Expensive living within the DR

billyidol

Banned
Feb 9, 2004
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This is more of an observation than anything else! Ive been in communication with numerous contributors on DR!; contributors that actually live within the DR! What has struck me as interesting, is what amount of money (to be spent on living expenses per month) some people see as being 'a lot' to spend upon living expenses per month. There have been numerous posts that state what 'they' the poster spends per mth. Some claim to need $3000us monthly, others $2000 per month. But just recently i was discussing with another poster what he spends monthly.... $500 (17000rd amonth). And in their opinion they consider this to be 'expensive'. I dont know too many places in the world that you can live for $5-600 a mth. In my personal opinion $500 a mth is 'cheap living' .Infact anything upto $1000 a mth in my opinion i would consider to be cheap living. Im truly amazed at how differently people veiw expensive living
 

jaguarbob

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Mar 2, 2004
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expensive living

billyidol said:
This is more of an observation than anything else! Ive been in communication with numerous contributors on DR!; contributors that actually live within the DR! What has struck me as interesting, is what amount of money (to be spent on living expenses per month) some people see as being 'a lot' to spend upon living expenses per month. There have been numerous posts that state what 'they' the poster spends per mth. Some claim to need $3000us monthly, others $2000 per month. But just recently i was discussing with another poster what he spends monthly.... $500 (17000rd amonth). And in their opinion they consider this to be 'expensive'. I dont know too many places in the world that you can live for $5-600 a mth. In my personal opinion $500 a mth is 'cheap living' .Infact anything upto $1000 a mth in my opinion i would consider to be cheap living. Im truly amazed at how differently people veiw expensive living

cannot imagine being able to live here for $500. a month....unless your house was paid for and you had no electric bills....even then,it is hard to purchase food for a month and anything incidental for 17,000 pesos...
I live on about $2500 a month and have to say I am quite happy...with a small house on the beach that I own,and an apt in SD....my apt here in SD is 8250 pesos a month...-plus the elec,water,garbage,phone,cable....just cannot imagine 17000 pesos a month!!!!!I guess if you lived poor dominican
style,it is then possible...lots of rice and beans...

bob
 

jackquontee

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May 20, 2005
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After having made several trips in the past several months, and having recently bought a house with my eye towards moving there in the future, this question is increasingly becoming of interest to me as well. I, too, have read the numerous posts and accept that the figure will vary widely. After all, we all have different tastes and spending habits. So, I have decided that the only way I am going to be able to decide is to live there for a short period of time and spend that time as if I were living there, rather than vacationing, or making home purchases, etc.

My plan is to take a 2-3 month trip during the end of the year and see how things go. It has been my intent to learn to live with less after moving there but, of course, there has to be a trial period as well.

With the exception of going the same route, I would suggest that you find out what the costs of living are (and there are numerous posts about that), and decide how it is that you intend to live there, if that is your intent.

Do I believe that you can live on $US500 a month? Sure. Many Dominicans do. But, will it be the lifestyle that you envision for yourself?
 

billyidol

Banned
Feb 9, 2004
334
10
18
This is what ive obtained from my conversations with others on dr 1
*I own my own house
*I'm by myself )
*All costs are per mth and calculated on roughly 35 rd to the US1$


water
($30 a load) + free rain water = averages out to $15 mthly

electricity 400kwh approx useage
$60 mthly (public/inverter) basic 2 bed house (fans /no aircon)

electricity pool pump
(.6kwh pump useage *6hrs to turn over pool volume=4kwh per day approx. * 5 peso per kwh from electricity co= 20rd p/day * 31 days = 620rd ($20us approx)electric per mth

pool chems $25
pool maintanance $75
miscellaneous mthly $40
food $240

personal insurance $40 a mth 17000rd a year apparently quality insurance
house insurance $40 mth (1% of house value)
pool insurance $12mth $15000 pool
house contents ins $10 mth ($7000 contents fridge/tv/ the basics)

cell phone 1000rd plan $30 low useage for me
tv- cable $15
fun/beers/pizza $400
transport/gas $30
bike maintanance insurance/registration ect $25
garbage 200rd*2 mthly= 12
house cleaner $150 rd plus lunch * 2 per mth= $15

