Real Estate Market Heating Up in Las Galeras

Jasper · Nov 29, 2004

i understand that with word out that loan to finish el catey airport was signed by aerodom and world bank and with the understanding that the hazoury family (majority partners in aerodom, cap cana etc.) has alot of the land at playa rincon and will also be building the highway from santo domingo to el catey - it's pretty clear that things will happen very fast to this sleepy peninsula. word had it that 3 different hotel companies are in las galeras this week to look at bidding on large tracts of land for hotel sites. take a picture. it won't look the same ever again.

jruane44 · Nov 30, 2004

Where is Las Galeras?

Golo100 · Nov 30, 2004

Is this a sales pitch or what?

I suggest you wait until the government finds a solution to crime in that area before investing. Things don't look any good in the Samana Peninsula with the increasing crime and insecurity. And is not just Samana, but Puerto Plata and Sosua. The North Coast is no safe haven either. Juan Dolio gangs are free to do as they wish.
TW

Robert · Nov 30, 2004

Golo100 said:
I suggest you wait until the government finds a solution to crime in that area before investing. Things don't look any good in the Samana Peninsula with the increasing crime and insecurity. And is not just Samana, but Puerto Plata and Sosua. The North Coast is no safe haven either. Juan Dolio gangs are free to do as they wish.
TW

Please post details and sources of serious crime issues.
Newspaper articles will do fine. Something credible, rather than gossip.

:tired:

Golo100 · Nov 30, 2004

Robert

Unless people in DR1 are not reading the news in DR1 and local papers, watching TV news and so on, I don't know why you or anybodyelse thinks I am making this up.
The town of Las Terrenas was recently in the front pages with the assasination of a major shop owner and it opened up pandoras box, as foreign business town people protested openly against the lack of security in the area. This is not new.
The hijack style robbery of the bus full of tourist divers is no isolated incident. I am not trying to create a bad atmosphere for business in DR. But we must be cautious and can not deceive people. Crime is an undeniable factor nowadays. We are no longer that innocent happy island. We have hungry scavengers on the prowl everywhere. They have no concern for tourism, peace, law and order and a family society. These are hungry junkies looking for their next high. I would have put a curfew on cities like Santiago, where crime is so rampant that anyone who dares go out at night deserves their due. San Franscisco de Macoris is our new Dodge City.
TW

Robert · Nov 30, 2004

The problem is you sensationalize it beyond belief.
You?re talking about curfews, that's ridiculous.

People are aware crime exists in the DR, just like it exists in the home town and country they currently live in.

Right now the DR is a great investment opportunity.
I believe it offers many great bargains for Caribbean real estate.
If the airport happens in Samana, that area will explode.

Golo100 · Nov 30, 2004

Robert

I am not the only sensationalist in DR. I just heard last night somebody called Leonel Fernandez saying the following in his speech to the nation:
"Con relaci?n al crimen y la delincuencia, el presidente Fern?ndez dijo que ya fue concluido un plan dominicano de seguridad democr?tica, cuyos detalles ser?n conocidos pr?ximamente, pero que en todo caso tiene como finalidad dejar en claro que en la Rep?blica Dominicana ??no habr? tolerancia frente al crimen??.
De forma tajante, el presidente Fern?ndez proclam?: ??Lo digo una vez m?s: frente al crimen, mano dura, sin contemplaci?n??.
Asegur?, que para enfrentar la delincuencia el Gobierno se dotar? de planes concretos, con pol?ticas bien elaboradas, con actitud interna de colaboraci?n de todos los sectores, con ayuda y asistencia t?cnica de car?cter internacional y a?adi? que ?iremos avanzando hacia la soluci?n de todos esos males que tantas preocupaciones y tantas angustias dejan en el alma nacional??.
He stated that fighting crime, the narco war and the common delinquency is one of his two top priorities. He didn't say this because of isolated incidents. There are towns in this country where the police have practicly abandoned ship. In Azua, the entire population is terrorized by just one man and his gang and the police can do nothing about it. I can tell you several towns in the same situation. You don't know what you're talking about.
Knowing Leonel, he is comfortable talking about business deals, prosperity, good economic news and so on. When he points out to crime as his main subject, you know something is wrong.
TW
TW

Robert · Nov 30, 2004

Golo, nobody is denying that crime isn't an issue here, just like they are not denying it's an issue in New York or Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyll-llantysiliogogogoch (longest town name) in Wales.

But I have yet to see riot police and armed gangs blowing people away on Lincoln in Santo Domingo, or on calle Duarte in Sousa. Yes, I have seen riot police in London using water canons and armed gangs roaming around in Rio.

