I have a question for you north coast inhabitants. I'm wondering about any particularly good or bad real estate people and or engineers(general contractors) particularly in the Sousa/Cabarete areas. Thanks
- Thread starter Camden Tom
- Start date
real estate and construction
I live in Sosua. Read your post about moving to this area. Anything that I can do to help, don't hesitate to ask.
One real estate agent I can recommend without any reservation is Dean Brown, an American expatriate. He works for the Perdomo real estate company, and he is the American contact from Century 21 on the north coast. You can email him at islandcruisers@hotmail.com. His home is in a very nice development outside of Cabarete.
The most important person in your life if you are buying or building will be your attorney. There are many, many pitfalls and traps for a foreigner buying in the DR, and there are countless horror stories. The attorney that I recommend without reservation is Fabio Guzman, the attorney who answers questions posted in the legal section of this board. His clients include a great many foreign investors, both large and small. He is one attorney who is both competent and trustworthy, not an easy combination to find. You can meet him www.drlawyer.com
With respect to buidling people, there are good and bad. But all need close supervision. The best time to research this subject is when you are here, since your sources of information will be much greater than they are on this board.
One real estate agent I can recommend without any reservation is Dean Brown, an American expatriate. He works for the Perdomo real estate company, and he is the American contact from Century 21 on the north coast. You can email him at islandcruisers@hotmail.com. His home is in a very nice development outside of Cabarete.
The most important person in your life if you are buying or building will be your attorney. There are many, many pitfalls and traps for a foreigner buying in the DR, and there are countless horror stories. The attorney that I recommend without reservation is Fabio Guzman, the attorney who answers questions posted in the legal section of this board. His clients include a great many foreign investors, both large and small. He is one attorney who is both competent and trustworthy, not an easy combination to find. You can meet him www.drlawyer.com
With respect to buidling people, there are good and bad. But all need close supervision. The best time to research this subject is when you are here, since your sources of information will be much greater than they are on this board.
The most important person
in building your house is your builder/engineer/architect. You need an attorney for some aspects, but unless your attorney will also construct your house, he is not the "most important person in your life" when you are building (unless of course you are building on some property with title/ownership problems!!). Oh, and a word of advice, never use a real-estate company to build your house.
in building your house is your builder/engineer/architect. You need an attorney for some aspects, but unless your attorney will also construct your house, he is not the "most important person in your life" when you are building (unless of course you are building on some property with title/ownership problems!!). Oh, and a word of advice, never use a real-estate company to build your house.
Couldn't disagree more, Kiteman. True the attorney isn't going to build the house, but he better be involved when you form your company, buy your land, make your contracts, etc., etc. Any foreigner who comes to the DR believing he can deal with the purchase of property, the purchase or construction of a home, etc., without being in close touch with a competent, honest attorney is a fool who will soon be parted from his money. The playing field may be level in your home area, but not here.
Trustworthy and Competent Attorney
I would be amiss not to mention Guido Perdomo in Sosua in regards to the inquiry about a competent and honest attorney.
I can't look into the man's heart but I've had the good fortune of knowing about him for three years and have never heard anyone say a bad word about him.
Certianly, attorneys have different fields of expertise and Mr. Perdomo may not have all the expertise you may require. He'd be a good place to start though.
I would be amiss not to mention Guido Perdomo in Sosua in regards to the inquiry about a competent and honest attorney.
I can't look into the man's heart but I've had the good fortune of knowing about him for three years and have never heard anyone say a bad word about him.
Certianly, attorneys have different fields of expertise and Mr. Perdomo may not have all the expertise you may require. He'd be a good place to start though.
But Ken,
the attorney is only necessary for about 1% of the process!! What good is a clear title on a crappy-built house? I think we are talking about different things. To BUILD a house you need a very good builder, not a good attorney. I believe that you are confusing the process. And by the way, I live in Santo Domingo and Cabarete. I've built four houses and two commerical properties here Ken, how many have you built??
the attorney is only necessary for about 1% of the process!! What good is a clear title on a crappy-built house? I think we are talking about different things. To BUILD a house you need a very good builder, not a good attorney. I believe that you are confusing the process. And by the way, I live in Santo Domingo and Cabarete. I've built four houses and two commerical properties here Ken, how many have you built??