Total $1104 us a mth based on what the good folk of DR ! have told me
remember this doesnt include accomodation. Im just going to round my budget to a flat $300us a week/1200 a mth
Please feel free to add
cheers




jackquontee said:
After having made several trips in the past several months, and having recently bought a house with my eye towards moving there in the future, this question is increasingly becoming of interest to me as well. I, too, have read the numerous posts and accept that the figure will vary widely. After all, we all have different tastes and spending habits. So, I have decided that the only way I am going to be able to decide is to live there for a short period of time and spend that time as if I were living there, rather than vacationing, or making home purchases, etc.

My plan is to take a 2-3 month trip during the end of the year and see how things go. It has been my intent to learn to live with less after moving there but, of course, there has to be a trial period as well.

With the exception of going the same route, I would suggest that you find out what the costs of living are (and there are numerous posts about that), and decide how it is that you intend to live there, if that is your intent.

Do I believe that you can live on $US500 a month? Sure. Many Dominicans do. But, will it be the lifestyle that you envision for yourself?
 
Last edited:

Don Juan

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Dec 5, 2003
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My Mother, brother live in a comfortable home we collectively own in east SD. The total monthly income for them is about US900.00/mo.
Out of that, all utilities, gas for cooking/car, food, medications, cable and a full- time maid is paid, with some $$ to spare.
If I lived there, I would need to add entertainment to this figure which would raise the total by an extra US400.00 per month.....Not expensive if you have an steady, secure income stream....It only gets rough when you have to depend on a DR job that pays very little by US standards. But if you already have cash, owned your home & vehicle outright, I think 1000.00US/mo. for a single person is more than plenty & will afford you a secure and cozy living.....Just don't let a sankette get a hold of you!
 

billyidol

Banned
Feb 9, 2004
334
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thanks for the advice re; the sankette.....ive been approached in the street ' do you have a girlfriend; had a 'goodd girl take me to meet her mum only to be asked for medication and car repair money. I guess they veiwed me as a good catch im over that BS now and prefer to spend my money on myself...............Its great when you find 'number 1'




Don Juan said:
My Mother, brother live in a comfortable home we collectively own in east SD. The total monthly income for them is about US900.00/mo.
Out of that, all utilities, gas for cooking/car, food, medications, cable and a full- time maid is paid, with some $$ to spare.
If I lived there, I would need to add entertainment to this figure which would raise the total by an extra US400.00 per month.....Not expensive if you have an steady, secure income stream....It only gets rough when you have to depend on a DR job that pays very little by US standards. But if you already have cash, owned your home & vehicle outright, I think 1000.00US/mo. for a single person is more than plenty & will afford you a secure and cozy living.....Just don't let a sankette get a hold of you!
 

easygoin

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Jan 2, 2005
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Bang for the buck

billyidol said:
This is more of an observation than anything else! Ive been in communication with numerous contributors on DR!; contributors that actually live within the DR! What has struck me as interesting, is what amount of money (to be spent on living expenses per month) some people see as being 'a lot' to spend upon living expenses per month. There have been numerous posts that state what 'they' the poster spends per mth. Some claim to need $3000us monthly, others $2000 per month. But just recently i was discussing with another poster what he spends monthly.... $500 (17000rd amonth). And in their opinion they consider this to be 'expensive'. I dont know too many places in the world that you can live for $5-600 a mth. In my personal opinion $500 a mth is 'cheap living' .Infact anything upto $1000 a mth in my opinion i would consider to be cheap living. Im truly amazed at how differently people veiw expensive living

Myself being single, it would cost me 85,000rd a month for housing, utilities.... AC is a must, food and outings..... even without transportation.



