I disagree- if the employer is paying, bring in the container. I'm assuming they will also help with the customs clearance?
When I arrived in Santo Domingo I was put up in a furnished apartment. It was terrible. I then found an unfurnished apartment with
linea blanca (all major appliances) included. Then I set out to find furniture.
I found prices to be high-- anything of quality will be more expensive than in the US. For example, I bought a pillow-top mattress with box spring and basic metal frame for the equivalent of US$500- for that amount in the US, I would have gotten a higher quality mattress than what I got. In terms of appliances, most of it will be stuff imported from the States- and marked up.
Also consider that you can put things like bed linens and towels in the container. It looks me a while and cost me a pretty penny to find a decent towel set. I had people bring me sheet sets, because the expensive ones I bought there- at the fancy Casa Cuesta (Bed Bath & beyond type store) were terrible.
I found little European furniture within my price range- the majority of the stuff in my range was from China. This was before Ikea opened in Santo Domingo, so perhaps things are different now.
That's just my opinion. I moved to the DR after being in Africa, so I was ready for nicer stuff. I didn't buy as much as I would have given the pricing.
Check out this thread for some furniture pricing: some of it is old, but it will give you a general idea.
*** Appliance, Furniture & Stuff Pricing ***