A question for expats

[frank12]

Tigueres have a double standard.

A rich Dominican with a fancy car is to be feared.

A gringo with a fancy car is a sucker.

OK, so, by that logic, one of the guys in this thread who happens to drive a Porsche & a very beautiful, high-end white Mercedes Benz SUV that costs no less then $95,000 new, should what...get rid of his cars now? He's lived here for a long time. You know him. He knows you. Do you want to be the first one to tell him, "Get rid of your expensive cars" because you might be targeted!! He's probably been here 20-years or longer.

Maybe he will chime in when the time is right. Then, you can tell him what he should do with his expensive cars because of some Expat fears and paranoia running rampant.

 

[frank12]

Here's the funny thing...there are expats right here on DR1 driving some very expensive cars & motorcycles. Maybe they'll get the energy to chime in and share their experiences of driving expensive cars around this island, and whether or not they have been targeted as a result.

 

[NALs]

Here's the funny thing...there are expats right here on DR1 driving some very expensive cars & motorcycles. Maybe they'll get the energy to chime in and share their experiences of driving expensive cars around this island, and whether or not they have been targeted as a result.

I'm willing to bet that will not happen because: https://dr1.com/forums/showthread.php/172939-A-question-for-expats?p=1907330&viewfull=1#post1907330

Then again, many people like to be rosca izquierda and might decide to post something simply because I posted this post. lol

As much as expats fear Dominicans of the criminal variety, some of the worst criminals could be other expats and we are all sure all types of expats frequent this forum and this thread. When an opportunity arises...

 

[Harleysrock]

There are a bunch of expats living in perpetual fear here, and i don't get!

I’m not in fear at all, I feel safer here than I do other countries. I’m just not an idiot in being flashy(when I had money) Many others way I am an idiot

 

[Hedonist]

Hey, thanks everybody for the input, very much appreciated!

 

[william webster]

These guys Frank 12 mentions know their way around.... and many ex-pats do.
Those guys might survive the fancy car routine

A newer arrival might need a 'break-in ' period before stepping out on the town with his new rig.

Here in Cabrera, a Fr-Cdn friend paid $60,000 in taxes to get his Hummer in ---
his niece drives it - without incident after several years

It can be done...

Hedonist-
get the salt shaker and apply some to these comments.... suit yourself, not them

was that Ricky Nelson saying that..... A Garden Party ??
Can't please everyone .....so you gotta please yourself

 

[CristoRey]

Do you want to be the first one to tell him, "Get rid of your expensive cars" because you might be targeted!! He's probably been here 20-years or longer.

Absolutely not. 20 years on the island by now he's got plenty of
connections with people of the same financial status who can assist
him in the event their assistance is needed.

OP may or may not have these same types of connections. Judging from
his post I'd say at this point in time he does not. Perhaps you could
introduce him to some of the wealthy foreigners who live down here and
they could give the OP some better insight.

If there's one thing I have learned from living in multiple developing /
third world countries....
When you constantly show wealth around people who don't have sh*t
in a country rife with police corruption you increase the odds of becoming
victim of a robbery or worse.

 

[Robert]

I see no issues with driving a decent car in the DR. I have a friend (expat) that has had numerous Ferraris, Porsches etc without issue.

The biggest predictor of a potential issue is..

Your circle of friends and who you socialize with. You lie down with dogs, sometimes you get fleas.

 

[TropicalPaul]

I don't know where you and some others here get their information, but you need a reality check on a few things. People drive $120,000 dollar cars here daily. My cousin is now driving a brand new Porsche Cayenne as his daily driver. Before that, he drove an even more expensive car. I have some friends driving even more expensive cars then the Porsche. My 3rd cousin--owner of Bonao Tipico--has 3 Porsche's now, and he drives them back and forth from Bonao to SD almost daily.

Anyway, there is so much money on this island, that it seems shocking to most people. I don't know why, it's a big island! There is enough money here to support the Porsche, Mercedes, Bentley, Ferrrari, Ducati, KTM, Harley Davidson, dealerships and many more.

Nothing is happening to the owners of these cars. These cars are all over SD and Punta Cana. People are not "filling these expensive cars full of holes!" I really don't know where some people get their information from??

There are thousands of sports cars here that cost way over $100,000. Everything from Bentley's to GT3's, to Ferrari's...you name it, it's here! Spend any afternoon in SD, around any of the malls, and look at some of the cars going in and out of the malls.

Punta Cana must be chalk-full with expensive cars running around.

