Long Term Concerns about Geo Political Movements for Expats in DR

onojetathekid

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Feb 6, 2022
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Thinking of Moving to the DR purchasing property, there are a lot of looming worries spoke of here in the US, Nuclear War, Food Shortages, Recession and Possible Social Scores.
Those of us who require remote work, could be left vulnerable by layoffs and economic stress while living overseas.

Please speak to those possible concerns for those contemplating a move to the DR.
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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I always say that the DR is a place to retire to. Digital nomads changed that a bit, since they can work remotely and receive enough to live well in the DR depending upon the job.

The DR produces very little of its own energy and the power grid is and has been my largest concern since I moved here in 2003. Power is off now because of the incompetence of the government run power distribution company. They call such things "maintenance".
 

CristoRey

Welcome To Wonderland
Apr 1, 2014
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Thinking of Moving to the DR purchasing property, there are a lot of looming worries spoke of here in the US, Nuclear War, Food Shortages, Recession and Possible Social Scores.
Those of us who require remote work, could be left vulnerable by layoffs and economic stress while living overseas.

Please speak to those possible concerns for those contemplating a move to the DR.
I've been working in the "remote" BPO/ Outsourcing Industry down here (off and on) for the last 8 years.
1. Save as much money as you can prior to making the move.
2. Build relationships with Companies/ Clients outside of the USA.
3. Learn Spanish
4. Rent for a minimum of 5 years prior to purchasing property.
5. Don't live life worrying about things you can't control.
 

SKY

Gold
Apr 11, 2004
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I always say that the DR is a place to retire to. Digital nomads changed that a bit, since they can work remotely and receive enough to live well in the DR depending upon the job.

The DR produces very little of its own energy and the power grid is and has been my largest concern since I moved here in 2003. Power is off now because of the incompetence of the government run power distribution company. They call such things "maintenance".
If electric and stable internet is very important to the OP he can live in the Punta Cana/Bavaro area. Privately run electric and high speed reliable fiber optic internet. Both as good as wherever he came from. But there are many nice places in the DR. But check for electric and internet. And do not buy, rent for starters.....
 

NanSanPedro

Nickel with tin plating
Apr 12, 2019
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Boca Chica
yeshaiticanprogram.com
Thinking of Moving to the DR purchasing property, there are a lot of looming worries spoke of here in the US, Nuclear War, Food Shortages, Recession and Possible Social Scores.
Those of us who require remote work, could be left vulnerable by layoffs and economic stress while living overseas.

Please speak to those possible concerns for those contemplating a move to the DR.
I have retired here and it will be 4 years this fall I've lived here. I would not concern myself though with the aforementioned USA problems, except maybe for food. You can grow lots of stuff here you can't grow in the north and Midwest USA. If there is a nuclear war, none of us will be around to worry at all.

But you should rent first and try it for a year before you buy. I still rent. If you can do remote, make sure you get the best f/o program they offer. Have a backup. Get a place that has an inverter and batteries. Even if you rent like I do, buy one and install it. You'll be happy you did. Consider a diesel generator too.

This place is somewhat freer than the USA. You couple that with the weather and you've got a quasi-paradise. Also, make sure you buy extra whatever you use. Extra food, water, canned goods, propane tank. A serious hurricane could disrupt things a lot. Same with an earthquake. Also have 2 debits and at least 2 credit cards and keep them active.
 

veraugamike

Member
Jul 22, 2019
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I have been here 16 years. I used to travel back to the US from time to time as financial needs required but retired 4 years ago. I did built a house that enables me to get by on my modest pension. I would be very warry of buying a condo or anywhere that has a HOA as these have added costs. I do understand that some people are not up to the maintenance of home ownership and are happy to pay those fees. "This place is somewhat freer than the USA. " is an understatement. At at least where I live. The big cities are a different world. Here I can pretty much do as I please. The price I pay for that is tolerating other people doing whatever they want. It is a great place to live but a hard place to make a living. It is not for everyone. Hence the advice to rent first to make sure it is for you.
 