In my mind that's very expensive... due to electricity problems, quality of products... and overpriced for what they have.

Please remember this is the third world country so they will try to get what they can..... from top to bottom like any other third world country would.


In my believe people come to these countries,number one.... because they are cheap and think it will be the same and find out it's not.


Believe me for the money that you pay in DR for what I stated...... you can be living in a low risk..... two blocks off the beach in Brazil with full-time electricity.
 

Potato_Salad

On Vacation!
Oct 13, 2005
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billyidol said:
This is what ive obtained from my conversations with others on dr 1
*I own my own house
*I'm by myself )
*All costs are per mth and calculated on roughly 35 rd to the US1$


water
($30 a load) + free rain water = averages out to $15 mthly

electricity 400kwh approx useage
$60 mthly (public/inverter) basic 2 bed house (fans /no aircon)

electricity pool pump
(.6kwh pump useage *6hrs to turn over pool volume=4kwh per day approx. * 5 peso per kwh from electricity co= 20rd p/day * 31 days = 620rd ($20us approx)electric per mth

pool chems $25
pool maintanance $75
miscellaneous mthly $40
food $240

personal insurance $40 a mth 17000rd a year apparently quality insurance
house insurance $40 mth (1% of house value)
pool insurance $12mth $15000 pool
house contents ins $10 mth ($7000 contents fridge/tv/ the basics)

cell phone 1000rd plan $30 low useage for me
tv- cable $15
fun/beers/pizza $400
transport/gas $30
bike maintanance insurance/registration ect $25
garbage 200rd*2 mthly= 12
house cleaner $150 rd plus lunch * 2 per mth= $15

Total $1104 us a mth based on what the good folk of DR ! have told me
remember this doesnt include accomodation. Im just going to round my budget to a flat $300us a week/1200 a mth
Please feel free to add
cheers


Interesting facts. Thanks for sharing it with us. :)

Wow, the DR is not as cheap as I had thought.

So it amazes me how other people can survive with a 5K or 6K peso/month salary.
 

duck

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Mar 20, 2005
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easygoin said:
Believe me for the money that you pay in DR for what I stated...... you can be living in a low risk..... two blocks off the beach in Brazil with full-time electricity.

Same in the Philippines and much of Southeast Asia. The DR has become extremely expensive since I was first there 12 years ago. You can still get a good cold beer for less than $0.75 outside of Manila, I think I paid almost double that the last time I was in Montecristi, which isn't exactly a high-society place.
 

MrMike

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Mar 2, 2003
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I have been here for 7 years and during that time my income has varied between US$500 and $5k/mo. (I liked making 5k the most but it didn't last, maybe I can get back to that, I'm trying)

I was able to survive and be reasonably comfortable at all of those income levels but I am kind of a survivor type and can sometimes do alot with a little, plus I spend alot less than most people on partying.

Now that I am married and have a baby I don't think I would ever want to go back to $500/mo although I probably could do it if it came to that.

What I am saying is that it can be done, but is not recommendable.
 

macocael

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Aug 3, 2004
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when you consider that you can probably live pretty well here -- I am not talking about owning a yipeta or having your own pool or any other such luxuries, but still within what most would call a pretty middle class lifestyle -- for about 15,000 to 20,000 US annually, I have to say that life here compared with developed nations is still pretty cheap. But compared with other developing nations, and even much bigger places like Brazil (though it depends where -- you can live in a favela in Rio, but not in Ipanema on this kind of money), DR has become very expensive. There are people here who pay NY-style rents. I find that ludicrous, but things have changed here, and very rapidly. Ten years ago I could have bought a 16th century colonial mansion here for about 50,000 or less -- I would have had to invest money into it, of course, to convert that shell into a real home, but today those same shells are going for five to ten times the price. And you have to bear in mind that, while you may tolerate third world living and all its hassles, you shouldnt have to pay more for it. The idea is to pay less.
 

