Investing in property in Bavaro? My and your thoughts ...

[Contango]

Where are all these Crazy drugged out Expats in Bavaro you guys keep mentioning? I've been coming for 8 years and haven't seen one yet.. Yes I see the hookers on the sides of the Road, but they have 10 times more in the North. Where can I go Junkie watching for these crazed drugged out expats in Bavaro? Im assuming l;ike any place where Coke is cheap you have a few addicts around, but I've yet to see a group of Junkies at the local Bavaro "government sponsored injection site" LOL..

Mike, the Condo we bought I have already been offered more than what we paid , mind you we paid $40,000 less than everyone else in the same development because I dealt directly with the Builder and beat him up in the middle of August a few years back when nobody was buying... Also I respect what you say Mike Fisher, but you don't know that "EVERYONE'S" property is going to drop over the next few years, unless you have a crystal ball. Regarding CAP VALUE, buying RE in PC, I agree with you 100%, its not a money making investment.. Which brings me FULL CIRCLE to my original post, I DIDN'T BUY to make money, we bought because we wanted to be there, 3 or 4 times a year... Carry costs are much less than staying in a 5 Star 4 times a year, and we all the comforts of home without renting someones flee bag condo in Eldorado or wherever..

 

[redserge]

I rent because I am a snow bird, I come here for three months Jan to the end of March. I live my home in Canada I am retired (55) years old and am an avid Harley nut and a member of the Blue Knights MC Club. I will say as a retired Motor cop and Ex Chief Motorcycle Instructor for the RCMP, you could not pay me to ride a motorcycle down here, and I used to do VIP escorts and ran all over my City lights and sirens but no thanks here. I hate being approached by prostitutes on the beach but I just laugh at them, we have street hookers where I am from. I see less drugged out people than I did in my City, I see more low income people here but way more smiles. I will keep coming here so long as the rents are good the beaches are clean and the community is safe. I wish I paid Mike Fishers rent but when you rent short term you pay higher prices. Still beats Florida for weather and a prices!

 

[flyinroom]

I have a couple of ideas for improving the quality of life in the Punta Cana/Bavaro area...........
Why doesn't the government invest some money, buy up and tear down a couple of hotels along the beach. Then they could turn them into town squares, with some kind of ventures that would respond to the needs and desires of the local community.
A Dominican or two or three could have some access to the beautiful beach.....Wouldn't that be loverly?! In my opinion things should never have been allowed to develop as they did...........The Dominicans got robbed.......again.
And while we are talking about improvements, here's a novel idea. What about if Captain Cook (in El Cortecito) installed some super duper efficient air purifying equipment in order to ensure that the good people of the town are not forced to breathe day and night those noxious fumes while the owners of the establishment laugh all the way to the bank?
I know, I know.............But if one must dream, why not dream in technicolor?? :rambo:

 

[caribmike]

"A Dominican or two or three could have some access to the beautiful beach...."

Unfortunately in that case you can say "bye-bye" to a clean beach...

 

[LTSteve]

If you are from Europe come and check out Las Terrenas on the Samana Peninsula. Large French, Italian and German population here. Great beaches, restaurants and bakeries. The town has a lot of goods and services available. There is also a wide range of real estate possibilities.

LTSTeve

 

[windeguy]

What I get from this thread is that different people like different things. LTSteve likes Las Terrenas, I find Bavaro to be "Florida Flat" and boring and much prefer the north coast. Others will say Santiago is the only place to be. To those reading this thread and thinking of living in the DR, please rent for at least 6 months before you make such a decision. If you decide to live in Bavaro, according to some opinions you will end up paying less the longer you wait.

 

[cobraboy]

For athousand pesos a day they could hire someone to spend the day picking up litter, like is done elsewhere.

How about chain gangs?

 

[drescape24]

I prefer to own too. And not only that when i'm not in PC, I have no intention of renting to any of these free loaders that posted above. The truth is I cant prove it, nor do I really care, but the expats who live here, I bet 90% of them cant afford to own either. But I thought Mike Fisher owned his Condo in Cabreza de toro? I know he can afford too, has a good business going. Nothing feels better than owning our own piece of paradise near the Beach and having all the things we want in our own condo in the Dominican Republic.. I never bought it to make money.
The majority who say "dont own in the DR" cant afford to anyways, not all, but the majority.