Yourmaninvegas

Well-known member
Feb 16, 2016
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I've been working in the "remote" BPO/ Outsourcing Industry down here (off and on) for the last 8 years.
1. Save as much money as you can prior to making the move.
2. Build relationships with Companies/ Clients outside of the USA.
3. Learn Spanish
4. Rent for a minimum of 5 years prior to purchasing property.
5. Don't live life worrying about things you can't control.
I'm curious about #4. How did you come up with your 5 year minimum and what is you justification for it?
 

josh2203

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Dec 5, 2013
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I'm curious about #4. How did you come up with your 5 year minimum and what is you justification for it?
I don't know about 5 years exactly, but my reasoning would be:

Better if you know the location and market and a generally speaking familiar with your surroundings to avoid getting scammed. Know your neighbors, learn to read any relevant documents (titulo, promesa de venta etc .). Of anything rented, if you have any trouble, you can always get out, but for anything purchased, more difficult to get rid of it you cannot live in it...
 

AlaPlaya

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Jan 7, 2021
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Thinking of Moving to the DR purchasing property, there are a lot of looming worries spoke of here in the US, Nuclear War, Food Shortages, Recession and Possible Social Scores.
Those of us who require remote work, could be left vulnerable by layoffs and economic stress while living overseas.

Please speak to those possible concerns for those contemplating a move to the DR.
I don't feel particularly vulnerable to layoffs or economic stress just simply by living in a different country.

Have a backup plan if things don't work for you--whether it is a different country, or a return home, and enough of a savings "emergency" fund to facilitate such a move.
 
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Yourmaninvegas

Well-known member
Feb 16, 2016
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I don't know about 5 years exactly, but my reasoning would be:

Better if you know the location and market and a generally speaking familiar with your surroundings to avoid getting scammed. Know your neighbors, learn to read any relevant documents (titulo, promesa de venta etc .). Of anything rented, if you have any trouble, you can always get out, but for anything purchased, more difficult to get rid of it you cannot live in it...
Complete agreement!
I would add have an abogado(a) that is in your corner and looking out for your interests on your team.
I waited three years to start looking.
Purchased pre construction
Two more years to take title
So, it wound up to be five years.
I just wanted to know if CristoRey had something to back up his opinion or was just pulling a number out of his hind quarter.
 

NotLurking

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Jul 21, 2003
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I'm curious about #4. How did you come up with your 5 year minimum and what is you justification for it?
I can't speak for @CristoRey but I assume 4-5 years would be on the very upper limits of wait time before buying a home. I think that 2-3 years in, you should have a feel for your neighbors and the surrounding neighborhoods for anyone to make an informed decision on home buying.

I've been here for 22 years and hope to be here at least another 22 years. I like the 'feel' of the island and its people in all respects but would like to single out the freer aspect of DR. If you are willing to live and let live there is no better place to retire on the planet if you're coming from north america. However if you can't cope with people being free spirit and not necessarily following rules and regulations plus being a tad noisy society that parties constantly and drive like maniacs then perhaps this place isn't so appealing.

I live in Santo Domingo. I have good internet, power and water. Trash collection is like clock work twice a week. There are many places in DR just the same or better but there are more places worst I'm afraid, hence the advice/warning to wait at lease a few years before buying to be sure you are not getting yourself into a perpetual nightmare. That said, I purchased about 1 1/2 years after arriving.
 