juancarlos

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Sep 28, 2003
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Well, if it is actually cheaper to live in Brazil than in the DR, then I would say the DR has really become expensive! I know that last year Santo Domingo was rated the third most expensive city in Latin America, after San Juan and Mexico City. Then it seems to me that Panama is less expensive than DR. The other day I was looking at the price of modern apts. for sale in Panama City and the I looked at comparable apts. for sale in Santo Domigo and the ones in Panama were less expensive, even though they all had sea view and all the modern comforts such as a pool, a gym and air conditioning. Perhaps it is due to the over abundance of brand new apts. and competition in Panama. I would say that based on what I have read, the DR has become as expensive as Costa Rica. Costa Rica used to be cheap, but real estate prices have really gone up, as has the general cost of living there, based on all the reports I have read from American expatriates and others in that country.
 

macocael

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Aug 3, 2004
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you are probably right Juan Carlos. Btw, I think Brazil is more expensive --or at least, Rio and Sao Paolo are. You can probably find provincial cities or towns where life is cheaper, though. I was there a few years back,and while I loved it, I thought it was very expensive. COurse, such places offer more than St Domingo, much more. while there are cultural similarities -- loosely speaking, a Latin culture with some similar historical events, lots of great music, good food, warm people -- Rio and Sao Paolo are more cosmopolitan places in my view. So you may spend more, but you get more too. As far as beauty goes, Brazil is just gorgeous and Rio is a very beautiful city.
 

billyidol

Banned
Feb 9, 2004
334
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looking at my contribution below; lets just minus a few luxuries which ive included for myself . These luxuries are probably unnecessary expenses for other people

monthly
electricity pool pump $20
pool chemicals $25
pool maintanance $75
pool insurance $12
fun money (cut it from $400 to $300) $100
house claeaner $15
total $250mth approx
Taking this away from my initial budget amount of $1104 = $850 mth

Now in my book thats pretty reasonable living...dont you agree $850 (30000rd monthly approx)????? round it to $1000 (35000rd monthly)a mth just in case of emergencies ect and i think this is very reasonable.

Currently I happen to live in a very expensive part of the world where i have to pay $2000 a mth for a 1 bedroom furnished apartment, $80 for cable,$120 a week for basics food, Plus health insurance of some $300 a mth. So when i discovered that i could purchase land at the beach in the DR for $18k (which i did plus 2k legals) and construct a 1250ft 2 bedroom bungalow for $45k (which i have), and then install a pool for $12k (which is my current builders quote)and then live on $1200 a mth........what do you think i did???? i ask anyone to show me where in the world i could buy a house/pool on a beautiful beach for $77k. Living in the DR may cost a little more than what we all expected BUT i still consider the general expenses to be very reasonable!
bi

billyidol said:
This is what ive obtained from my conversations with others on dr 1
*I own my own house
*I'm by myself )
*All costs are per mth and calculated on roughly 35 rd to the US1$


water
($30 a load) + free rain water = averages out to $15 mthly

electricity 400kwh approx useage
$60 mthly (public/inverter) basic 2 bed house (fans /no aircon)

electricity pool pump
(.6kwh pump useage *6hrs to turn over pool volume=4kwh per day approx. * 5 peso per kwh from electricity co= 20rd p/day * 31 days = 620rd ($20us approx)electric per mth

pool chems $25
pool maintanance $75
miscellaneous mthly $40
food $240

personal insurance $40 a mth 17000rd a year apparently quality insurance
house insurance $40 mth (1% of house value)
pool insurance $12mth $15000 pool
house contents ins $10 mth ($7000 contents fridge/tv/ the basics)

cell phone 1000rd plan $30 low useage for me
tv- cable $15
fun/beers/pizza $400
transport/gas $30
bike maintanance insurance/registration ect $25
garbage 200rd*2 mthly= 12
house cleaner $150 rd plus lunch * 2 per mth= $15

