Planning for the Future

GlowWorm

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Nov 18, 2003
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I have chosen to place this thread in the Living forum but some of the questions I have could go in other forums. I have broken the thread into different sections in an attempt to make it less confusing. I have looked in the archives and some questions I had have been answered, but I still need more detail on the ones I posted here.

Intro
Jan and I have a villa in Casa Linda that we vacation in about 3 times a year, but we want to build a house on the North Coast and make it our home, for 6 to 8 months a year, after retirement. Based on the amount of research that we did prior to buying a house in Casa Linda, I am thinking that I need to start right away on homework in order to prepare for building 4 years from now. Why wait for 4 years? I have heard enough qualified advice to know, if I want things done right, that I need to be at the building site for almost 24/7.

Real Estate
Right now the North Coast is booming, definitely not a buyer?s market. Do we wait to buy a lot and hope that prices will drop or do we buy now in the event that prices continue to increase? I have enough information to know real estate prices in the DR are cyclic but I do not know what the periodicity is. Got some info from ?Rising Real Estate Prices? thread but I need to know if historical pricing cycles can be measured in months or is it years? What do the land speculators on DR1 think?

Where to buy? We don?t desire to have oceanfront because of the corrosion problems that go along with it, but wouldn?t mind something at higher elevation with an ocean view. We would like to have some of the amenities that we have now in Casa Linda, like water, sewer, and security, but those things come at a price. I can certainly deal with installing a well, septic system, and hiring my own guards but there may be some areas that are on the fast track to having those things 4 years down the road. Lomas Mironas comes to mind as an example. Are there any other places out there that someone sees with that potential?

Construction
I am fortunate to have CAD experience and the software to develop my own house plans and should have those completed well in advance of building. I have researched the enough details of DR concrete building techniques, such as wall thickness dimensions, to feel comfortable with drawing my own plans.

I am very familiar with plan approvals in the US but am a little confused about the process in the DR. As with many things in the DR, there are requirements and then there are ?requirements?. My understanding is that you are required to have your house plans approved by the local government but that here is little risk in not having this done. What?s the real deal?

Contract or subcontract? I know that there are some contractors who will do a lock-and-key job but there is an additional cost associated with that. Is it worth the additional cost of a contractor or is it feasible for an individual to subcontract the individual aspects of building a house? If I choose subcontracting, does anyone have recommendations for subcontractors? I know Robert stated that Duane Gess is probably the best at water well drilling on the island.

Relocation (part time)
As I understand it a non-resident (tourist) can stay for 90 days with no additional paperwork. After retirement, our stays will exceed 90 days. Will we be required to apply for permanent residency or are there other options? What about drivers license? I would also want our mail forwarded to the DR, has anyone had problems in this area?
 

Chris

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Oct 21, 2002
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Hi GlowWorm, nice to see you and nice to hear about your plans. May I be the first to say Welcome!

I'll leave all your building questions and real estate questions for the real experts and have just two comments.

GlowWorm said:
Contract or subcontract? I know that there are some contractors who will do a lock-and-key job but there is an additional cost associated with that. Is it worth the additional cost of a contractor or is it feasible for an individual to subcontract the individual aspects of building a house? If I choose subcontracting, does anyone have recommendations for subcontractors? I know Robert stated that Duane Gess is probably the best at water well drilling on the island. ?

It is feasible for an individual. From experience, I'd rather deal with a contractor and let him sub-contract. Just my own personal feeling... leave the job to the expert.

GlowWorm said:
Relocation (part time)
As I understand it a non-resident (tourist) can stay for 90 days with no additional paperwork. After retirement, our stays will exceed 90 days. Will we be required to apply for permanent residency or are there other options? What about drivers license? I would also want our mail forwarded to the DR, has anyone had problems in this area?

Richard and I felt much more comfortable to have firstly our temporary residencies, and now our permanent residences. The process was quite painless. Same with driver's licenses. If anyone asks me for a license, I give them a copy of my old US or South African License, but it feels good to have it.
 

GlowWorm

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Nov 18, 2003
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Hi Chris,

Thanks for the greeting, opinions, and info. I tend to agree on the contractor, then I have to deal with only one person and not have to do mutiple a** chewings. Ha ha.

Glow
 

Lambada

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Mar 4, 2004
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When we built our house (Puerto Plata) the plans needed to be stamped by 5 different outfits (if you are outside the tourist zone I believe you don't need the DEFIMPRO approval, so it would only be 4. Don't forget the Municipal League approval, a lot of people do). I would ALWAYS recommend you get your plans approved - total cost 4 years ago was 15,000 pesos, viz. peanuts in the scheme of things - obviously, more expensive now, but still a fraction of your overall costs. If you DON'T get approval, then an enterprising official can visit you & tell you to tear your house down. Of course, you won't, you'll pay bribe money. Then next week ANOTHER official from the same office will come......you get the drift? When you've finished dealing with all the office people, the word will have got out to the families & the first enterprising officials third cousin will visit you......and on & on. Get it done right in the first instance, all it takes is a little money & some time & with your 4 year plan, you've got both. Good luck.
 

GlowWorm

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Nov 18, 2003
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Lambada,

Thanks for the info. Sounds like house plan approvals are a must if I want to keep the bloodsuckers at bay.


Glow
 

DMLVT

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Jan 12, 2004
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GlowWorm
Check out the building lots at Hideaway Beach (just up the road from Casa Linda.) It's owned by an American and the staff is great. It also has all of the amenities you have now, security, water etc. We have a villa there, but like you, we only can spend a few weeks a year there until we retire in three years. hideawaybeachresort.com
 

Hillbilly

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Jan 1, 2002
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Hi Glow, nice plans

1) forget about residency and all that crap for a while. Do what you have to do and pay the piddling fine, if they ask, as you leave. You don't get marked down on your Report Card.

2) Get a reputable builder, he can be the general contractor, and give him the plans. have him do the paper work and all the headaches. Meet with him every day as each step is being done. Keep you hand and your eyes on everything. Be a pain, if needs be.

3) Keep your own set of plans and your own tape and level and square and go around checking that things are just so.

4) No matter where you build remember this is the tropics. It is hot and it might blow a bit. (No hurricanes on the North Shore). Therefore:
a) all ceilings should be 10-12 feet with maybe a vent strip along one side-I can show you what we did.
b) allow for nice fans in all living spaces
c) be very careful with the kitchen, if you plan to do any cooking. Dominicans do not know how to plan a kitchen.

Even 4 years down the road this will be happening faster than you can believe.

HB
 

Lambada

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How true on the kitchen, HB. We designed a large, open plan kitchen & the first architect we took our draft to came back with a miniscule kitchen enclosed in 4 walls. Why? Because he assumed a maid would be doing the cooking & we would want it all out of sight. He also assumed he knew best! Wrong on all 3! He didn't get the job. The architect we ended up with was wonderful & is a friend to this day. And you've seen the kitchen, HB, so you know we got what we wanted.