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?
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?