Thinking on moving to Rep. Dom.

[Mauricio]

What makes the capital expensive is having children growing up. We spent with a family of four children 6,000-7,000 dollars every month, without extreme luxury. And ofcourse that includes ladies for cooking, cleaning and laundry, but in DR that’s not extreme luxury.

In your case, OP, with 5k and an already grown up child you would be more than fine.

Santo Domingo is definitely an expensive city for the lack of good working services. Even if you have everything arranged in your house or apartment (at an additional cost (24/7 generator, security, pozo, to mention a few) you’ll still live near bad neighborhoods, in bad traffic , no working public transport system (only if you want to go to the poor neighborhoods in the north east or west of the city), no good police force, transit police gives random fines, your car needs more than normal maintenance due to bad state of the roads. Memberships of decent sport clubs is double or triple the price in Europe (don’t know about US).

Those who say SD is not expensive either live low budget or compare with New York or London.

 

[alexw]

What makes the capital expensive is having children growing up. We spent with a family of four children 6,000-7,000 dollars every month, without extreme luxury. And ofcourse that includes ladies for cooking, cleaning and laundry, but in DR that’s not extreme luxury.

In your case, OP, with 5k and an already grown up child you would be more than fine.

Santo Domingo is definitely an expensive city for the lack of good working services. Even if you have everything arranged in your house or apartment (at an additional cost (24/7 generator, security, pozo, to mention a few) you’ll still live near bad neighborhoods, in bad traffic , no working public transport system (only if you want to go to the poor neighborhoods in the north east or west of the city), no good police force, transit police gives random fines, your car needs more than normal maintenance due to bad state of the roads. Memberships of decent sport clubs is double or triple the price in Europe (don’t know about US).

Those who say SD is not expensive either live low budget or compare with New York or London.

$7,000 a month for a family of six or more, with hired staff, proves how affordable santo domingo is. There just isn't too many cities in the world that you can do that in for that price. I'm sure these costs also include private school tuition. If you dont mind where did you send your kids to school?

 

[ZC1]

Zona Colonial - you can walk most places without having to drive as traffic is insane in the Capital

 

[windeguy]

Got you. Thank you both for your suggestions. My daughter has heart set on Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL. I am the one suggesting she moves with me since this will be our first and only separation since birth. Marine
Biology is her interest. Anyway i am the one wanting to move to DR for the warm weather, food, people and low cost of living. My main concern now is where to live on a healthy budget and also what to do as part time employment.

College is the time when children get out and learn about the world on their own. I would never ever suggest she go to college in the DR while living at home if she has one she wants to attend in the US.

I could never live in Santo Domingo, but people have different tastes where they want to be. Good luck with your decisions.

 

[Mauricio]

$7,000 a month for a family of six or more, with hired staff, proves how affordable santo domingo is. There just isn't too many cities in the world that you can do that in for that price. I'm sure these costs also include private school tuition. If you dont mind where did you send your kids to school?

No, it didn’t. Our children were in a school owned by my in-laws and we didn’t pay. We were considering leaving or if not change schools because we wanted them to have at least a level of education comprable to European standards, but that would have raised our monthly cost to at least 8500.

I agree that in big cities in the developed world you can’t have a comfortable live with staff for that money but Santo Domingo has too many issues to call it developed world. And hired staff is almost a must in a country where humidity and dust forces you to clean the whole house everyday, cooking takes forever and laundry never stops. Living in Europe now we spend 3k euros monthly (without staff ofcourse), no worries about education or expensive health situations.

Saying 7k shows how affordable SD is compared to other big cities is like saying paying 70,000 dollars for a Hyundai Santa Fe is cheap compared to 120k for a Toyota Landcruiser.

 

[alexw]

No, it didn’t. Our children were in a school owned by my in-laws and we didn’t pay. We were considering leaving or if not change schools because we wanted them to have at least a level of education comprable to European standards, but that would have raised our monthly cost to at least 8500.

I agree that in big cities in the developed world you can’t have a comfortable live with staff for that money but Santo Domingo has too many issues to call it developed world. And hired staff is almost a must in a country where humidity and dust forces you to clean the whole house everyday, cooking takes forever and laundry never stops. Living in Europe now we spend 3k euros monthly (without staff ofcourse), no worries about education or expensive health situations.

Saying 7k shows how affordable SD is compared to other big cities is like saying paying 70,000 dollars for a Hyundai Santa Fe is cheap compared to 120k for a Toyota Landcruiser.