The past few days I have been in Sosua, Cabarete, Moca, La Vega etc and never had a problem. Nobody stopped me, shot at me, offered me drugs or tried to harm me in anyway.

No, we do not live on a crime free island, but then again, we do not live in a favela in Brazil.

gerd · Nov 30, 2004

Robert said:
Please post details and sources of serious crime issues.
Newspaper articles will do fine. Something credible, rather than gossip.

:tired:

Alfred Reh, a german resident in Terramar, Sosua, died on Friday 26th, November 2004, due to the gunshot wounds he suffered during the brutal attack of 4 armed men on Sunday, November 21st at 10A.M. in his villa.

This was nowhere in the news, and I just heard about it because I knew the gentleman personally.
Terramar and other real estate businessess have no interest in such publicity.

His villa is for sale at a good price now.

WebDev · Nov 30, 2004

Robert said:
Right now the DR is a great investment opportunity.
I believe it offers many great bargains for Caribbean real estate.
If the airport happens in Samana, that area will explode.

I will suggest to anyone who doubt the above statement to take a drive and
see for them self, the progress at El Catey Airport, future Samana
International Airport is obvious.

In the town of Las Terrenas I count 14 Real Estate offices, and over 6 major
housing/villas development around the town. European investors are grabbing
pieces of property, faster then French baguette at local boulangerie.

A 10K sqm ocean front piece of property sold at US$100/sqm last year is for sale at US$180/sqm and might be sold by the time you finish reading this.
A whole "Loma", hill, available at US$5/sqm, have your love nest up on the hills.

American investors are alway late in the game, and pay the higher price, good example: Sosua Cabarete area.

But, is always a "But", the Santo Domingo-Samana highway will end closed to
the Airport in construction at El Catey and from here will bypass the
treacherous road from Sanchez to Las Terrenas, going thru Playa Jackson, Coson and end in Las Terrenas La Ceiba barrio, where the new Andy Dyke design golf course start taking shape.

To bad for the rest of the Samana peninsula, who will see only a modest
growth, IMO.

To the serious investor, hire a helicopter or a small plane and take a survey of the area, you will be surprise.

WebDev

Jasper · Nov 30, 2004

WebDev said:
I will suggest to anyone who doubt the above statement to take a drive and
see for them self, the progress at El Catey Airport, future Samana
International Airport is obvious.

In the town of Las Terrenas I count 14 Real Estate offices, and over 6 major
housing/villas development around the town. European investors are grabbing
pieces of property, faster then French baguette at local boulangerie.

A 10K sqm ocean front piece of property sold at US$100/sqm last year is for sale at US$180/sqm and might be sold by the time you finish reading this.
A whole "Loma", hill, available at US$5/sqm, have your love nest up on the hills.

American investors are alway late in the game, and pay the higher price, good example: Sosua Cabarete area.

But, is always a "But", the Santo Domingo-Samana highway will end closed to
the Airport in construction at El Catey and from here will bypass the
treacherous road from Sanchez to Las Terrenas, going thru Playa Jackson, Coson and end in Las Terrenas La Ceiba barrio, where the new Andy Dyke design golf course start taking shape.

To bad for the rest of the Samana peninsula, who will see only a modest
growth, IMO.

To the serious investor, hire a helicopter or a small plane and take a survey of the area, you will be surprise.

WebDev

not at all too bad for rest of samana peninsula. read my original message in this thread. playa rincon will be developed by the hazoury family. why would they go through 5 years of financing and not finish the airport? why would they buy up alot of playa rincon, apply for permits a couple years back to build up to 8000, 5-star hotel rooms is the rumour, then not build anything?

i don't know for how many years i was the only optimist saying that this airport would be finished. trust me, in 10 years there will be a highway along the coast from las terrenas to del valle to las galeras to cabo samana. the whole peninsula will be developed intensely and, i trust, in good taste. that's the vision.

i understand that the construction arm of the hazoury family has built a large building near las americas airport. guess what they're going to do with all that construction equipment that they recently bought from usa???? that's right.

mountainannie · Dec 1, 2004

Real Estate Speculation

Here in Las Terrenas it does seem that the Europeans have cornered the market in real estate. Prices appeared to have tripled in the last three years and evidently many are here to build and turn over the properties. Since there is a good infrastructure - private power, good internet, good services, - and the houses are built well, with a European style -attention to detail such as tiles and lines, it will probably remain a strong market. The water and power go all the way to Limon (which has no overnight tourist accomodations - well, there is a guest house which wouldn't pass for most foreigners and a little hotel which looked pretty clean). Since the road across to the mountains now reaches Samana, I assume that they will soon do the same sort of "modernization" whereever they touch down. It is a "new frontier" for many Europeans where the house prices start -I am told- in the $200k range- many have come here to make a new life and make their fortunes. It isn't a "retirement" colony really, but a chance to start again.