I own as well and I am very happy did purchase! I agree 100% , most people who say don't buy, can't afford to. Renting is great if your later in life. I do have to say.

 

[cobraboy]

I own as well and I am very happy did purchase! I agree 100% , most people who say don't buy, can't afford to.

Baloney.

In most cases it's very difficult to make an economic argument for buying vs. renting. A 10% cap rate of the house I'm renting for $650 is around $2750 a month.

Property in the DR is very easy to buy but nearly impossible to sell...ask anyone trying to sell.

 

[MikeFisher]

someone mentioned Samana, a beautiful area, but purchasing property there?
Samana is the Area of the Island with the least clear title/ownership presence,
most of Samana is on the papers owned by more than one "owner", which over time have to fight it out in court.
as beautiful as Samana is, i would not recommend to buy property there for the next years, as those cases will take years before any court on the last instance will have made any final/def decision.
as for Punta Cana/Bavaro,
the points been covered in above postings. to own has of course it's personal advantage, it feels very different living on own property in the own house than to be just the Tenant.
nop, it is not of any fact that people who vote against a purchase could not efford a purchase, but the ones who want to see a increase of value of a investment may just see/think/calculate that the actual market does for then near and mid term future not promise to raise significant benefits/rising value of such purchased property, so calculating the costs to puchase and/or build and then maintain to live in it or rent it out come for those people to the result that long term rentals are much cheaper and more convenient, while the same money can be used for a different kind of investment. both sides are right, as both parties have different/contrary priorities when it comes to that decision, so each has to choose the variation best suitable by the own preferences of living/building/renting/investing etc.

Mike

 

[NALs]

It's what you make of it - if you have family, friends and hobbies there is enough to do.
Yes, it would be good to have more cultural events and entertainment laid on, but it's a price worth paying for not having to deal with the stress, noise, pollution, crime, traffic we had to endure when living in a big city.

A cultural venue is going to be built next to the San Juan Shopping Center.

 

[NALs]

A Dominican or two or three could have some access to the beautiful beach.....Wouldn't that be loverly?! In my opinion things should never have been allowed to develop as they did...........The Dominicans got robbed.......again.

There are several areas from where the beach is accessible to everyone. El Cortecito is probably the most well known public access area.

 

[rubenpriego]

I know somehow you are right in some things, or in all of them.
But, think for a while, none of those international hotel chains investing in this country, think they never came here ... I think it would be really really bad for this country, a poor one which needs international investment ...
And dont tell me that then there would be dominican hotels all along the beach, if they are not, there must be for a reason ...

I have a couple of ideas for improving the quality of life in the Punta Cana/Bavaro area...........
Why doesn't the government invest some money, buy up and tear down a couple of hotels along the beach. Then they could turn them into town squares, with some kind of ventures that would respond to the needs and desires of the local community.
A Dominican or two or three could have some access to the beautiful beach.....Wouldn't that be loverly?! In my opinion things should never have been allowed to develop as they did...........The Dominicans got robbed.......again.
And while we are talking about improvements, here's a novel idea. What about if Captain Cook (in El Cortecito) installed some super duper efficient air purifying equipment in order to ensure that the good people of the town are not forced to breathe day and night those noxious fumes while the owners of the establishment laugh all the way to the bank?
I know, I know.............But if one must dream, why not dream in technicolor?? :rambo:

 

[Chirimoya]

A cultural venue is going to be built next to the San Juan Shopping Center.

We need more than a disco and a bunch fast food restaurants for it to qualify as culture. Is there going to be a theatre or concert venue?

There are several areas from where the beach is accessible to everyone. El Cortecito is probably the most well known public access area.

Yes, there is public beach access from several points, including Cabeza de Toro, Bibijagua, Jellyfish, Los Corales, Cortecito and further up, Macao and Uvero Alto. We were at Macao yesterday afternoon and it was more crowded than I've ever seen it, locals outnumbering tourists.

The beach next to Cabo Enga?o - the easternmost point of the island - looks beautiful and untouched. We flew over it in a helicopter yesterday morning. How do you reach it by land? Has anyone been there?