Camden Tom ...
I recently met a fellow from Puerto Plata who struck me as being honest, dependable and knowledgable. His name is Michael Muller, 809.854-2353. If you contact him, I'm sure you will find him an excellent resource for real estate and construction on the north coast. If you do contact him, please say hello to him from us (Keith & Cris Broad).
I recently met a fellow from Puerto Plata who struck me as being honest, dependable and knowledgable. His name is Michael Muller, 809.854-2353. If you contact him, I'm sure you will find him an excellent resource for real estate and construction on the north coast. If you do contact him, please say hello to him from us (Keith & Cris Broad).
Kiteman, I think you are the one confusing things. I didn't say that you didn't need a good builder and engineer, quite the contrary. I said that you do, but recommended that Camden Tom wait until he gets here to do his investigation since he will have more people to talk with on this particular subject than are available on the board.
The difference between your experience with building and that of Camden Tom is that you are established in the Dominican Republic and he is moving here from the US with no experience.
One of the first questions he should answer is whether he is going to buy property as an individual or as a company. This is not likely to be a question he has dealt with before since you don't need to form a company to buy land and build a house in the US. But in this country, in my opinion and in the opinion of most foreign investors, it is far better to have a company--in only to insure that should you die your heirs get the entire property rather than the 50% left after the government takes its share. In any case, before he buys anything this is a question that should be discussed with an attorney, and if a company is to be formed, he will want the attorney to handle it.
Then for the purchase of property, regardless of whether or not there is already a home on it, he will want to be sure the title is clear. A poor builder on a property with clear title makes no sense, but neither does a good builder on a property that belongs to somebody else.
Since he will be a newcomer to the country, he will be wise to check with his attorney on what requirements he must meet in order to build a home. He will also be wise to talk with attorney about the best way to engage the engineer, builder, etc., to insure he is protected.
If there are problems along the way, they are also likely to be the subject of discussion with the attorney.
My sense is that you were so eager to discredit my statement about the importance of a competent, honest attorney that you shot from the hip rather than putting yourself in the shoes of someone who is moving to the DR from the US with a desire to invest and not have any serious problems.
To conclude, let me again stress that Camden Tom will want a good builder, a good engineer, and a good attorney. He will be well advised to get the attorney first, since there are important things to be decided before he even considers who will be his engineer and builder.
The difference between your experience with building and that of Camden Tom is that you are established in the Dominican Republic and he is moving here from the US with no experience.
One of the first questions he should answer is whether he is going to buy property as an individual or as a company. This is not likely to be a question he has dealt with before since you don't need to form a company to buy land and build a house in the US. But in this country, in my opinion and in the opinion of most foreign investors, it is far better to have a company--in only to insure that should you die your heirs get the entire property rather than the 50% left after the government takes its share. In any case, before he buys anything this is a question that should be discussed with an attorney, and if a company is to be formed, he will want the attorney to handle it.
Then for the purchase of property, regardless of whether or not there is already a home on it, he will want to be sure the title is clear. A poor builder on a property with clear title makes no sense, but neither does a good builder on a property that belongs to somebody else.
Since he will be a newcomer to the country, he will be wise to check with his attorney on what requirements he must meet in order to build a home. He will also be wise to talk with attorney about the best way to engage the engineer, builder, etc., to insure he is protected.
If there are problems along the way, they are also likely to be the subject of discussion with the attorney.
My sense is that you were so eager to discredit my statement about the importance of a competent, honest attorney that you shot from the hip rather than putting yourself in the shoes of someone who is moving to the DR from the US with a desire to invest and not have any serious problems.
To conclude, let me again stress that Camden Tom will want a good builder, a good engineer, and a good attorney. He will be well advised to get the attorney first, since there are important things to be decided before he even considers who will be his engineer and builder.