There is little to rent on a long term basis. Most of the properties are for sale or rent only on a weekly basis.

Two large brand new hotels or perhaps a condo complexs are going up on the road to the Portillo airport.

Yes, the Yanks will have to buy from the Europeans. But then again, they built it - and so therefore do certainly deseserve a return on their money.

I doubt that anyone up here will lose money.

samiam · Dec 1, 2004

It seems to me that the powers that be will turn Samana into another All Inclusive destination a-la Punta Cana, destroying a great part of the Charm the peninsula has.
I just cant figure out why this country is so determined to put all their eggs in one basket. There is no interest to diversify the tourism market here, this country needs to offer something else in addition to the cheap AI's in Punta Cana. For a while I thought if something evolved it would do so in Samana. Perhaps the small hotels in Galeras and Terrenas would eventually evolve into something more exclusive catering to a middle-high class type tourist who likes to travel about, is more adventurous and interacts with the locals. This would have opened a whole new market within the island.
Another aspect I dont like about it is that the Hazoury and the potential colonizers (Barcelo, RIU, Etc) will harm to the environment beyond recognition there. They all ready destroyed most of the ecosystems in Bavaro, Punta Cana and Juanillo. From the manglarsa to archeological sites of great scientific value have been destroyed in order to make way for new development. All thats left is a little piece of land saved within the Rainieri compound.
Good luck to Samana, it'll definately wont be the same.

rmary · Dec 1, 2004

Samiam, I have to agree with you 100%. Our first trip to the DR was to the Gran Bahia which is admittedly an AI but a small, lovely place. well suited to the ambiance of the area. Our second trip was to the Barcello Bavaro Beach Resort in Punta Cana. Imagine our dismay, especially when we were taking another couple with us and we were describing Samana and wound up in Punta Cana!!!!!! The beaches in PC are lovely, but it does not have the feel of Samana.

It would just break my heart to see Samana turned into another Punta Cana. The whole point of the place is its isolation and natural beaches and scenery.

Rose

WebDev · Dec 1, 2004

Jasper said:
not at all too bad for rest of samana peninsula. read my
original message in this thread. playa rincon will be developed by the hazoury
family. why would they go through 5 years of financing and not finish the
airport? why would they buy up alot of playa rincon, apply for permits a
couple years back to build up to 8000, 5-star hotel rooms is the rumour, then
not build anything?

To fill the 8,000 rooms with 16,000 tourists will be a challenge for the
I N F R A S T R U C T U R E, which doe's not exist, to transit this amount of
people from the Samana Airport to Rincon and back, will be a nightmare and a
disaster. If they scaled down to 800 rooms, still a nightmare in logistic.

Jasper said:
i don't know for how many years i was the only optimist saying
that this airport would be finished. trust me, in 10 years there will be a
highway along the coast from las terrenas to del valle to las galeras to cabo
samana. the whole peninsula will be developed intensely and, i trust, in good
taste. that's the vision.

The Airport will be finish, I am sure of it, a new highway along the north
coast of the peninsula from Las Terrenas to El Valle, Rincon and Las Galeras,
just a dream, not a possibility.

Jasper said:
i understand that the construction arm of the hazoury family has
built a large building near las americas airport. guess what they're going to
do with all that construction equipment that they recently bought from usa????
that's right.

I don't know why they bought the heavy construction , next time I see Ricardo
Hazoury, or one of his architects, Jamie Gomez or Andres Gomez, I will ask.
Las Americas is far far away from El Valle or Rincon.

mountainannie said:
The water and power go all the way to Limon (which has no overnight tourist
accomodations - well, there is a guest house which wouldn't pass for most
foreigners and a little hotel which looked pretty clean).

Village of Limon has his own power company, before entering Limon from
Portillo on the right side.
That little hotel is call "Lemon Hotel" see website
http://www.samana.net/hotel-lemon/ and the guest house is a B@B at Parada
Santi-Berca.

Why they name a hotel Lemon, and a beach Moron, beats me. I was approached at
one time by a Swiss financial advisor with the last name "Loser".

samiam said:
It seems to me that the powers that be will turn Samana into
another All Inclusive destination a-la Punta Cana, destroying a great part of
the Charm the peninsula has.

I hope Samana Peninsula, will NOT be one other Punta Cana, and all indication
are pointing this way, to a calculated development in a extended period of
time, with a minimal impact to the fragile system.

