Many questions about the DR :)

[nas]

I like to eat well, meaning I want my meat, veggies and potatoes, rice, or pasta daily. We mostly cook ourselves, and only eat out once or twice a month. But we do spend money on better cheese (the DR cheese honestly sucks, as a matter of fact I discovered the cling wrap around it tastes better), and we only buy the Bolo Ham, as this is the only one here with a decent taste.

You might have ample disposable income, but that is precisely the point Pi2 is trying to make.
If you live like most native Dominicans the money you would spend on food would be significantly less.

By the way, you might want to revise your statement about "eating well". Eating a lot of meat, starch, carbohydrate and the excellent dairy product you consume isn't eating well, at all.

About the Dominican cheese, specifically the yellow. You don't have to like it. This is exactly the reason why there are tons of other cheeses out there.

Me, I simply love it. Everytime I go back home, I just can't have enough of it. When I leave, I bring one with me..
The ham, oh my God! I just can't have enough of it either.

You are fortunate you can afford the variety of food you consume, but I wouldn?t pity the food choices available to most Dominicans. Since they must get more food with less money, I am positive the food choices they make are extremely healthy.

By the way, this isn?t about how much money you have to spend on food. It is about the OP having a limited budget; which comes close to a Dominican one.

I am simply agreeing that if the OP eat like a typical Dominican family, they would end up looking, walking and talking like Dominicans?

Kidding aside, if they eat like Dominicans they will stretch their budget.

 

[KD2008]

Hi, this is my first time posting, but I wanted to mention to the original poster that some searching on the school'swebsite should be done. I have worked at many international schools and will be moving to santo Domingo this fall. Almost all international schools provide some sort of living expenses and other packages to their overseas hires. ISS's website mentions that they give a living allowance that covers at least 90 % of the costs. So no worries! You can probably live off of $1300 easily if most other costs are covered. The big question will be if they allow non teaching spouses to accompany and whether they will cover that person's airfare.

Good luck! International teaching is incredibly rewarding and you are usually given a lot of support from the school to make your life as easy as possible. I highly recommend it!

 

[KD2008]

Which they don't. I read a bit more... There are definitely schools out there with better packages, but for a first time international experience, it's not bad! And if you like it, I would recommend going to international school job fairs in the winter next. Good luck!

 

[Ken]

You are fortunate you can afford the variety of food you consume, but I wouldn?t pity the food choices available to most Dominicans. Since they must get more food with less money, I am positive the food choices they make are extremely healthy.

.

This is at least the 2nd time in this thread you have said how healthy the food choices of Dominicans are.

I would have agreed with you in the 1980s when I arrived here and even into the 1990s. It was rare then to see an overweight Dominican. But that is no longer the case. Now it is about as common a sight as in any other country. It appears that food choices have changed for many.

 

[pi2]

Since gas is over $5USD per gallon, you are saying they would use less than 8 gallons of gas per month?

For sure : my motorcycle does about 90 mpg or more on a run. That is 200 miles per week, 10,000 miles per year - a lot for a motorcycle.

pi2

 

[dv8]

lorin,
i have lived in DR for 6 years now. came much like you - knowing absolutely nada about dominican reality. alas, i was wiser that yourself and did not ask any questions prior to my arrival, did not even discover dr1 until one month in (some may look up my earliest enthusiastic posts about miesposo ). i said "wiser" because god knows if i knew about DR what i know now my fusa (made up word, from german fu? - foot) would have never graced puertoplatenan soil.

but, more to the point. my household is miesposo and i. plus two cats and two large dogs but lets leave them out for now. our lifestyle is more dominican than gringo. wait, maybe not exactly what i mean is that we mostly stay at home and i cook majority of meals. occasionally we eat out - can be once a week or can be few times in a week. more of that later. our weekly grocery shopping varies but for a long time it did not go below 2.500 pesos (65 US dollars). mostly it is 3.500 to 4.000 pesos (roughly 100 US dollars), dog food not included. eating "out" can be as little as 100 pesos (3 dollars) for dominican hotdog/burger (for two people) but normally it would be about 1.000 pesos (25 dollars, again for two) and we do not even drink.

yes, you can have a good home cooked meal for 5 dollars, like yanandu says but then you need about 20 dollars to start making those meals. that is, at some point you need to buy a whole bottle of oil, whole packets of spices, whole bags of vegetables and so on. so even if sometimes you need your spending low there will be weeks when you will have to spend a lot more in one go. see, sometimes we go to pricesmart in santiago. we may end up spending as much as 10.000 pesos (250 dollars) but we will get huge bags of detergent, cans of olive oil and so on, things that will last months. but hell, you gotta pay for those TODAY all the same.