If your children werernt in private school than I have no idea why you were paying $7,000 a month in Santo Domingo. That makes no sense. All of your posts are very negative about the city so you basically have an axe to grind. I mean you're complaining about laundry and the humidity. The humidity is only bad during the summer and laundry is expected when you have that many kids. I just haven't heard many people say that Europe is cheaper than Santo domingo. Where in Europe do you live that's so cheaper than the Caribbean?

 

[rfp]

I can concur with Mauricio about the cost of living to procide your family with a decent standard of living. Sports activities, access to areas to play, the ability to go somewhere outside with your family all cost big $$ in Santo Domingo. I was always worried about money because even though work was going well I was worried about my backup if things ended. In the civilized world you dont have those worries.

If you are single or without kids and don't have family pressure to keep up with the Dominican Jones you can live a nice healthy life for 2000-2500 in the capital by renting a nice one bedroom and taking uber. You'll spend less as time goes on and that frees up money for travel.

If it was just me and my wife we could retire early and have a nice life down there. I will also say that the domestic help frees up a lot of time that can be dedicated to fitness, hobbies etc.

If its just you and you arent burning bridges go for it. One year in you will have a good feel for whether its for you or not

 

[rfp]

If your children werernt in private school than I have no idea why you were paying $7,000 a month in Santo Domingo. That makes no sense. All of your posts are very negative about the city so you basically have an axe to grind. I mean you're complaining about laundry and the humidity. The humidity is only bad during the summer and laundry is expected when you have that many kids. I just haven't heard many people say that Europe is cheaper than Santo domingo. Where in Europe do you live that's so cheaper than the Caribbean?

Mortgage at high interest rates, car payments, association fees, membership at clubs. Domestic help adds up as well if you have more than 1 or 2. If you come from a decent family and associate with good people there are high expectations in terms of grooming, appearance etc. Turning down social invitations is often not an option and that costs $$ as well.

Living a real life adds up.

 

[alexw]

Mortgage at high interest rates, car payments, association fees, membership at clubs. Domestic help adds up as well if you have more than 1 or 2. If you come from a decent family and associate with good people there are high expectations in terms of grooming, appearance etc. Turning down social invitations is often not an option and that costs $$ as well.

Living a real life adds up.

Are those things you mentioned free in Europe? I'm still having a hard time digesting that Europe is almost 50% cheaper than Santo Domingo.

Finally if you have to increase your budget to associate with "good" people they aren't as good as you think they are. Peer pressure is for children

 

[Dr_Taylor]

Hello,
I am a dominican woman who know nothing about the country having left as a four year old. I will soon be and empty nester my daughter is going to college here in the states. I want to know where to either buy or rent in Sto. Dgo. Also, would like to convince daughter to consider a dominican college

Welcome to the board. The DR is a very nice place. My advice is limited to the higher education inquiry. As someone who worked in admissions at two first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. universities (top 50 in U.S. and top 80 in the world) and one first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. law school (top 15 in U.S. and top 25 in the world), I would most strongly advise you against directing your daughter to a Dominican university for any degree, if the degree can be acquired from a U.S. university. While she may acquire a good education at a Dominican university, she will not be considered as competitive as she could be if she went to a U.S. university. Moreover, even foreign universities outside North American--including Dominican universities--will pick a U.S. degree holder over a Dominican degree holder. At the end of the day, your daughter wants to maximize her long-term employment prospects. Moreover, if she ever desires to teach at the university level, the Dominican degree WILL hurt her outside the DR.

 

[NY-DR Commuter]

Welcome to the board. The DR is a very nice place. My advice is limited to the higher education inquiry. As someone who worked in admissions at two first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. universities (top 50 in U.S. and top 80 in the world) and one first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. law school (top 15 in U.S. and top 25 in the world), I would most strongly advise you against directing your daughter to a Dominican university for any degree, if the degree can be acquired from a U.S. university. While she may acquire a good education at a Dominican university, she will not be considered as competitive as she could be if she went to a U.S. university. Moreover, even foreign universities outside North American--including Dominican universities--will pick a U.S. degree holder over a Dominican degree holder. At the end of the day, your daughter wants to maximize her long-term employment prospects. Moreover, if she ever desires to teach at the university level, the Dominican degree WILL hurt her outside the DR.

DR_Taylor,

Thank you for one of the best replies I have ever read here on DR1. Absolutely in the TOP TEN!!!

This is indispensable advice, not just for the OP, but many others.

Again, thank you.

 

[rfp]

Are those things you mentioned free in Europe? I'm still having a hard time digesting that Europe is almost 50% cheaper than Santo Domingo.