The only thing you have to worry about here is the expensive maintenance cost of dealerships (the owners can afford it), salt air, salt air, more salt air, and oh yeah...the constant battle with salt air.

My little single cylinder 2017 690 just cost me $16,500 in SD. And it's only a single cylinder bike!! The 1200cc KTM's & Ducatis begin at $35,000 dollars and go up from there. And there are plenty of them running around SD. And these are just people's secondary motorcycles--there cars are way, way more expensive.

This is a big island, its full of money, and the people that have money, like driving nice things, and living comfortably.

Frank12 for once I disagree with you. There are a lot of Dominicans who like to flash their money, but Dominicans also know how to get things done and how to stay safe. As a newbie expat, you would be really badly advised to splash your money around, we all know that is very likely to end up horribly. I also have a problem with the ethics of flaunting how much money you have, in a country where so many kids go hungry and don't go to school because they can't afford the uniform. Maybe if the OP understood a little more about where he's moving to, he would realise that there are far better ways to spend your 200K than on a "look at me I'm rich" kind of car.

 

[RDKNIGHT]

I've rented a car while there and yes, there are roads that a low sports car cant traverse, but not all of them, I can deal with that, knowing where to drive. On the ''rob me'' thing, I've seen a huge number of very expensive cars in Santo Domingo. It is just because I'm a gringo? If that is so, it would be a deal breaker for me, I'm too much of an enthusiast. Thanks a lot guys, much appreciated!

good luck driving around that car i say in the first month you get robbed..secondly a sports car is unless here its the land of the SUV ...

Cocotal is nice but its getting run down the place is getting old..... they are building a lot of new gated communities with much better value for your buck

 

[RDKNIGHT]

My cousin just bought a brand new Porsche Cayenne. I saw it yesterday. It's cool. It's fast. It sits high off the ground. I see the logic of it. He doesn't have to worry about Pot Holes and Speed Bumps. Seems to have a lot of suspension. I think the fast SUV's is the way to go on this island.

I agree Frank

 

[RDKNIGHT]

of course. go to the homes of some of these guys who are driving Land Cruisers, and the guy does not have a bottle of water in the refrigerator.

that"s the truth the best statement i read on this site in years....

 

[william webster]

The world over - it's the same

Big garage -- small bank account....

Not our Rico Doms.... they got talent !!!...DEPTH

Most of these bozos spend it all on the flash

there's a list

All flash - no cash
Big hat - no cattle
and many more............

 

[USA DOC]

Remember this Island eats cars.......Put the big $$ sports car off a while........

 

[rfp]

Just like in the USA there are lots of people who fake it. That being said there are a lot of Dominicans who have serious money and they enjoy their toys.

I would have no problem driving something high end, just think of the complications with insurance, maintenance, repairs etc on the luxury end.

Stay with upper mid cars like Mercs, Porsche, they are a dime a dozen.

 

[Cdn_Gringo]

TL;DR

Life is like a game of chance. There are some things you can do to better the odds of being successful and there are some things you can do that stack the odds against you. Day after day we make decisions that move the odds one way or the other. Too many poor decisions without some offsetting counter decisions and the likelihood of a negative experience becomes almost inevitable.

We all make bad decisions and hopefully learn from them so that next time, we can approach a similar situation from a different more agreeable angle. Hopefully the result of a bad decision is not a permanent one. Those who are used to playing the game of life in North America or Europe without much experience living in the third world just do not have the experience to recognize the pitfalls that they have to navigate here. After a while, we get wiser and fair much better than we did in the first weeks and months after stepping off the plane.

There are reasons why we suggest people rent before they buy. Why people should visit several possible areas where they might enjoy living before setting up a semi-permanent home. We learn the concept of the gringo price and develop strategies to deal with this. We learn not to expect the plumber coming to unclog a drain to have a snake and are no longer surprised when the jack of all trades we hire needs to cut something and uses his electric drill to make the cut or to sand an edge somewhat smooth.

We learn that temptation presented to criminals will likely result in crime more often than not if they feel there is a chance they can get away with it. It is our mission to get through the day without knowingly presenting ourselves as being just such an opportunity.

