Security

B and A

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Aug 30, 2006
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My Wife and I are planning to move to DR, North coast. maybe Cabarete or Sosua.
I'm a composer and have a small recording studio.computers.mixing deskc etc.
Anybody any idea what kind of security I should be thinking of. Bearing in mind that we live in Suburban Virginia USA.
 

mountainfrog

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Dec 8, 2003
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Safe?

... planning to move to DR... maybe Cabarete or Sosua....what kind of security I should be thinking of. Bearing in mind that we live in Suburban Virginia USA.

I guess you are in for a change (which you may have sought in some way anyhow, right?).

Do a search here (key words: crime, safety, violence, etc.) and read and read...
Anyway, welcome to the board.

m'frog
 

B and A

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Aug 30, 2006
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I guess you are in for a change (which you may have sought in some way anyhow, right?).

Yes your right, m'frog.


Do a search here (key words: crime, safety, violence, etc.) and read and read...
Anyway, welcome to the board
.

Will definately do that and lots and lots of research....planning to take a visit within the month. want to rent a villa or small house.......any recomendations?

And thanks for the reply.
 

mountainfrog

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Two Step Approach

...planning to take a visit within the month. want to rent a villa or small house.......any recomendations?

Depending on the length of your stay renting an apartment might be enough.
Mind you, this will be a 'working visit', checking out living conditions in various places and making some contacts.

The second step would then be to come here for a year or so to see whether everyday life is what you wanted and expected.

BTW, what made you choose the Sosúa/Cabarete area?
What other areas do you know?

m'frog
 
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B and A

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Why Not Cabarete or Sosua?!

We were searching for a place that was warm and just outside the hurricane zone. We also had our first Mexican holiday this year and fell in love with Zhijanejo (sp?),, but decided we really couldn't live in Mexico. I have friends that are from Santiago, and they have told us about DR...so we Googled property and made our decision. We are hoping to be unpacking in October and acclimated by January!:)

Any other advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated...We are going to rent in a secure area in Sosua or Cabarete...traveling to DR in September to secure space and look around, but I think it will work out well...Fingers & Toes crossed! Anything is better than Suburban VA!

Cheers and let us know what you think...B and A
 

Werner

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Feb 19, 2004
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The first but most important security you need is: dont tell everybody you own a recording studio!
Its not necessery for other to know what you own or not.

I have a friend with a appartment in Ocean dreams for rent. Its secure and its top floor. PM me if your interested.

What kind of music do you produce? Do you produce on a professional level?
I'm trying to produce on my pc but its a slow process. ;)
 

B and A

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Aug 30, 2006
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HI M'Frog...No we haven't been to DR before and this will be our first trip to DR and we're really looking forward to it! Thanks-B & A
 

moviemouth

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Jul 12, 2005
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Buy Homeowners Insurance

Just as you would in the states, you can buy homeowners insurance to cover losses of personal property, house contents etc. due to theft as well as the usual fire, storm and liability. In my limited experience (I recently bought coverage for my house in Cabarete) it works and costs about the same as in the U.S. You will need to list your valuable assets and keep receipts and photos just like you have probably done in VA.
 

Chris

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HI M'Frog...No we haven't been to DR before and this will be our first trip to DR and we're really looking forward to it! Thanks-B & A

I like your style :classic: Usually one visits a place before you move. Anyway, you sound open for adventure, so here goes. The 10 rules of moving to the DR, sight unseen!

1. What you see in the DR is probably not what you get. Take a lot of advice from this board, the stuff that is publically posted and not the six pm's you have already offering to help.
2. All the rules and regulations that you are used to, are not in common practice here. From driving on the roads, to talking to people, to paying bills, to shopping in the supermercado .. it is all different - the values are different.
3. Nothing much works. The electricity works sometimes, usually you have a phone or a cell phone, and most probably your internet connection will be very squirrely. We all have ways around that.
4. We frequently have dogs, donkeys, goats, chickens, horses, cows and sweet and pretty little Dominican Kids along the roads. Not a good idea to run over any of those.
5. Money has a different value here. Don't really tell people what you got, before you're not sure of them. And it will take more than a year or so, before you are sure of them.
6. In the DR, it is who you know, and you better learn very quickly the part about what you know. The learning curve is steep.
7. Mosquitos here are always out for fresh blood. So is most of the society in the tourist areas.
8. The locals in tourist areas, are different from the locals outside of tourist areas. Sosua and Cabarete are part of the DR, these towns are not the DR.
9. People 'imports' that survive here, become a really special breed. If you're bad, you'll become more so. If you're good, you'll become more so.
10. One year is not enough to enjoy the beauty, the people and the special experiences that the DR has to offer.

Oops, I forgot the most important. You will probably lose all your equipment in the first year due to electricity, if you don't find out quick how to protect it. UPS's, inverters, input voltage regulators and heaven knows what else...
 
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B and A

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Aug 30, 2006
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WOW - Thanks, I think!

Wow! Thanks Chris! I like the part about being Good and becoming Better! I am concerned however about finding the good folks...how do we distinguish? We are in the process of learning Spanish and my wife's friends will tutot us, however, because of her family obligations she might not be able to join us when we settle in...WOW!:paranoid: You offer alot of good advice, and maybe we should purchase a back up generator just for my gear????

Thanks again, and please keep the info coming!
Cheers and Kind Regards - B & A
 

suzannel

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Jun 7, 2006
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One thing you should look at when renting with your equipment is definetly the electricity many surges will burn your equipment. Alot of the new complexes now rely entirely on generators for 24 hour power and are not even connected to the island power. Just a suggestion
 

Santiagohombre1

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Jun 1, 2006
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in dr, move into a barrio bueno. a barrio bueno is like foggy bottom dc and a barrio malo is like souteast. get a gated house with bars on the windows and a big rottweiler or guard dog. get an alarm. you are fine and so is your equipment. you might be more safe here than there. just dont let your guard down just like you would not in dc. the dc murder rate is 35 per 100,000 and in dr it is 10 per 100,000. i am a dr and dc native so i am an expert on both.
 

Santiagohombre1

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Jun 1, 2006
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i seen murders, rapes, killings, drug deal, and drug heads all over dc. just act like you are in dc when you go into dr's bad parts. it is the same thing goin on there as in dc.
 

B and A

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Aug 30, 2006
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Thanks for the info...especially the bit about the electricity...I'll think about the dog as we are 'gato' people! We'll be bringing out 2 cats with us, they don't have much of a bark! What company sells alarm systems? Would the realtors have information about security firms? Still can't wait to get there, even if we only stay for a year, we think it will be time well spent!
 

mountainfrog

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Comida Miau

I hope they are indoor cats.
Whereas your Dominican neighbours hope they are outdoor cats... :pirate:


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m'frog
 

Rocky

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Apr 4, 2002
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Your initial visit will answer 90% of your questions.
Any expats who have lived here for 10 years plus will be able to answer all your security questions.
There are many long time DR1 members who can help you with even the finest of details, about protecting your electronics.
If you know the total maximum power consumption of your equipment, it would be helpful in deciding what you need to protect it all.
I'm sure you are familiar with a UPS.
Of course, there are some that are not true UPS's and some that are.
The true models which are quite pricey, will constantly operate all your equipment from battery power in a true sine wave.
The cheap units, do not work that way.
They just have fast switchover times.
TrppLite make some very good units.
Many of the suggestions you have received are excellent, but coming down and seeing for yourself, makes all the difference.
BTW: I did the same thing.
Decided to move to the tropics and chose the DR, sight unseen.
15 years and counting and still have a smile on my face.