Kricke87

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Feb 16, 2021
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Personally, after living here for 10 years, I still don't feel attracted to buying property. Mainly two reasons. You can live in a quiet neighborhood for years and know anybody, then all of sudden, someone decides to leave or decides to sell their property to someone else who then attracts other people that might not be that quiet anymore.
That has happened several times already. We rented a big apartment on the 2nd floor for only 8k pesos (10 years ago), the neighborhood was a bit noisy, but it was fine at that time. Nobody rented downstairs, so no issue. Then the landlady decided to rent it to a guy who was going to have a private school with like 40 kids in it, so very noisy in the mornings with all those kids that also clogged up the sewage pipes, a total disaster. Took about 1 year for her to get rid of that guy. Then she rented to another group of people, a couple of them were prostitutes with their clients and all the screaming and well it was not nice. So finally we decided to move to another place.
Then it happened again, we moved to a very quiet place, with just normal noise, like people partying during holidays and so on. Then someone decided to sell a neighboring building, and the new owners then built a bar on the first floor, with ALOT of notice EVERY F NIGHT! So after a couple of months, we kind of got tired of that and then moved to another part of the same area. And we've been living here now for 3 years, and we've had it very tranquil, not a lot of noise although a couple of neighbors who've had to leave the area because of their conduct. But like 6 months ago the owner of the lot on the backside of our apartment decided to build a bar there, and although they haven't had the success they wanted, on the weekends there's still a lot of noise.
So although you might like the area you decide to live in, in a short while that could change completely. So then if you are renting, you can just decide to move to another place, a bit harder if you buy a place. This obviously doesn't apply to many ex-pat residential areas where they have common "rules" that you kind of have to live by if you want to stay there.
Then the second thing is money! I've rented all the time I've lived here and in total, I think I might have spent around $25k in rent over these past 10 years.
And I can guarantee you, you CANNOT find any kind of property for $25k ANYWHERE on this island. And yeah you would say that it's an investment, well, what does it matter if you have a $250k house but you cannot sell it.
And obviously, I've been living in areas with Dominicans all around me, not any residential areas with most ex-pats. So there you have another difference.
 

Gadfly

member
Jul 7, 2016
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Find the area/location you like, then buy. Could take years. I agree with all the posters here. unfortunately you can’t escape a nuke war,
a recession will trickle down and be felt here, food shortages, hmmm, lots of farms here so… social scores? what’s that?
remote workers would be LESS vulnerable & more flexible/adaptable to layoffs and economic stress vs the bricks and mortar, service sector/office jobs, no?
For me overall the positives outweigh the negatives.
 

JD Jones

Moderator:North Coast,Santo Domingo,SW Coast,Covid
Jan 7, 2016
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Personally, after living here for 10 years, I still don't feel attracted to buying property. Mainly two reasons. You can live in a quiet neighborhood for years and know anybody, then all of sudden, someone decides to leave or decides to sell their property to someone else who then attracts other people that might not be that quiet anymore.
That has happened several times already. We rented a big apartment on the 2nd floor for only 8k pesos (10 years ago), the neighborhood was a bit noisy, but it was fine at that time. Nobody rented downstairs, so no issue. Then the landlady decided to rent it to a guy who was going to have a private school with like 40 kids in it, so very noisy in the mornings with all those kids that also clogged up the sewage pipes, a total disaster. Took about 1 year for her to get rid of that guy. Then she rented to another group of people, a couple of them were prostitutes with their clients and all the screaming and well it was not nice. So finally we decided to move to another place.
Then it happened again, we moved to a very quiet place, with just normal noise, like people partying during holidays and so on. Then someone decided to sell a neighboring building, and the new owners then built a bar on the first floor, with ALOT of notice EVERY F NIGHT! So after a couple of months, we kind of got tired of that and then moved to another part of the same area. And we've been living here now for 3 years, and we've had it very tranquil, not a lot of noise although a couple of neighbors who've had to leave the area because of their conduct. But like 6 months ago the owner of the lot on the backside of our apartment decided to build a bar there, and although they haven't had the success they wanted, on the weekends there's still a lot of noise.
So although you might like the area you decide to live in, in a short while that could change completely. So then if you are renting, you can just decide to move to another place, a bit harder if you buy a place. This obviously doesn't apply to many ex-pat residential areas where they have common "rules" that you kind of have to live by if you want to stay there.
Then the second thing is money! I've rented all the time I've lived here and in total, I think I might have spent around $25k in rent over these past 10 years.
And I can guarantee you, you CANNOT find any kind of property for $25k ANYWHERE on this island. And yeah you would say that it's an investment, well, what does it matter if you have a $250k house but you cannot sell it.
And obviously, I've been living in areas with Dominicans all around me, not any residential areas with most ex-pats. So there you have another difference.
These are precisely the reasons I will not buy again here (Unless I have FULL control of the ambiance around me).
 

Yourmaninvegas

Well-known member
Feb 16, 2016
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I would not buy pre construction here too many shady people...you dont want that headache.... beside that do it and dont overthink it...
There are risks to all purchases. You pays your money and takes your chances. So, far I have not had a problem buying pre-construction. Does not mean I won't have one.
 
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