Punta Cana - Cocotal - Anyone living there?

Bugstyvy

New member
Mar 16, 2008
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I was thinking of renting a place in Cocotal for a while and possibly moving there....

A couple Questions:

How safe is it?
How safe is it for my wife and 6 month old?
Travelling at night?
Would $2000 US be a comfortable living? rent included for a 2 bedroom condo
Are there buisness opportunities in the Punta Cana area?
What is the "Melia beach access"? what exactly do you get with that? and does it include renters?
Any online property for sale or rent that is up to date (not b.s?) excluding this site?
Spanish lessons? Cost?
Any other communities in the area other than Cap Cana or Roko Ki? similar to Cocotal?


Thanks in advance from a D.R noob!!

Steve
 

aegap

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Mar 19, 2005
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Any other communities in the area other than Cap Cana or Roko Ki? similar to Cocotal?


Thanks in advance from a D.R noob!!

Steve
Yep.

A great one is Palma Real Villas - Golf & Country Club, which is own by Sol Melia.


Playa Bavaro, Punta Cana
Dominican Republic
<table align="center" border="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr> <td colspan="2" align="right">
1x5.gif
</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Phone:</td> <td> (809) 730-6767</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Toll Free (USA):</td> <td>1 (877) 213-5002</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Fax:</td> <td>(809) 221-8784</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Email:</td> <td>click here to email us</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Website:</td> <td> palmarealvillas.com</td></tr></tbody></table>
 

DR Mpe

Banned
Mar 31, 2003
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Yep.

A great one is Palma Real Villas - Golf & Country Club, which is own by Sol Melia.


Playa Bavaro, Punta Cana
Dominican Republic
<table align="center" border="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr> <td colspan="2" align="right">
1x5.gif
</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Phone:</td> <td> (809) 730-6767</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Toll Free (USA):</td> <td>1 (877) 213-5002</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Fax:</td> <td>(809) 221-8784</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Email:</td> <td>click here to email us</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right">Website:</td> <td> palmarealvillas.com</td></tr></tbody></table>

Hmmmm for a couple and a kid and 2000 US a month??? I live on the north coast, which I do think is cheaper than Cocotal (long time since I was there though). Sure u survive on 2000 US, but nothing fancy... my 2 cents
 

Bugstyvy

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Mar 16, 2008
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Hmmmm for a couple and a kid and 2000 US a month??? I live on the north coast, which I do think is cheaper than Cocotal (long time since I was there though). Sure u survive on 2000 US, but nothing fancy... my 2 cents


What would make me "confortable"?:cheeky:
 

DR Mpe

Banned
Mar 31, 2003
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What would make me "confortable"?:cheeky:

Eating something else than rice, beans and chicken sometimes, take your car for a short vacation with your family sometimes, place with 24 hour electricity and water, an insurance plan if something happens?
 

Chris

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Oct 21, 2002
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www.caribbetech.com
Would $2000 US be a comfortable living? rent included for a 2 bedroom condo.

I don't think so. Not for 3 people with a reasonable standard of living. Have no idea what the cost is for Cocotal or anything about it. Just your budget amount per month does not do it unless you stay in very basic accommodation.

You need to tell us what your standard of living is before we can tell you how much.
 

Bugstyvy

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Mar 16, 2008
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I don't think so. Not for 3 people with a reasonable standard of living. Have no idea what the cost is for Cocotal or anything about it. Just your budget amount per month does not do it unless you stay in very basic accommodation.

You need to tell us what your standard of living is before we can tell you how much.


Well we dont need too much, we might buy a SUV that we can park at a friends house when we arent there, We might go out for dinner once or twice a week....

Mostly I would like my questions from above answered, not so much the cost of living question as I was just trying to get some sort of an idea of what I would be spending there...
 

Chris

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Oct 21, 2002
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www.caribbetech.com
Well we dont need too much, we might buy a SUV that we can park at a friends house when we arent there, We might go out for dinner once or twice a week....

Mostly I would like my questions from above answered, not so much the cost of living question as I was just trying to get some sort of an idea of what I would be spending there...

No-one here knows what you will be spending.
Do you know the DR?
How many times have you been here?
How much time have you spent each time?
Where did you stay?
Do you understand eating rice and beans 3 times a day 30 days per week.

With US2,000 per month, you won't have an Suv that you park at a friends house.

What kind of dinner? Rice and beans?

You need to tell us what your standards are and what your DR experience is.

To give you an idea of the question that you are asking ... Your question is similar to ...
I want to live in New York for the next 6 months. How much will I spend?
 

PJT

Silver
Jan 8, 2002
3,562
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Cocotal / Palmas Real

The location is reasonably safe, it does have 24 hr security and is a gated community. However, just because there is security force it does not prevent crime from taking place there or any other place in the world.

It is safe for the wife and baby, the entire residential is walled in. Only construction workers, service employees, golfers, home owners, renters and guests have access to the site.

Traveling locally is OK at night. But, you need to acquire knowledge of the area to be able to read the roads and avoid hot spots.

You should be able to get by on $2000 a month if you really know how to budget. Yet, the Cocotal market may require more income if you want my honest opinion.

There are always business opportunities in the area. Depends on what you have to offer and demand for your services.

There is Melia beach access for residents of the Cocotal at the Sol Melia resorts across from the residential area. Please note: There are rules limiting access.

The online property for sale may be legit or b.s., it is best always to visit the properties.