Thanks for the info and the lively debate. I have to say I've gotten a lot of good info off this DR forum over the last few months and to all the contributors, I say thanks. Additional thoughts regarding this thread will be appreciated.
The advantage in waiting until you get here to consider a builder, Camden Tom, is that you can then inspect the work done previously by the people you are considering as well as talk with the owners about their satisfaction with the engineer/builders. Good luck.
Camden Tom, in case you haven't yet had the chance to check out the website of Fabio Guzman, you might at least be interested in reading this. http://www.drlawyer.com/txt/articlesreal.html The corporation referred to in the last sentence of the section on inheritance is the corporation I was referring to in my earlier post.
When we bought property in Samana in 1986, we formed a corporation. The corp. owned the land and I was president with full powers. When we sold the land a couple of years ago, we sold the corporation. So when we bought a condo in Sosua, we formed a new corporation.
Among the benefits of the corporation is the protection you get by incorporating in the US. Also, you avoid payment of inheritance taxes. If you, the president of the corp dies, then the VP, presumably a family member or someone you trust completely, takes over as president and the corporation goes on.
I saw in another thread that you may offer real estate to clients in Minnesota once you are located here. Corporations is one of the subjects you will need to be very familiar with.
When we bought property in Samana in 1986, we formed a corporation. The corp. owned the land and I was president with full powers. When we sold the land a couple of years ago, we sold the corporation. So when we bought a condo in Sosua, we formed a new corporation.
Among the benefits of the corporation is the protection you get by incorporating in the US. Also, you avoid payment of inheritance taxes. If you, the president of the corp dies, then the VP, presumably a family member or someone you trust completely, takes over as president and the corporation goes on.
I saw in another thread that you may offer real estate to clients in Minnesota once you are located here. Corporations is one of the subjects you will need to be very familiar with.
Does the law in the DR allow a person set up a Trust to hold their assets, such as real estate, cars etc.?
I have been told that in the US you can put all personal assets, real estate, cars, bank accounts etc. into a trust. The person creating the trust can define all aspects of the trust relating to disposal and / or use of assets as well as names of beneficiaries of the trust. All of this while maintaining personal control of the assets of the trust, including the sale and purchase of property and the use of the cash assets of the trust.
These trusts help people to avoid some taxes especially estate taxes. It can also be used to protect personal assets from being lost in liability litigation or bankruptcy. Effectively the person has no assets since they are all held in the trust; therefore these assets are not subject to a liquidation imposed by the court.
My understanding of the advantage of a trust over a corporation is that a court can force a person to give up their corporate stock, but, a court cannot order the liquidation of the trust nor can it order the trust to be turned over to a third party.
I have been told that in the US you can put all personal assets, real estate, cars, bank accounts etc. into a trust. The person creating the trust can define all aspects of the trust relating to disposal and / or use of assets as well as names of beneficiaries of the trust. All of this while maintaining personal control of the assets of the trust, including the sale and purchase of property and the use of the cash assets of the trust.
These trusts help people to avoid some taxes especially estate taxes. It can also be used to protect personal assets from being lost in liability litigation or bankruptcy. Effectively the person has no assets since they are all held in the trust; therefore these assets are not subject to a liquidation imposed by the court.
My understanding of the advantage of a trust over a corporation is that a court can force a person to give up their corporate stock, but, a court cannot order the liquidation of the trust nor can it order the trust to be turned over to a third party.
John J, you should post your question in the legal section where it will be seen by Fabio Guzman, the attorney who answers legal questions posted on the board.
Also, re board etiquete, when you have a question different than that posted by the person who started the thread, you should start your own thread. Hijacking another person's thread should be avoided.
Also, re board etiquete, when you have a question different than that posted by the person who started the thread, you should start your own thread. Hijacking another person's thread should be avoided.
Thanks Ken, I do have an appointment with Mr Guzman in the first week of January. I am somewhat familiar with the corporate ownership concept in the DR as my wife and I have already purchased two properties. I believe we got a good deal on one and probably paid too much for the other. I appreciate your input and will continue to welcome your advise.