Thinking of moving to the Dominican Republic

Benadonia

Newbie
Mar 24, 2015
10
0
0
Hi

I am white english and from London and i'm thinking of moving to Dominican Republic with my girlfriend who is french Congolese, I have experience of living in West Africa and have no problem adjusting to the simplicities of less well off countries, i am in the process of doing a TEFL and Spanish course as i was thinking this may be a good way of supporting my self while i settle in.

Dose any one know roughly how it would cost to rent a 1 bedroom flat in Santo Domingo or just out side possibly Santiago?

Im definitely not interested in any thing luxury or in any kind of gated community i just would like a normal small place in a dominican neighbourhood, electric and running water would be nice :)

Im sure if it is any thing like Africa there will be many complications along the way, my first thought is to spend a decent amount of time there to fined out what part of the DR suits me best and wether or not i can support my self, I guess the next step would be finding a good lawyer to educate me on the next steps.

Dose any one know the roughly the cost of a residency permit or wether or not is is just worth paying overstay fines?

If any one has any kind of advice or input would be much appreciated
 

drtampa

Bronze
Oct 1, 2004
1,087
29
48
New Ulm, TX
Not to be overly critical, but based on the way you write you need a lot more practice with the TEFL basics before you try to teach others.
 

HUG

Silver
Feb 3, 2009
3,940
1
0
I also know West Africa well, and the similarities of the countries, culture and people are none existant. You can not compare the two in any way, shape or form.
You will not be able to support yourself on a teaching wage, nor a call centre wage, you need to have your expenses such as rent, and a little top up fund to live on top of your wage. Unless you have a skill thag is in demand then you are never going to find a job that even covers rent, yet alone anything else.
A basic 1 bedroomed or studio, furnished will cost you anything between $400 cheap nasty in a difficult area to $2000 in obe of the nice areas. But if you are looking to slum it in a half livable area then typically you are looking at about $550/600 per month.
As you become accustomed to the life snd work out the people things will change, but you will not want to move down market for sure.
Residency is a long slow process typically taking around a year, cost depends on who hou use, lawyers charge anything from $750 to $2000. The more expensive ones will cover you as guarantor, which if you don't live in DR already is difficukt to find, and if you don't have substancial savings you will need them. As far as residency goes, well, if you intend to work you need it, and finding employment without it will be difficult. I'll hazard a guess you'll end up in a csll centre as they pay better than teaching. So have enough saving to wait it out until your residency is processed.

My advice is forget it, unless you have a considerable amount of money you want to waste, sounds as though you need to look elsewhere.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
2,618
271
83
Not to be overly critical, but based on the way you write you need a lot more practice with the TEFL basics before you try to teach others.

I don?t think so! The requirements for TEFL teaching are not that high in many non English speanking countries. Plus, being a native speaker is highly valued.
 

LTSteve

Gold
Jul 9, 2010
5,449
23
38
Hi

I am white english and from London and i'm thinking of moving to Dominican Republic with my girlfriend who is french Congolese, I have experience of living in West Africa and have no problem adjusting to the simplicities of less well off countries, i am in the process of doing a TEFL and Spanish course as i was thinking this may be a good way of supporting my self while i settle in.

Dose any one know roughly how it would cost to rent a 1 bedroom flat in Santo Domingo or just out side possibly Santiago?

Im definitely not interested in any thing luxury or in any kind of gated community i just would like a normal small place in a dominican neighbourhood, electric and running water would be nice :)

Im sure if it is any thing like Africa there will be many complications along the way, my first thought is to spend a decent amount of time there to fined out what part of the DR suits me best and wether or not i can support my self, I guess the next step would be finding a good lawyer to educate me on the next steps.

Dose any one know the roughly the cost of a residency permit or wether or not is is just worth paying overstay fines?

If any one has any kind of advice or input would be much appreciated

Hi:

If I were you I would check out the Samana Peninsula. In Las Terrenas there is a large French population. I assume your girlfriend speaks the language. There are also many Italians, Germans and some British citizens. There are many diffferent neighborhoods where you could find an apartment. The cost of residency is somewhere between $900-1200usd per person. You need to start the process in Britain. Contact a Domincian Consulate and find out the requirements. You can also go on line and find the info. Check out the Samana Peninsula Guide at the top of the Northeast Thread. Good luck.
 

ray718

New member
May 28, 2010
88
12
0
48
Bendonia,

Listen to the advice that Hug is detailing. If you are coming to Dominican Republic to live like the common folk (which is not a bad thing)-you are coming to face many hardships, but it is possible to do. I suggest do as tommeyers suggest and come for a few months to see what the DR is like, because no to places are alike. West Africa and DR are to different societies. Do not let the individuals from this site discourage you from obtaining your dreams.