Spanish lessons cost ??????????

There is the Costa Bavaro properties located next door to the Cocotal, no golf course, costs may be less and includes beach access at the IFA resort.

Regards,
PJT
 

Bugstyvy

New member
Mar 16, 2008
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No-one here knows what you will be spending.
Do you know the DR?
How many times have you been here?
How much time have you spent each time?
Where did you stay?
Do you understand eating rice and beans 3 times a day 30 days per week.

With US2,000 per month, you won't have an Suv that you park at a friends house.

What kind of dinner? Rice and beans?

You need to tell us what your standards are and what your DR experience is.

To give you an idea of the question that you are asking ... Your question is similar to ...
I want to live in New York for the next 6 months. How much will I spend?

I understand that people lead different lifestyles, I thought I gave enough of a background when I said where I wanted to stay, how many times we would go out, the fact that we dont need much of anything, how many people would be living there.....etc.

I didnt want a breakdown of how much my 47 gallons of water usage a month would cost, just a basic idea given the info that I suggested.

To answer your questions:

We have been to DR about 10 times over 4 years a week at a time and mostly stayed at the AI resorts in Punta Cana(once in Puerto Plata) with the exception of 1 time we stayed at a friends house. We usually dont spend much time at the resort.

we have enough money for whatever lifestyle we chose to live in DR but are not big spenders and I would think being Punta Cana we would need a car....The car is not included in our monthly spending, we will probably buy it outright....

Dinner would NOT consist of steak and caviar......or rice and beans, I wqould like to think something in the middle would be fine.

I thought I was a bit more specific than "I want to live in NY for 6 months, how much will I spend". Is their any more information you require from me to give me somewhat of an idea of a budget for a months living?
 

Bugstyvy

New member
Mar 16, 2008
20
0
0
The location is reasonably safe, it does have 24 hr security and is a gated community. However, just because there is security force it does not prevent crime from taking place there or any other place in the world.

It is safe for the wife and baby, the entire residential is walled in. Only construction workers, service employees, golfers, home owners, renters and guests have access to the site.

Traveling locally is OK at night. But, you need to acquire knowledge of the area to be able to read the roads and avoid hot spots.

You should be able to get by on $2000 a month if you really know how to budget. Yet, the Cocotal market may require more income if you want my honest opinion.

There are always business opportunities in the area. Depends on what you have to offer and demand for your services.

There is Melia beach access for residents of the Cocotal at the Sol Melia resorts across from the residential area. Please note: There are rules limiting access.

The online property for sale may be legit or b.s., it is best always to visit the properties.

Spanish lessons cost ??????????

There is the Costa Bavaro properties located next door to the Cocotal, no golf course, costs may be less and includes beach access at the IFA resort.

Regards,
PJT



Thank you PJT, this is very helpful.....
 
Jan 9, 2004
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Tight...Very Tight!!

If you own your vehicle outright and exclude vehicle costs such as gas, insurance and maintenance, your budget is tight.

Plug those costs into the equation, then add in $800-$1,000 monthly rent, $200 for electricity, $500 a month for food, $xxx for health insurance for the family, plus numerous other incidentals and your budget is not only not comfortable...it is not possible to live in Cocotal.

To be realistic, if you can set vehicle costs aside, a $2,500 USD monthly budget is possible, and, I believe, you can be frugally comfortable. However, if your calculation is to include vehicle costs, then you can survive on $2,500 USD, but not be "comfortable."

The bottom line is, a budget that takes into account all costs, in my opinion, should be at least $2,500 and probably closer to $3,000 USD on a monthly basis. (My calculations are based on my knowledge of the area, as well as being a property owner in Cocotal).

Finally, I second the additional advice given above by PJT.

Good Luck with your search!


Respectfully,
Playacaribe2



I was thinking of renting a place in Cocotal for a while and possibly moving there....

A couple Questions:

How safe is it?
How safe is it for my wife and 6 month old?
Travelling at night?
Would $2000 US be a comfortable living? rent included for a 2 bedroom condo
Are there buisness opportunities in the Punta Cana area?
What is the "Melia beach access"? what exactly do you get with that? and does it include renters?
Any online property for sale or rent that is up to date (not b.s?) excluding this site?
Spanish lessons? Cost?
Any other communities in the area other than Cap Cana or Roko Ki? similar to Cocotal?


Thanks in advance from a D.R noob!!

Steve
 

puntacanalife-com

New member
Sep 9, 2008
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www.puntacanalife.com
I was thinking of renting a place in Cocotal for a while and possibly moving there....

A couple Questions:

How safe is it?
-Quite safe, I live here myself and I go jogging at night within the complex.

Would $2000 US be a comfortable living? rent included for a 2 bedroom condo
-Not sure, at this point an average 2BR rents between
1000 to 1200 us$ monthly. Depends on your expenses.

What is the "Melia beach access"? what exactly do you get with that? and does it include renters?
-No, the owner benefits are not transferable to renters.
Owner benefits include access to Gaby Beach Club at the Paradissus,
Low family Golf membership fees, discounts off Day & Night passes, and
access to sports courts at teh neighboring Melia Hotels.

Any online property for sale or rent that is up to date (not b.s?) excluding this site?
-depends what site you are looking into...

Any other communities in the area other than Cap Cana or Roko Ki? similar to Cocotal?
-That would be White Sands, but not quite the same. But You cannot compare Cap Cana or RocokI to this either.


-PCL