Asking price(s) vs. Actual price(s) for Land

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arete92

Guest
Writing this post to seek some clarification. I am continuing to shop around the North coast in Puerto Plata city I have a few areas I would like to potentially call home, after posting and seeking pros and cons of living in city establishments vs. como el "campo" o cercano de el "campo" I have headed the advice from members here and decided it's best to be within a residential or developing residential area; let's say 10 mins from Playa Dorado and a few kms from the beach to give you a ballpark radius where I am.

Few things about Dominican buying customs that really baffle me even after 5 years (1) they double everything (2) se eres un gringo - es doble * 2 pa ti si tienes una sonrisa como un palomo ;) (3) just get a Domincan whom you trust to buy it for you and it's zero stress for a price of a pizza and beer. (4) depending how you present yourself or look the price will increase or decrease dramatically.

So the meat of my real question is as follows; looking online it's hard to get an accurate estimate of prices cause if the page is in English it's inflated if it's in Spanish it still is inflated - I have seen listings literally decrease by $45,000 USD in a month, which is insane and hard for someone to gauge actual prices.

When I see prices like this that could literally buy me something of the same size and quality in Ontario it makes me scratch my head since the country is not developed, there is nothing in POP in reality, it's not Miami. I can understand a increase within touristy or high-class neighbourhoods along with the fact it's an island and space is limited but $150,000 of land less than an acre in a place outside the city c'mon.

Now, I am building my own house so i'm interested in Land I would really like to have 0.6 - 1 acre but the same still applies of dramatic decreases and fluctuations and would like to void myself of any potential losses. I would like to hear from you guys about your experiences how much you bought your land/house for vs. asking price and outcomes within that context - what you perhaps done to obtain the lower price and things your learned along the way or things you wish you knew after etc. Thanks in advance everyone!
 
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arete92

Guest
I looked there actually! I decided not to go with it.. after asking around there is a river prone to flooding in that area that has caused damage before. There is also a cement factory somewhat close that I was warned occasionally there is a lot of dust in the air. so the area more specifically is ( residencial de coca-cola, estancia y doral)
 
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dv8

Guest
ok, what you have picked is fairly decent, i've been there several times, lots of nice houses with some below average too.

my advice regarding land purchase there would be to look carefully at nearby properties. empty lots? beware that someone may buy it and put an apartment block that will overlook your garden. neighbours on all side? pass through on weekend evening to check how loud they can get. pick an area with good drainage, higher up so that no matter what the rain water will not gather right in front of your property. ask about water delivery and rubbish pickup.

ask about the prices of several lots, even those you are not interested in to get an idea of the ballpark people are looking for.
 
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kg4jxt

Guest
Land in the countryside with "blue" title and sold by the titled owner and not intensively productive seems to have a value around US$4000 per acre (= 6.5 tareas = 0.4 hectare). If you are in a city, then infrastructure is probably better and you have conveniences. I guess the price would be more (but you couldn't pay me to live there!) We bought land (as gringos, no front-man) in 2012 for $4k/acre completely independently of the person who had told us that estimate, so I think it is valid. It only took 18 months to complete the title transfer! :D
 
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arete92

Guest
Land in the countryside with "blue" title and sold by the titled owner and not intensively productive seems to have a value around US$4000 per acre (= 6.5 tareas = 0.4 hectare). If you are in a city, then infrastructure is probably better and you have conveniences. I guess the price would be more (but you couldn't pay me to live there!) We bought land (as gringos, no front-man) in 2012 for $4k/acre completely independently of the person who had told us that estimate, so I think it is valid. It only took 18 months to complete the title transfer! :D

Thanks and nice! hope you guys are happy there.
 
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william webster

Guest
$4000/acre.....is $1/sq M...... that's cheap

there are 4046 sq M in an acre