bills in DR are bigger than you think: 2.500 pesos power, 2.500 internet, 1.500 mobile phones (with internet), 500 pesos water. altogether 180 dollars a month. and we own our house so there is no rent. i will not talk cars since miesposo is the one dealing with that. he probably spends more on maintenance of cars than i do to maintain my body but i find a car somewhat necessary in DR. i cannot and will not do any bikes or motos and walking seems like a good idea until you find yourself having to go out in the middle of the day. however, i would say it is a great idea to get a health insurance and that costs too.

so, you can live for less than 1.5 dollars a month but it will be quite basic. and you will have nothing to fall on in case of emergency. and probably you won't be able to enjoy DR as much as you could on a little bit more.

 

[nas]

This is at least the 2nd time in this thread you have said how healthy the food choices of Dominicans are.

I would have agreed with you in the 1980s when I arrived here and even into the 1990s. It was rare then to see an overweight Dominican. But that is no longer the case. Now it is about as common a sight as in any other country. It appears that food choices have changed for many.

Yeah, I have to admit that I am thinking about the old days.

I still insist that since the average Dominicans do not have the resouces to stuff their faces with a lot of beef, pork and dairy products, their diet must be a lot healthier than others with more resources.

People with resources tend to feast or live to eat.
Pleople without resources eat to live.

Some Dominicans do not even want to walk down to the store. They prefer to call the "Colmado" to have what ever delivered.
This is why they are getting fat.

Have you ever found yourself opening the refrigerator, out of habit of course, to ponder on what to snack on? This will eventually kill us all.

Dominican households with average means do not have this luxury. It is impossible for them to pack extra pounds, I think.

 

[Como_un_cameron]

So I understand the op's never been in Sosua or the DR at all.

In that case.....DON'T DO IT!!!

You've found out, that it is possible to live here on US $1300, some say it is easy, some don't.
I know it can be done, and you'll have some pocket money at the end of each month.

But you first have to VISIT the town if you're able to do so.

If not... fogetaboutit !!!

Sosua and the DR is not for the everage first world citizen.

On your budget you'll have the advantage of liking outdoors, but being outdoors here is like outdoors on a flea market.
That can be fun, but also a very tiresome struggle for someone EVERY day.


Too many reasons to sum up here.

 

[dv8]

Have you ever found yourself opening the refrigerator, out of habit of course, to ponder on what to snack on?

personally, i do not ponder. i KNOW i'm going for those chocolate eclairs i got in pricesmart.

 

[xSpAnIaRdx]

I think everyone has got it wrong. How about just living at an ALL-INCLUSIVE RESORT. I found this place without much research literally 1st place that popped up. Its roughly $2000.00 a month.

coralcostacaribe.com

You get free food all day
Free alcohol
Room cleaned everyday
Bed made everday
Free A/C
Pool

The list goes on and on.

 

[Lorin]

So first of all, let me say thank you again. There is a ton of great info here and many of you took a good amount of time to write your post or private messages and we really, really appreciate it.

I asked about the figure of US$US1300 because it represents what we guesstimate my wife's teaching salary would be, including the housing allowance, and minus some lingering bills we would need to continue to pay in the US. It is also indicative of an ideal situation where I do not have to work for money, but could volunteer as a nurse throughout the DR.

That being said, however, this does not represent the only way (or income level) in which we might come down. It simply was the ideal way in which I could donate my time if it were viable. And while it sounds like it is viable, it doesn't sound like there is much wiggle room for travel, unexpected events, or even a night out. On the flipside, we don't need a beachfront property, a car, and dinner out 3 times a week either. But there are ways we can augment our income to come up from that US$1300/month figure. For example, working over the internet, maybe I could work at the school as well, or by working in the US in the summer months, etc...

As best as I can suss out from the many differing opinions (all of which sound valid, just coming from differing priorities and choices), it sounds like we would need to get to at least US$2100-$2300, or so, to start to not be living hand-to-mouth. We do have a dog as well, and would definitely need health insurance. We also want to see the country and we don't want to be worried where our next meal comes from.

So thank you again to EVERYONE! Truly it took all of your varying perspectives (and shopping lists...lol) to even begin to get a picture of what life in the DR is like (and, clearly, we don't really have that yet ). We would love to continue to hear any advice you guys have to offer (like maybe a legitimate online place to look for apartment rentals) and will of course reach out to folks from the school.

I will say, if the boards here are at all representative of the willingness of the residents of the DR to help, then it cant be too bad!