Finally if you have to increase your budget to associate with "good" people they aren't as good as you think they are. Peer pressure is for children

Try that if you have Dominican Family, not as easy as you would think. Club memberships and paying 2-3 folks for domestic is not needed in the USA. As well the grind of the place is harsh, I always wanted to travel. Now that we are in the USA I am happy just being here and even though we have travelled recently its been on points and not out of pocket. We are staying in the USA in 2019 unless we have to go back for family/business reasons. In the civilized world you can walk to parks, go to the beach without having to get expensive day passes etc.

Life in USA is better and cheaper The same applies to Europe

 

[rfp]

Try that if you have Dominican Family, not as easy as you would think. Club memberships and paying 2-3 folks for domestic is not needed in the USA. As well the grind of the place is harsh, I always wanted to travel. Now that we are in the USA I am happy just being here and even though we have travelled recently its been on points and not out of pocket. We are staying in the USA in 2019 unless we have to go back for family/business reasons. In the civilized world you can walk to parks, go to the beach without having to get expensive day passes etc.

Life in USA is better and cheaper The same applies to Europe

To add to that God has blessed me with homes in both countries so I dont pay a mortgage but many people pay 10-18 % over 20 years. Cars are more expensive than in the USA and interest rates are usurious.

 

[Fulano2]

If your children werernt in private school than I have no idea why you were paying $7,000 a month in Santo Domingo. That makes no sense. All of your posts are very negative about the city so you basically have an axe to grind. I mean you're complaining about laundry and the humidity. The humidity is only bad during the summer and laundry is expected when you have that many kids. I just haven't heard many people say that Europe is cheaper than Santo domingo. Where in Europe do you live that's so cheaper than the Caribbean?

Europe is not a country by the way, so saying Europe is cheaper or more expensive is not the Total truth. You cannot compare Portugal with for instance Finland or living in London. But from my personal point of view, being Dutch but living in Belgium, yes life is cheaper here and of far more higher standards. My daughter starts studying next month and it will cost me not even a 100€ a month. Cars are cheaper and mecanics know what they are doing, even if it is not a Toyota or Kia. We sometimes spent on groceries 11-13.000 pesos a week. Here we never spend that kind of money. My wife doesnt need servicio over here, and our house is not small. It is easier to clean and do the laundry, she says. And of course the dish-washer is a great help.
We spend around 40% less here, and we don't pay mortgage in both countries.
If you go to Spain or Portual, that is even cheaper.
So if you want to buy a house in the DR....just call me 😀

 

[the gorgon]

Welcome to the board. The DR is a very nice place. My advice is limited to the higher education inquiry. As someone who worked in admissions at two first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. universities (top 50 in U.S. and top 80 in the world) and one first-tier, nationally ranked U.S. law school (top 15 in U.S. and top 25 in the world), I would most strongly advise you against directing your daughter to a Dominican university for any degree, if the degree can be acquired from a U.S. university. While she may acquire a good education at a Dominican university, she will not be considered as competitive as she could be if she went to a U.S. university. Moreover, even foreign universities outside North American--including Dominican universities--will pick a U.S. degree holder over a Dominican degree holder. At the end of the day, your daughter wants to maximize her long-term employment prospects. Moreover, if she ever desires to teach at the university level, the Dominican degree WILL hurt her outside the DR.

my sentiments, exactly. we live in a world where reputation of academic institutions is very important. even if the actual individual graduate from a particular third tier university is every bit as educated as an individual who graduated from Yale, the Yale guy has a leg up, because of where he went to school. we cannot get away from that. if i walk into a Wall Street firm with a sheepskin from Dartmouth, and yours is from UTESA, guess who is more likely to get the callback.

 

[Fulano2]

So Gorgon do you think there is difference in level of education between universities, in this particular case between the two you mentioned?

 

[the gorgon]

So Gorgon do you think there is difference in level of education between universities, in this particular case between the two you mentioned?

i do not think that anyone would think that UTESA is on the same level as an Ivy League university..

 

[Fulano2]

So read your own post again please. Is the one from a third-world country University as educated or not?

 

[the gorgon]

So read your own post again please. Is the one from a third-world country University as educated or not?

do you have any friends? anyone who likes you? anyone who would care to share your company, or exchange pleasantries with you, even for a few fleeting moments?

maybe the answer has got to be in the negative. i mean, this is Christmas day. you mean to tell me that you cannot find a more uplifting pursuit on a day like today than to try to start an internet fight?

get help.

Merry Christmas.

 

[Fulano2]

Typical, you take someone serious and than this. No problem.