With entropy and the randomness of the universe no two people walking the same path will have exactly the same experience. Given the same circumstances usually two people will make different micro decisions. Are you for sure guaranteed to be killed and have your dog stolen, no of course not. Is it possible? Sure, just as it is possible in Chicago and Yemen and on the streets of Amsterdam. After you have a bit of an accident and a good Samaritan offers you assistance back to your feet, will you immediately notice that your wallet is gone or that your angel might be deciding whether now would be a good time to put you down again and abscond with your watch, or your shoes or your Chicago Bulls hat, no we don't normally see it coming or we would run. It is not our natural state of thinking to be suspicious of everyone and everything. However that might not be such a bad idea here or in Chicago or Amsterdam. The truly paranoid are not usually surprised by the antisocial actions of others. When you assume that everyone is out to get you, you are right some of the time just as the nonworking clock is correct twice a day.

We can debate all day whether the DR is more dangerous for foreigners than Haiti or the Bronx or Pembroke Pines. The simple truth is that it doesn't matter where you are, you can become a victim of crime if your personal decisions bring about attention from the wrong people.

This could happen by wearing lots of bling, or getting blot-toed and stumbling in the direction of home late at night, it could be the nice car we are driving or it could be that we just look weak, unaware and out of place.

The only really consistent thing we might be able to agree upon is that newcomers to the DR are not in Kansas anymore. It takes time to adjust to your new country, culture, all the garbage, the noise and the 2 stroke engine smoke. While we are adjusting and every time we get out of bed, we need to ensure that our subsequent decisions don't tilt too far or too often towards the negative end of the fate scale.

If the OP owning and driving a snazzy sports car here was to be the only questionable decision he made, I'd say he would have a good chance being just fine. The car coupled with the other boners he is going to inadvertently make or the car plus the randomness of the universe might be enough to tip the scales and send lady luck in search of another resting place. Who can tell?

I can think of a handful of good reasons to own a luxury care in the first world and the same reasons are aprapo in this country. I won't list them but a flashy car is a flashy car and it draws unwanted attention sometimes. Since we cannot control that attention except to avoid it when appropriate, it might not be a good thing for newcomers to start off with a vehicle that costs more than a gringo house. Not saying they can't, but it just might not be the first decision they should be making until they have a change to see the roads, the neighborhood, the accidents, what others are driving and learning why the big high vehicles are the kings of the road. The DR consistently ranks quite high in the traffic collision statistics and there is a reason for that. There is also a reason why you might not want to have a Ferrari in your driveway in Cocotal then again, there might be a good reason to do just that - it all depends on how the odds stack up on that day at any given time.

To the OP come on down. The DR can be a great place to live. Some people, thrive, others do not and go elsewhere. You can be as safe here as anywhere, but there are no guarantees just like anywhere else. The temptation threshold in this country is a lot lower than it is where you come from. 7-11 at home keeps minimum cash in the register to make knocking over the store more risk than it's worth. Here that same $100 can be enough motivation to rob the store day after day after day.

You need to have lived here to understand and appreciate the reality of living here. Which I suppose is why the OP asked the question in the first place. He has now heard from all corners and can apply some common sense and ask himself if he wants to live in a third world country and deliberately choose to drive a flashy car to and fro that costs more than many people can earn in 30 years?

 

[cavok]

SUV's are not the OT here. To the average Dominican, a Porsche Cayanne doesn't even remotely look like an expensive SUV - even to me they don't -looks like a dog. To the average Dominican it looks no more expensive than an Hyundai Tuscon. Same goes for Land Rovers and Jeep Grand Cherokees. They don't really stand out that much to the average Dominican - just another one of millions of SUV's around the island.

We're talking about luxury sports cars. F's, M's, and L's just scream money!!! They stand out!

 

[cavok]

That's why wealthy Dominicans like them so much. They have the "rompe ojo" effect as they call it.

They're also good for getting yourself wrapped around a concrete electric pole as one wealthy Dominican found out sevaeral months ago. They don't have a clue how to drive them. They just want to go to all the expensive restaurants and flashy, hip night clubs and be seen in them.

 

[Fulano2]

Being seen is very important in the "rapper and baseball culture" that is dominating the DR. That's why the first thing a man buys when he gets some money for the inicial es un carro. I read they even provide loans for 60 months for a car.

 

[the gorgon]

That's why wealthy Dominicans like them so much. They have the "rompe ojo" effect as they call it.

They're also good for getting yourself wrapped around a concrete electric pole as one wealthy Dominican found out sevaeral months ago. They don't have a clue how to drive them. They just want to go to all the expensive restaurants and flashy, hip night clubs and be seen in them.

and why do people in USA and Canada buy Lambos and Maseratis, other than to be seen in them? people make it seem like Dominicans invented the concept of showing off. when some sixty year old guy walks into a dealership and comes out with a Porsche Turbo, do you think it is to help him get in shape for LeMans?