 

[flyinroom]

Let's climb into our time machine and travel back to the eighties when the Barcelo group were showing everybody that, in fact, they could bring tourists in large numbers to the southeast coast of the D.R. They spent a whole lot of money and took a whole lot of chances, and were incredibly successful.
Naturally all of the others were watching carefully and preparing to jump on the bandwagon (Melia, Fiesta, Iberostar, Riu etal)

Now imagine that there might have been some one in the Dominican government at the time who was looking out for the welfare of the Dominican people...After all, they were starting from a clean slate. Anything was possible. Does anybody really think that Domincans had someone in the room negotiating on their behalf?

If we take all those public access points to the beach, (El Cortecito, Los Corales, Bibiagua, Cabeza de Toro and all the rest) measure them out, add it up.......I wonder what percentage of the coast line from the bull's head to say Macao that would represent....

I certainly do not begrudge the success of the commercial ventures on the beach. I made my living there for many, many years. But geeez, it could have been so much better.

 

[caribmike]

I think we came very close to it once. If my friends truck is available we will check it out next weekend. I'll let you know if we were lucky...

We need more than a disco and a bunch fast food restaurants for it to qualify as culture. Is there going to be a theatre or concert venue?


Yes, there is public beach access from several points, including Cabeza de Toro, Bibijagua, Jellyfish, Los Corales, Cortecito and further up, Macao and Uvero Alto. We were at Macao yesterday afternoon and it was more crowded than I've ever seen it, locals outnumbering tourists.

The beach next to Cabo Enga?o - the easternmost point of the island - looks beautiful and untouched. We flew over it in a helicopter yesterday morning. How do you reach it by land? Has anyone been there?

 

[MikeFisher]

We need more than a disco and a bunch fast food restaurants for it to qualify as culture. Is there going to be a theatre or concert venue?


Yes, there is public beach access from several points, including Cabeza de Toro, Bibijagua, Jellyfish, Los Corales, Cortecito and further up, Macao and Uvero Alto. We were at Macao yesterday afternoon and it was more crowded than I've ever seen it, locals outnumbering tourists.

The beach next to Cabo Enga?o - the easternmost point of the island - looks beautiful and untouched. We flew over it in a helicopter yesterday morning. How do you reach it by land? Has anyone been there?

didn't try to enter Cabo Enga?o by land since some years now, it is nice abandoned, but hey, it is also just Coral Rocks and volcanoe rocks, no sandy beach or such any near Cabo Enga?o, it is the only not white sandy beach stretch on the East.
as ofr access, there been two entries.
one from Cabeza de Toro, you had to hit the beach entering the beach area aside the Catalonia Resort(when you come from the highways driving down the road to Cabeza you turn right at the sandy road right where the fence of the Catalonia begins, drive all the way down to the water where the beach vendor huts are). i did not check it out since a very long time, but back in time, since long, there was a roadblock to not let any vehicles enter that road along the beach to cabo enga?o.
the other entrance side,
that had been right aside the airport, but that been closed by auithorities many years ago.
i have no idea if they let somewhere any loophole open to access that beach road.
the Marines, when chasing the drugboats coming ashore on nighttime, enter the beach with the Pick Ups at the roadblock aside the Catalonia from one side and take the speedboats from the other side leaving the Marina Cap Cana or the Punto de Marina de Guerra at puesto Juanillo(at the Punta Cana Marina).

if you look for a uncrowded wild beachstretch on the east todays, venture up to uvero alto, beautiful, wild, still empty, we spent last year Holy Week weekend there and plan on a repeat this year(end of this month), as it was better than anything else i know on the east public beachwise.

Mike

 

[MikeFisher]

There are several areas from where the beach is accessible to everyone. El Cortecito is probably the most well known public access area.

tastes vary a lot from one to an other, i find cortecito beach as a beacharea since years very crappy, tiny, full of bothering beachscums, no shade available, almost no space to go for a swim without heaviest boattraffick driving just a few feet away from yourself all day long etc etc.

Mike

 

[caribmike]

...one from Cabeza de Toro, you had to hit the beach entering the beach area aside the Catalonia Resort(when you come from the highways driving down the road to Cabeza you turn right at the sandy road right where the fence of the Catalonia begins, drive all the way down to the water where the beach vendor huts are)...."

Yep, that was where we entered, but we turned right after reaching the abandoned Horse Ranch, I assume following the way straight would have let us to Cabo Enga?o then.

 

[Chirimoya]

From the 'copter the pilot pointed out the sign marking the easternmost point. Right next to it (to the north) there was what looked like a white sand crescent-shaped beach, but maybe it was coral rock as Mike Fisher said.