WebDev

ninapup · Dec 1, 2004

More small hotels please

samiam said:
It seems to me that the powers that be will turn Samana into another All Inclusive destination a-la Punta Cana, destroying a great part of the Charm the peninsula has.
I just cant figure out why this country is so determined to put all their eggs in one basket. There is no interest to diversify the tourism market here, this country needs to offer something else in addition to the cheap AI's in Punta Cana. For a while I thought if something evolved it would do so in Samana. Perhaps the small hotels in Galeras and Terrenas would eventually evolve into something more exclusive catering to a middle-high class type tourist who likes to travel about, is more adventurous and interacts with the locals. This would have opened a whole new market within the island.

Right on. Oh how I wish too that Samana were going to be the alternative. We've been going to the Peninsula, mostly Las Terrenas, since 1982 and right now the construction going on in the hills and on the beachfront is overwhelming. What will be left as they fill in the wetland to build the new golf course? and "clean" the land for more expensive lots?
I mourn the loss of tranquility, security, and natural beauty that disappears with every new apartment complex, every new big hotel complex, every road slashed into the hillside. There are some charming little hotels and great restaurants that offer so much more in the way of ambiance and experience than any AI can offer. Why can't there be more of them, each with its own personality? Unfortunately, the small guys can't compete with Barcelo or Wyndham. But while you can stay at a small place and see what is left. Visit Rincon too and have one more marvelous Dominican lunch on the beach before it has 8,000 5 star rooms. It is one of the most beautiful places on the island or the entire Caribbean. For me, I dread the coming of the airport and the new road. It signals "the end". It will be too easy to get there.
And, what about the Dominicans there, the beginning? It's already becoming apparent.

Jasper · Dec 1, 2004

ninapup said:
samiam said:

It seems to me that the powers that be will turn Samana into another All Inclusive destination a-la Punta Cana, destroying a great part of the Charm the peninsula has.
I just cant figure out why this country is so determined to put all their eggs in one basket. There is no interest to diversify the tourism market here, this country needs to offer something else in addition to the cheap AI's in Punta Cana. For a while I thought if something evolved it would do so in Samana. Perhaps the small hotels in Galeras and Terrenas would eventually evolve into something more exclusive catering to a middle-high class type tourist who likes to travel about, is more adventurous and interacts with the locals. This would have opened a whole new market within the island.

Right on. Oh how I wish too that Samana were going to be the alternative. We've been going to the Peninsula, mostly Las Terrenas, since 1982 and right now the construction going on in the hills and on the beachfront is overwhelming. What will be left as they fill in the wetland to build the new golf course? and "clean" the land for more expensive lots?
I mourn the loss of tranquility, security, and natural beauty that disappears with every new apartment complex, every new big hotel complex, every road slashed into the hillside. There are some charming little hotels and great restaurants that offer so much more in the way of ambiance and experience than any AI can offer. Why can't there be more of them, each with its own personality? Unfortunately, the small guys can't compete with Barcelo or Wyndham. But while you can stay at a small place and see what is left. Visit Rincon too and have one more marvelous Dominican lunch on the beach before it has 8,000 5 star rooms. It is one of the most beautiful places on the island or the entire Caribbean. For me, I dread the coming of the airport and the new road. It signals "the end". It will be too easy to get there.
And, what about the Dominicans there, the beginning? It's already becoming apparent.

Click to expand...

kind of selfish of you all, don't you think, when there is 80% unemployment in the area and people have a real problem putting food on the table. hundreds if not thousands of people have died over the years seeking a better life in a yola to puerto rico. relax, this forum is a wonderful medium to ensure that we all watch over and protect the region and the whole country. i'd rather see it stay as it is, but we all know it won't remain that way. accept it and let's ensure that the development is done properly.

Jasper · Dec 1, 2004

WebDev said:
To fill the 8,000 rooms with 16,000 tourists will be a challenge for the
I N F R A S T R U C T U R E, which doe's not exist, to transit this amount of
people from the Samana Airport to Rincon and back, will be a nightmare and a
disaster. If they scaled down to 800 rooms, still a nightmare in logistic.

The Airport will be finish, I am sure of it, a new highway along the north
coast of the peninsula from Las Terrenas to El Valle, Rincon and Las Galeras,
just a dream, not a possibility.

i

I don't know why they bought the heavy construction , next time I see Ricardo
Hazoury, or one of his architects, Jamie Gomez or Andres Gomez, I will ask.
Las Americas is far far away from El Valle or Rincon.

Village of Limon has his own power company, before entering Limon from
Portillo on the right side.
That little hotel is call "Lemon Hotel" see website
http://www.samana.net/hotel-lemon/ and the guest house is a B@B at Parada
Santi-Berca.