Total $1104 us a mth based on what the good folk of DR ! have told me
remember this doesnt include accomodation. Im just going to round my budget to a flat $300us a week/1200 a mth
Please feel free to add
cheers
 

macocael

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Aug 3, 2004
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Absolutely Billy Idol. I agree. If you avoid living in the capital, you also avoid the high prices. When I am out at the "family homestead" (not yet a homestead but I am slowly working on it!), the cost of living is practically nil. Food in fact may be the biggest expense, but we also have a conuco so we have chickens and eggs and various greens and fruits. But it is a simpler lifestyle as well, so I vary that with my life in the capital, and I still sit comfortably within a budget very similar to yours. Being next to the beach is a huge plus in my book (my place is inland), but ceteris paribus, you are basically on the same wavelength, and I see nothing missing from your list. A good life.
 

Potato_Salad

On Vacation!
Oct 13, 2005
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juancarlos said:
Well, if it is actually cheaper to live in Brazil than in the DR, then I would say the DR has really become expensive! I know that last year Santo Domingo was rated the third most expensive city in Latin America, after San Juan and Mexico City. Then it seems to me that Panama is less expensive than DR. The other day I was looking at the price of modern apts. for sale in Panama City and the I looked at comparable apts. for sale in Santo Domigo and the ones in Panama were less expensive, even though they all had sea view and all the modern comforts such as a pool, a gym and air conditioning. Perhaps it is due to the over abundance of brand new apts. and competition in Panama. I would say that based on what I have read, the DR has become as expensive as Costa Rica. Costa Rica used to be cheap, but real estate prices have really gone up, as has the general cost of living there, based on all the reports I have read from American expatriates and others in that country.


That's interesting to hear.

When I first visited Santo Domingo, I was amazed with the higher-than-expected prices of everything.
 

donrael

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Sep 26, 2005
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macocael said:
Absolutely Billy Idol. I agree. If you avoid living in the capital, you also avoid the high prices. When I am out at the "family homestead" (not yet a homestead but I am slowly working on it!), the cost of living is practically nil. Food in fact may be the biggest expense, but we also have a conuco so we have chickens and eggs and various greens and fruits. But it is a simpler lifestyle as well, so I vary that with my life in the capital, and I still sit comfortably within a budget very similar to yours. Being next to the beach is a huge plus in my book (my place is inland), but ceteris paribus, you are basically on the same wavelength, and I see nothing missing from your list. A good life.
for those of us who see as so, this is a great way of making it.
i got the cue from my aunt, she has a nice house in our town that she built back in the 80's when she relocated back to DR from NYC. she has always kept a 'lil conuco that she uses to cultivate for her self and for also to give to some of our less fontunate family members.

I asked her if she eer regreted going back, and she says going back was the best thing she has done. when its my turn to go back, i will have my 'lil conuquito, once you got that and your own house the rest is extra and simple and cheap really. thats my ideal.

ciao
~Don
 

Rick Snyder

Silver
Nov 19, 2003
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I rented for the first two years I was here. The rent was RD2,000 a month and an additional RD300 for electricity. My family of 3 required about RD6,000 a month for food and all other expenses. This equated to 8.3k to 9k per month at an exchange rate of 12 to 1 = US750. In 1999 I built my house for approx. 9k US and therefore eliminated anymore rent payments. As we live on an island I feel that a pool is a waste of money as a VERY BIG pool is so close. I own a motorcycle and my wife a passola and we use public transportation for all travels out of town.

So here it is 7 years after having built my house and what are my monthly expenses;

Electricity RD500 (I am very fortunate with this)
Cable RD320
Phone RD3,500 to include flash internet and 2 cell phones
Water RD400 for drinking
Food RD8,000
Gas RD600 for vehicles
Medicine RD300 for me
Gas RD300 for cooking
Water/garb RD45
---------------------------
Total RD13,965 at 32 to 1 = US437

The above list contains those items that I must have and that I pay every month. Needless to say other expenses pop up month to month which increase my monthly expenditures from time to time but over all the above list are those items that as I said I must have.

Rick