 

[JMB773]

Good for you.
You have a scientific IQ!
But you missed something.
There's a difference in between US 2000 and US 1300.
And between 1 person and 2 persons.

Since I don't have anything to do right now.....I'll start stirring up my number of posts.:rambo:

The person was only trying to help. You know today is Good Friday.

 

[xSpAnIaRdx]

You are correct it would prob be about $2800USD a month for two. It might be even less if you deal with the hotel directly, and ask about extended stay discounts.

 

[Como_un_cameron]

To the OP:

If you decide to go, have a look at living at "perla de sosua " the first few weeks/months.
You'll get the vibe of the city.
And from there take it easy and have a look around what's for rent.
Then take a really good look at the contract offered.

If you decide to do the leap, I wish you all the best.
You'll love it and hate it, but for sure you'll know you are living for real.

 

[Criss Colon]

So,Just To Get Things Right,....................................

"NASty" lives in USA,Connecticut,yet KNOWS DR prices??????????????????
"PU2",wears a "Tin Foil Dunce Cap" so the "Gamma Rays" can't be used for "Mind Control" by the United States "Boogieman" Government???
And they are both "Self Annointed" "Oracles Of DR Cost-of-living"???
Pardon me while I laugh myself sick!!
I paid my electric bill today,12,200 pesos!
I ain't no "Math Guru",but that's over $300.00 USD.
Food,cleaning supplies,personal items, for 9,...60,000 DRPs a month.
Add,"schools" for four,med.ins.(Which "PU2" never thinks about) for six,5,000 DRP a month."Gasoline",8,000 DRP a month.
Last night was 1/2 price "Pizza" night,two large pepperoni,800DRP,50 DRP tip.
I love how those who don't have enough money to live a decent life here,either alone,or with a bunch of kids,try to justify their poverty by underestimating the real cost-of-living here.
They want others to come,and be miserable too.
I guess that "MISERY",Does love company!
Cris Colon

 

[nas]

"NASty" lives in USA,Connecticut,yet KNOWS DR prices??????????????????
"PU2",wears a "Tin Foil Dunce Cap" so the "Gamma Rays" can't be used for "Mind Control" by the United States "Boogieman" Government???
And they are both "Self Annointed" "Oracles Of DR Cost-of-living"???
Pardon me while I laugh myself sick!!
I paid my electric bill today,12,200 pesos!
I ain't no "Math Guru",but that's over $300.00 USD.
Food,cleaning supplies,personal items, for 9,...60,000 DRPs a month.
Add,"schools" for four,med.ins.(Which "PU2" never thinks about) for six,5,000 DRP a month."Gasoline",8,000 DRP a month.
Last night was 1/2 price "Pizza" night,two large pepperoni,800DRP,50 DRP tip.
I love how those who don't have enough money to live a decent life here,either alone,or with a bunch of kids,try to justify their poverty by underestimating the real cost-of-living here.
They want others to come,and be miserable too.
I guess that "MISERY",Does love company!
Cris Colon

CC,

I take it the “NASty” would be me, since I call myself that sometimes, when I am in good mood.

I am from NY, the rotten apple; and for the records I do know about DR.
I am still contributing towards the financial wellbeing of a family down there.

Your prices are a bit inflated because, fortunately enough, you have financial means to live in an upper middle class sector, not to call it hood.

I noticed your electric bills are coming down from usual 15K. Isn’t that wonderful?

I am not a math guru either, but allow me to take this excerpt from your post:

You stated: “Food,cleaning supplies,personal items, for 9,...60,000 DRPs a month”

That is 60K DRP a month to feed 9 people. This averages to 6666 / person… I’ll round it up for you to 7K per person.

The OP only reported 2 people. 2 X 7K = 14K / month.

$300 US at an exchange rate of 39 DPS = 11,700K. Please allow me to round this up to 12K, since I round up your average above.

Allow me to remind you that the average Dominican does not purchase his groceries at the National supermarket. That’s for Gringos and middle class.

If you patiently (which is a virtue) go back and re-read my posts, I am arguing that if you follow the Dominican way of life, you’ll food expenses will not be detrimental to your budget.

I am not arguing about housing, water, electrical bills. I am simply speaking of food.
And since someone brought up the “Spartan lifestyle” I thought I used it to point out a few things.

Since you single handedly proved that 2 people will do okay with $300.00 US / month.
I’ll be wise enough to rest my case.

Happy Good Friday Christobal!

 

[frank12]

ok, let's try some more math.