Why they name a hotel Lemon, and a beach Moron, beats me. I was approached at
one time by a Swiss financial advisor with the last name "Loser".

I hope Samana Peninsula, will NOT be one other Punta Cana, and all indication
are pointing this way, to a calculated development in a extended period of
time, with a minimal impact to the fragile system.

WebDev

if you read the environmental impact report submitted to the IADB back in 2002 which i have previously posted on this website it gives the projections of entries through el catey airport. i believe by 2015 the project was for close to 1 million tourists passing thru el catey. from what i have heard, the 8000 room permit was paid for 2 years ago. it's a done deal apparently. they don't need to build 8000 rooms but they certainly can if they want to. there is alot of space at rincon and on several different elevations.

i don't doubt it at all that that las terrenas > las galeras highway will be built. not a superhighway but something similar to the las terrenas - samana highway. take the road from rincon to the right when you come from the beach and you'll begin to see the possibilities. it goes quite far and will open up alot of property. speculators from the capital have bought up alot of that land from rincon to del valle according to locals there. the buyers were mostly lawyers. they will push for the highway so that they can flip the land for a nice profit.

you will see most likely that the hazoury's construction company's new building is close to where the samana-las americas highway will begin at 22km on the autopista las americas. they will be building that highway and i understand that it is now a go. believe that the building bears the company name, "Sernico" (?).

davidh · Dec 1, 2004

hi there, I am new to this site and have been looking a the possibility of owning a small condo in Cabarete since my wife is a midwife and does volunteering in the DR about 1 1/2 hrs from Cab. A friend said he feel in love with Samana and encouraged us to look "east". He wants to teach the locals to do body work on the beach and get paid a good wage. try to break the cycle of slavery. Anyway, it sounds like the remoteness of the area has helped it to stay pristine. Is the airport at Nagua opening? I feel like staying away just to help keep it special

David

Robert · Dec 1, 2004

Cheap tour operator driven tourism will eventually be the death of tourism here. People in the industry are slowly taking note of this and understand that the DR needs to move away from this model in order to survive.
I think this type of awareness will slow the development of Samana so it doesn't become another Punta Cana.

What's needed is real people with real vision. Local people that can actually make change happen. I'm glad to see things are changing.

Tuesdays News:

New model for tourism needed
The Dominican Republic is currently receiving just half of the revenues per hotel room that it did 12 years ago, while total spending per tourist has also declined. These findings are part of the Sustainable Tourism and Human Development Report contracted by the United Nations as part of the 2005 Human Development Report on the Dominican Republic. Economist Jaime Moreno presented the results at a conference in Puerto Plata over the weekend.
Moreno, who is the coordinator of the Center for Environmental Studies of the Global Foundation for Development and Democracy, highlighted that today's net yield on a hotel room is US$150, while in 1982 the net gain per hotel room was US$318. Moreover, he explained that the average tourist spent US$104 per day in 1982, while that amount in 2004 has dropped to US$87.
Moreno believes the country should be incorporating new models of tourism so that there may be a greater trickle-down effect of the tourist dollar to benefit the communities and thus make tourism sustainable. "We need to convert the all-inclusive tourism model into a community-inclusive tourism model," he said. The mass tourism model that demands large hotel properties, he continued to say, entails a major toll taken on the leading asset of the tourism industry ? the beaches. Moreno explained that coral reefs are at risk due to pollution caused by inadequately managed waste. He said the country could lose the beaches as we know them in 20 years if conservation actions are not taken today.
Economist Miguel Ceara-Hatton, the coordinator of the Human Development Report for the United Nations Development Program office in Santo Domingo, also spoke at the event, highlighting that human development indicators reveal that Dominican Republic has little to show for the remarkable growth experienced over the past 20 years. He hoped the DR would realize the urgent need for major structural changes.
The executive vice-president of the National Hotel & Restaurant Association, Arturo Villanueva, told El Caribe newspaper that he agrees with the statements made by Moreno and Ceara-Hatton, and favors the diversification of the Dominican tourism product. Tourism entrepreneur Marino Ginebra also concurred with that sentiment.
"We are trapped in a vicious circle. We cannot improve the quality because we do not have the adequate means, and we do not have adequate means because, despite contributing 25% of the Gross Domestic Product, the state does not even invest 10% in the necessary infrastructure to improve the sector. The model does not work because the funds the industry generates go to political patronage," said Ginebra, as reported in El Caribe.
The UN Human Development Report will be officially released early next year.

Real Estate Market Heating Up in Las Galeras

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