about a plan of a house

Architects in DR usually charge a percentage of the total estimated cost to build the house. They have to provide plans for floors, elevation, electrical, plumbing and structure. The plans do need to be approved and stamped, and you have to pay. There is also a fee that goes to CODIAA (Dominican College of Engineers and Architects). Those fees are negotiable and they will try to fleece you, so offer to pay way less than what they ask.

When I went through the process, I told the inspector that I would rather not build the house, if I had to pay what they were asking for. After a few days of going back and forth, we settled on about 35% of their original fee.

The plans have to be submitted by a licensed architect or at least signed by one.

Doesn't a licensed Civil Engineer also have to sign off on the plans?

And doesn't the Ayuntamiento have to approve the construction?

HB

Another question on this subject...

Is there a difference between building inside city limits and building in the campo as far a sign off requirements and fees?

Also a friend was telling me that you can purchase a copy of plans that have been used for another home that you like and pay much less. True or False.

Yes, a licensed civil engineer also has to sign. The proper approval process goes beyond the local Ayuntamiento. Here is a list of the different government departments you have to go through to obtain a construction license:

1) The local ?ayuntamiento? (municipality or city hall).
2) Ministry of Tourism if in a tourist area.
3) Samana Commission (if in the province of Samana).
4) Ministry of Environment.
5) EDENORTE or EDESUR (approval of electrical plans).
6) INAPA (approval of plumbing, etc.)
7) Liga Municipal Dominicana (League of Municipalities).
8) CODIA (a tax is due to the College of Engineers for every construction).
9) Ministry of Public Works where the permit is finally issued.

plans

what if i have plans made up in the usa can they be used in the dr.What is the process if i have the plans done here in ny/

Nine Steps

Do the nine (9) steps above apply to adding an extension to an existing house?

There will be an architect involved.

Thanks

Brian said:

what if i have plans made up in the usa can they be used in the dr.What is the process if i have the plans done here in ny/

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A licensed architect and civil engineer in DR have to sign your plans.

plans

but can u bring in plans from usa and have a engineer sign them.Will it be cheaper and can it be done.

for any on ehere that may know...

do any of these goverment dept have maps that show every house, and or lot and who owns the house or lot and things like that...similar to a tax map at the local town hall in america?

and if so which one?

Id like to look at one for the area around my gf house in La reina( possibly the town of Moca)

bob

Brian said:

but can u bring in plans from usa and have a engineer sign them.Will it be cheaper and can it be done.

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It's possible if you have an architect and engineer friend. However, you have to keep in mind that you will need all the different versions of your plan that I previously listed.

laurapasinifan said:

do any of these goverment dept have maps ... similar to a tax map at the local town hall in america?

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The local ayuntamiento (city hall) has some records, but not anywhere near as accurate as you would find in the US. As an example, I can tell you from personal experience in Santiago, that if you need to know exactly where main water lines are located, they will only have a slight clue.

yasmin said:

There have been a lot of posts about buying land and construction of a house.
Is there a step in between like drawing a plan??
Has anybody experience with an architect or engineer who made a plan for his/her house? Any idea how much to pay for it??

We were told we'd have to go with the plan to "obras publicas" to get it stamped.
Do we have to pay for these stamps? And is there any risk they will not stamp it for some reason??
When this is done, we can start the construction immediately??

thanks in advance
yasmin

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Hi yasmin, yes before build a house you need to design it first. When the design process is done the next step is to approve the project (that's go to several government's departments, depending on your project's location) in this step you have to pay for the stamps (taxes) in the meantime you can start the construction (with the proper papers that you're in the approval process) or you can start it after all the plans are stamped. I highly recommend you to have an approved project otherwise the construction process can be a real pain, with supervisors from every department knocking at you door daily, they can even take away the worker and the materials. And if you give them money under the table they'll send a partner to ask for more money and at the end you'll pay more than what would cost you to stamp the project and it delay the project a lot.
Besides if you need a loan from the bank with this construction as a guarantee they'll ask you for an approved set of plans.
Those plans have to signed by an architect, civil engineer, electrical engineer and sanitary engineer.
Usually the approval process is made by the same architectural's firm that designs the project.
Lissa

Be very patient when building a house. The process is very tedious. From design to finished product you should be on site. This is true for even the most reputable builders. You will be happier in the end with the finished product if your input is felt by the builder. You must tell them what you want constantly or you wont get what you want or think you have asked for. Also get everything clearly in writing, then you have some recourse if you need to litigate or correct some of the mistakes. After it is built you may be disappointed if you are not hands on.