1. Rent $550
2. Electric bill $60 (not using A/C)
3. Cable $15
4. Internet $50 (if it's not included in the rent...might not be included on $500 rent).
5. Insurance for 2 people $100
6. Eating vary sparcely (more than chocolate and peanut butter) $10 a day for two, or $300 a month.
7. NO scooter or car, right? Ok, public transportation (it will get old very, very fast because sometimes you'll want to go somewhere off the beaten path of highway 5 on the north coast) $2 a day (Average roundtrip for two people) assuming you're also need to go shopping at Playero or Janets (depending which town you choose to live in) and into cabarete or sosua once and a while. $2 x 30 days= $60 a month. Personally i think this is stupid not to have your own transportation down here since there is so much to see. but whatever.
8. what am i forgetting...occasional ice cream $2, chocolate? massage (Happy ending?) a beer once in a while? Cappucino once in a while? ok, lets say these things only add up to $1 a day per person, so $2 x 30 days= $60
9. 2 cell phones (let's say you broguth your own so they're free) plan on spending $50 a month each for a total of $100

What else am i forgetting? I got to work now, but were looking at, on the low end, $1300 a month with no transportation, and hence, no sense of real freedom to speak of in order to travel on the weekends--your days off--to Las Terrenas, Samana, Jarabacoa, Santo domingo, Santiago, up in the mountains, etc. etc. just to name a few places. Hell, there is so many beautiful places to discover on this island. it just blows my mind when i meet young people and they have never traveled around the island because they're scared from all of the stories blown out of proportion! even my father was like this...and he was Dominican from Bonao!

That's just crazy talk!

Love Frank

 

[DRob]

OP,

Have a look at Las Canas Apartments on La Mulata Road in Sosua. Lascanas Aparthotel Sosua | Rentals Sosua hotel | Condo hotel Sosua | holidays hotels sosua | rent sosua hotels

They're nice, reasonably priced, offer wifi and laundry services, and are basically across the street from ISS. They also offer monthly rentals, which will give you someplace solid to stay while you look for other living options.

They have a shuttle that will take you to and from Sosua, as well.

Keep in mind that Sosua can be pricey, because it is a touristy area. Also know that a fair chunk of that tourism is sex tourism, particularly on Pedro Clisante Road (the main road) in the "touristy" area of the town (called El Batey).

I would strongly encourage you and your wife to visit Sosua and DR in general prior to making the move. ISS is a great school, but not the only great school in DR (or Latin America, for that matter.)

Good luck.

 

[nas]

ok, let's try some more math.

1. Rent $550
2. Electric bill $60 (not using A/C)
3. Cable $15
4. Internet $50 (if it's not included in the rent...might not be included on $500 rent).
5. Insurance for 2 people $100
6. Eating vary sparcely (more than chocolate and peanut butter) $10 a day for two, or $300 a month.
7. NO scooter or car, right? Ok, public transportation (it will get old very, very fast because sometimes you'll want to go somewhere off the beaten path of highway 5 on the north coast) $2 a day (Average roundtrip for two people) assuming you're also need to go shopping at Playero or Janets (depending which town you choose to live in) and into cabarete or sosua once and a while. $2 x 30 days= $60 a month. Personally i think this is stupid not to have your own transportation down here since there is so much to see. but whatever.
8. what am i forgetting...occasional ice cream $2, chocolate? massage (Happy ending?) a beer once in a while? Cappucino once in a while? ok, lets say these things only add up to $1 a day per person, so $2 x 30 days= $60
9. 2 cell phones (let's say you broguth your own so they're free) plan on spending $50 a month each for a total of $100

What else am i forgetting? I got to work now, but were looking at, on the low end, $1300 a month with no transportation, and hence, no sense of real freedom to speak of in order to travel on the weekends--your days off--to Las Terrenas, Samana, Jarabacoa, Santo domingo, Santiago, up in the mountains, etc. etc. just to name a few places. Hell, there is so many beautiful places to discover on this island. it just blows my mind when i meet young people and they have never traveled around the island because they're scared from all of the stories blown out of proportion! even my father was like this...and he was Dominican from Bonao!

That's just crazy talk!

Love Frank

Frank,

I understand your point.
We are not talking about splurging. We are talking about making it with a limited budget.

We all have a budget. For those with a limited one, they have to forgo the nicety of life. They have to lower their living standards and forget a bout a lot of things..

I understand it is difficult to live like that.

What I've been trying to convey is that it isn't impossible for two people to survive, food wise, for $300 US.
Why? because most Dominican families do it. When in Rome ...what do we do?

 

[nas]

This is so funny!

I started agreeing with Pi2 and he has left me all alone on this... Are you going :rambo: on me Pi2?