ray718
 

babyboy31

New member
Mar 29, 2011
9
0
0
I am not one for bashing anyone's dreams. I have spent considerable time living in the DR with the hopes and dreams of finding a job that would support me while I lived there( 2003 - 2004, 2007-2008 and about 5 months in 2009). To keep a long story short, I agree with tommeyers. You should definitely start off with a couple of months first and bring enough money to live with your round ticket in hand. My own experiences, I've worked for a company in santo domingo, I've worked in call centers and I even tried opening up a business twice. It is not an easy task and you will almost always leave with less cash than you came with (maybe more experienced). This will not be the case for everyone. In fact a few have been successful in their pursuits. However, I have met a few who got caught up in the lifestyle ended up stuck on the Island without enough money to buy a ticket to leave. For me, I was fortunate enough to have returned home to pick up where I left off work wise and now I only visit the Dominican Republic for vacations.
 

Aguaita29

Silver
Jul 27, 2011
2,618
271
83
Yeah, some people say they wouldn?t mind living a simple life, like the locals, but then they say something like "The only stuff I need is a little air conditioning, permanent electricity, hot showers and tofu."
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
31,266
363
0
i am puzzled by OP's post. not only the poor english but also lack of any reference to DR like: i've been here before, a cousin is married to DDD, i love culture and music. but no, nothing. why DR, of all places?
 

Benadonia

Newbie
Mar 24, 2015
10
0
0
I also know West Africa well, and the similarities of the countries, culture and people are none existant. You can not compare the two in any way, shape or form.
You will not be able to support yourself on a teaching wage, nor a call centre wage, you need to have your expenses such as rent, and a little top up fund to live on top of your wage. Unless you have a skill thag is in demand then you are never going to find a job that even covers rent, yet alone anything else.
A basic 1 bedroomed or studio, furnished will cost you anything between $400 cheap nasty in a difficult area to $2000 in obe of the nice areas. But if you are looking to slum it in a half livable area then typically you are looking at about $550/600 per month.
As you become accustomed to the life snd work out the people things will change, but you will not want to move down market for sure.
Residency is a long slow process typically taking around a year, cost depends on who hou use, lawyers charge anything from $750 to $2000. The more expensive ones will cover you as guarantor, which if you don't live in DR already is difficukt to find, and if you don't have substancial savings you will need them. As far as residency goes, well, if you intend to work you need it, and finding employment without it will be difficult. I'll hazard a guess you'll end up in a csll centre as they pay better than teaching. So have enough saving to wait it out until your residency is processed.

My advice is forget it, unless you have a considerable amount of money you want to waste, sounds as though you need to look elsewhere.

Sorry I didn't mean to insinuate that W Africa is in anyway similar to the DR after all they completely different places, i was more leaning towards the surprises and hidden costs that follows being a foreigner.

Some good information thanks
 

Benadonia

Newbie
Mar 24, 2015
10
0
0
Hi ray718

Living like a local in my opinion would be the only way i could afford the relocation and i'm aware of the hardships that they suffer murders, drug cartels, poverty and corrupt police but i would need the guidance of the locals to show me how Dominicans live.

Im not saying i want to live in a slum but equally i don't need to live in luxury ether and yes Its true there will be moments of suffering but hopefully moments of joy to.

Thanks for your reply
 

HUG

Silver
Feb 3, 2009
3,940
1
0
Sorry I didn't mean to insinuate that W Africa is in anyway similar to the DR after all they completely different places, i was more leaning towards the surprises and hidden costs that follows being a foreigner.

Some good information thanks

I used to live in the Gambia, be prepared for the cost of living to be around 8-10 times more, seriously. This third world country ain't no third world country you know!
 

HUG

Silver
Feb 3, 2009
3,940
1
0
Hi ray718

Living like a local in my opinion would be the only way i could afford the relocation and i'm aware of the hardships that they suffer murders, drug cartels, poverty and corrupt police but i would need the guidance of the locals to show me how Dominicans live.

Im not saying i want to live in a slum but equally i don't need to live in luxury ether and yes Its true there will be moments of suffering but hopefully moments of joy to.

Thanks for your reply

The locals will happily guide you into a false sense of security, for sure. Then........................ I promise you that if you are looking at this like you are, then you will not ladt 2 seconds. You say you are not comparing to West Africa, but you are in presuming the people have the moral standards you may have experirnced in WA. Doms don't have moral code, at all.
 

Benadonia

Newbie
Mar 24, 2015
10
0
0
Come, stay for 3-6 months and experience the country firsthand. But, bring enough money for the duration an have a roundtrip ticket just in case.

Tom

Hi yes i will be coming to scout it out for a thew months to see if the lifestyle is for me and i am not 100% dedicated to moving to the DR, the post was more of a research question to get some input from people who have had an experience of moving to the DR.

Thanks for input
 

Luperon

Who empowered China's crime against humanity?
Jun 28, 2004
4,510
294
83
You be do well teach the English.

But even more concerning is why would you....

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