,
golf courses and local beaches – yet far enough away from the traffic of
the city center.
In addition,
we also found what can be called a similar situation to our “country
squire” story mentioned above. Located about 30 minutes from the residential
section known as the “Zona Oriental”, we located a new project designed
to offer investors large building lots of at least 1,000 square meters
in size, all located within a country setting. An American expatriate
is developing the project, and so far we like what we saw.
The project
will include a gated entrance (residents must display special identity
passes), community club house & swimming pool. Plus enough “country”
atmosphere
to satisfy the nature lover (we have a photo of a wild crane standing
on a bulldozer when the construction crew left for a lunch break).
The price
of these properties, equivalent to about US $ 15,000 for a very nice sized
parcel (lots vary in size, but a good comparison for Americans would
be a US building lot 125 feet x 100 feet in size) and the setting,
is not the only attraction we found. Close by are sugar
cane plantations
and many farms selling fresh fruit by the road (for those that envy
Mr. Douglas from the old “Green Acres” television program). In
addition are the “farm” training camps of the Dodgers and Marlins
baseball teams. Aside from living in a relaxing and comfortable setting
only 35 minutes from the “city”, one can watch baseball games of
“up
and coming” major league players for about US$ 6. Maybe the next “Sammy
Sossa” will be one of your neighbors and you can say, “I knew him
when”.
There’s
COLD in them thar’ Hills
For those of
you that like the idea of cooler climates, I can suggest a visit to the
Jarabacoa region and general surrounding areas. What you will find are
some of most beautiful mountain scenery & fresh water streams you have
ever seen. In addition, being close to the highest mountain range
in the Caribbean, Pico Duarte, means that you will also need to pack your
sweater. Frost is very common in the mornings and local Dominicans
often call this region the “Alps of the Caribbean”.
Jarabacoa is
located about 1 hour south of the second largest city, Santiago de Los
Caballeros, and about 2 hours from Santo Domingo. What this means for investors
is a conveniently located spot which is fairly close to the beach resort
towns of Sosua & Puerta Plata.
As with what
we mentioned above, the prices for a comfortable building lot in a country
setting is very reasonable. Lots in a new “Country Club” development
of 1,200 square meters are selling for the equivalent of US $ 20,000.
Designed to be an upscale weekend Country Club retreat or get-away for
the upper middle class from Santo Domingo or Santiago, we think it is a
far better value for the money than some other properties being marketed
elsewhere.
Why the
Dominican Republic?Why have you not heard about these properties
before?
For starters,
the Dominican Republic offers some of the best values around for the retiree
or expatriate. Aside from having the fastest growing economy in Latin
America (offering a number of new business opportunities), the Dominican
Republic offers tax-free US Dollar banking. Local bank interest rates
for US Dollar CD’s are about 10% or more for a 90-day deposit, plus the
country does offer some of the most reasonably priced property in the entire
Caribbean.
The key to
finding bargains in any market or country is in knowing where to look.
We have said before that everything “costs more in English”, and
this is very true. Some of our clients have said, “John, you told
us a lie”. “We went to visit the Dominican Republic, and all
that we found were high priced golf course communities”.
The fact is,
that anything marketed in English, or with slick advertisements aimed at
foreigners will cost more. But this is not the real local market. There
certainly are building lots located in some “golf course” communities
being marketed for US $ 75,000 in addition to “luxury homes” offered
at US $ 225,000 or more. There are also many well-done residential homes
or communities being built that do not advertise on the “Internet”
or in English for that matter. They do not know how to “get the word
out with a web-site”, nor do they have any salespeople that speak English.
But in these cases, this is where you will find the true local bargains
as a result.
John Schroder,
of Ascot Advisory Services in Santo Domingo writes for a number
of publications about living & investing in the Dominican Republic.
Ascot Advisory Services provides assistance and advice to both individuals
and business owners regarding Offshore Incorporations, Offshore Banking
& Investments, Residency Matters & Second Passports, plus other
matters of interest to “Expatriates”.
