Can anyone help these good expats

Ladybird

Bronze
Dec 15, 2003
1,768
24
38
dreamteamdownloads1.com
There is a terrific couple who were offered a house sitting position for one year a couple of months ago in Sosua, now the owner has decided to come back suddenly and sent them an email telling them to leave in 9 days. The house was in a bad way and the husband made a lot of repairs including the inverter and he bought new batteries and a new water pump and the owner wont pay them money for the items. They had no contract and cannot afford a lawyer. These people are very honest and reliable and maintain properties they have looked after very well. Can anyone offer them a house sitting position or maybe as a handyman and housekeeper with the owner in situ with accommodation please. They speak English, German and Spanish very well. The husband can do all repairs, electrical, plumbing, and construction. Please help them if you can, they are good people, who will soon be homeless.
 

Ladybird

Bronze
Dec 15, 2003
1,768
24
38
dreamteamdownloads1.com
Ive told them that Robert but they are so decent they do not want to make trouble, I thought that such people were not allowed to just put people out in the street like that here. They went to the owners lawyer to ask for help but he told them they had to get out in 3 days.
 

BushBaby

Silver
Jan 1, 2002
3,829
329
0
79
www.casabush.org
There is a terrific couple who were offered a house sitting position for one year a couple of months ago in Sosua, now the owner has decided to come back suddenly and sent them an email telling them to leave in 9 days. The house was in a bad way and the husband made a lot of repairs including the inverter and he bought new batteries and a new water pump and the owner wont pay them money for the items. They had no contract and cannot afford a lawyer. These people are very honest and reliable and maintain properties they have looked after very well. Can anyone offer them a house sitting position or maybe as a handyman and housekeeper with the owner in situ with accommodation please. They speak English, German and Spanish very well. The husband can do all repairs, electrical, plumbing, and construction. Please help them if you can, they are good people, who will soon be homeless.
Sorry Ladybird but this just doesn't sit right with me somehow. We are just getting one side of the story (& that 3rd hand!!) so maybe I could ask a few questions to clear the waters a bit?

How were the initial discussions about them 'house sitting' conducted - By e-Mail? If so, won't those act as some form of 'contract/agreement'?
When the 'house sitter' bought the batteries & water pump I presume he had the receipts made out in HIS name - therefore he can take them with him as they BELONG to him - not the house owner.
If these 'house sitters' make a habit of sitting houses for others, SURELY they know well enough that it is imperative to have a contract?
If the house sitters bought inverter batteries & a water pump, they MUST have got the agreement of the owner to buy these & also make improvements to the owners house - to to these things WITHOUT the owners agreement is just plain irresponsible!
They obviously HAD some money to go & buy these items, WHY are they now short of cash? ANYONE who lives in this country without US $1,000 as an 'Emergency Fund' is asking for serious problems - lawyers will always work for a deposit of RD $10,000 or so.
If the facts are as you state above, I am SURE that you (they) will find a lawyer to act 'Pro Bono' for them. 10 months loss of living quarters, theft of batteries/water pump, income for maintenance & repairs ....... There is a whole array of suits that can be brought against the house owner I would have thought!

I would LOVE to get the House Owners side of this story but suspect I never will. Are they a long term owner of property in the DR? Are any of us likely to know them?

How long have these people LIVED in the DR? It would appear they have learnt little of the way things work in this country & the scams that others will pull when they consider the time to be right. I don't want to incur your wrath more than I normally do by asking sensible questions but if these people have lived here for more than 6 months I would be extremely concerned about their decision making abilities.

NO, I do NOT have a property for them to 'sit' for me at the moment & I am probably wrong for suggesting this ....... BUT, as an absentee property owner I would have to decline their services as I wold be frightened of the spontaneity of their actions/decisions & the desire to leave things to chance without a GOOD CONTRACT to back things up!

I do NOT wish these 'good people' any harm but I would advise them to get their act together if they wish to continue 'sitting' for people & ensure a contract is always drawn up prior to accepting a 'house sitting' position.

Failing that, Caveat Emptor Mr Absentee Landlord!! ~ Grahame.
 

Ladybird

Bronze
Dec 15, 2003
1,768
24
38
dreamteamdownloads1.com
These lovely people have lived here much longer than you and through no fault of their own lost what they had and then were offered a house sitting position for years for owners they knew that only visited here in the winter months That house was recently sold a couple of months ago in the great condition they left it in thanks to all their good work. They were offered the new house sit a couple of months ago by what they thought was a decent woman, for a year, as she left to return to her home country because her husband left with a chica here. She has now decided because her marital problems continue she wants to return at short notice and hence in a few days more these good people have to leave. The wife is angry and bitter because of her circumstances and doesnt care that she is putting these good people out at short notice. They realise their mistake in not entering into a contract with her, and would gladly welcome any investigations of their character by any prospective future owners that require their services, and any contract to secure the owners position. They are well known here and so is their good reputation. Of course the receipts are in their name and they have the authority by email to carry out the repairs. The house was in a bad condition when they moved in. The owners had not lived here very long when the husband started his other relationship. There you have the story. I have only given out this much now because you two seem intent on damaging this attempt to help find them a home. I appreciate the need for any prospective offers from owners to be done in a legal manner, of course this is the right way. So please provide us with the name of the pro bono lawyers here that will help them. You "would love to get the owners side of the story". Why? it is none of your business. Any prospective owners that are interested will be given any information such as this. These are decent kind gentle folk that dont want any more stress of fighting to stay somewhere that is needed for the owner. That in itself should show just how nice they are. So stop with the attacks and judgements on people you dont even know. They have been through enough pain in their lives.

Anyone that could help and wishes to meet them, please pm me.
 
Last edited:

Lambada

Gold
Mar 4, 2004
9,478
410
0
80
www.ginniebedggood.com
Give them money and no problem.They your friends and you pay for renting a home and then they get jobs. Every thing is no problem.

That sounds like a workable short term solution, b.batista, and I'm sure Ladybird will be more than willing to cover her friends rent for a few months whilst they find other employment.

It should be noted that post 8 was not an attempt to prevent these people finding a home. It was an attempt to extract lessons from this situation which might be of help to others.

Have to say I feel a post simply entitled 'Looking for house sitters job' might have had more success. The minute the 'unfortunate circumstances' are posted it does, or should lead people to question the judgements made in this situation. This is not in any way commenting on whether the sitters are nice people or not - in a sense that is irrelevant. We have now been told they are long term residents. This means that they know about the need to have emergency funds, they know as Robert has suggested, how Dominicans would handle this situation and more importantly they will have established over the years, decent contacts on whom they can now call. They probably have lawyers who are friends who might work on their behalf for a minimal retainer.

The other lesson which can be extracted from this is that being 'nice' as in allowing one's rights to be walked over, does not always indicate sound judgement. There are times when it does and others when it doesn't. It does, however, say something about how assertive these sitters might or might not be prepared to be & that has ramifications for the job of looking after someone else's property and maybe 'defending' it when faced with legal type issues. As long term residents the sitters would know that Dominican law favours squatters. They could thus stay put and allow themselves to be evicted..............eventually. By which time they should have other work.

Other potential house sitters can learn a lot from this situation and new posters can see why it is necessary to sometimes question the scenario as originally presented.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rocky
B

BettyDiamond

Guest
You are truely a wonderful person to be helping out these poor unfortunate people I hope that one day you get what you deserve.
If I was in such a situation I would hope to be helped out by a saint such as yourself