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Settle Down in Santo Domingo: Real Estate in the Dominican Republic

Written By: Jacquelyn Annete García Vadnais

The Dominican Republic has been an established tourism destination for many years due to its unique local culture, and incredible location in the Caribbean. Recently, foreign investors have been interested in acquiring properties in the Dominican Republic due to the many benefits that owning property in the Dominican Republic has to offer. Santo Domingo is one city within the Dominican Republic that offers a great potential to prospective real estate investors given that it is the epicenter of commerce within the Dominican Republic. If you are considering investing in real estate in Santo Domingo, it is highly recommended to review the important information below:

A Brief History of the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic has a rich and diverse history. In 1496, the Spaniards established the first Spanish colony in the Western hemisphere in what is now modern-day Santo Domingo. Santo Domingo ended up serving as the capital of all the Spanish colonies in the Americas. In 1697, the Treaty of Ryswick was signed that gave the Western part of the island to France, which is why Haiti still speaks French today. In 1795, Spain ceded its portion of Hispaniola to France and then ended up retaking Santo Domingo after a revolt by the Spanish Creoles. In 1821, the uprising against Spanish authority ended up causing a brief period of independence. In 1822, the Haitian President Jean-Pierre Boyer marched his troops into Santo Domingo and annexed it. In 1844, Boyer was overthrown, and Santo Domingo declared its independence and became the Dominican Republic. From 1861 -1854, President Pedro Santana returned the Dominican Republic to Spanish rule. In 1865, the second Dominican Republic was established. In 1906, the Dominican Republic and the United States signed a fifty-year treaty where the United States took over the republic’s customs department in exchange for buying its debts. From 1930 – 1961, the Dominican Republic had a dictator named General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina. Upon Molina’s assassination, there was a period of severe unrest where the United States invaded between 1962 – 1965. Today, the Dominican Republic maintains a democratic system. Modern day Santo Domingo is cosmopolitan, multicultural, and contains many luxurious residences, restaurants, a mosque, many churches, several synagogues, and stunning colonial, and modern architecture.

Why Santo Domingo Continues to Be Appealing to Real Estate Investors

Below is a list of reasons that real estate investors are attracted to property investments in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic:

Affordable Beachfront Properties

In many areas of the Caribbean, owning a beachfront property is very costly. If a prospective real estate investor is looking to have a lower buy in, trying to find an affordable beachfront property in Santo Domingo or other parts of the Dominican Republic can be a great investment strategy. Typically, beachfront properties in the Dominican Republic can start a prices as low as $50,000 or $100,000.

Strong Rental Yields

There has been a substantial shift in how tourists are reserving their lodging while visiting the Dominican Republic. It has become more popular to rent apartments in local areas of Santo Domingo rather than in resorts, in order to have a more unique travel experience. For this reason, there is a window of opportunity for prospective real estate investors to capitalize on short-term rentals from tourists or business executives who are looking to not stay in a hotel. Short-term rentals or longer leases are a great way to have sensational rental yields in Santo Domingo.

Rising Tourism

Across the board, the Dominican Republic has seen a rise in tourism. In 2018, the Dominican Republic had 6.5 million visitors. Even though places such as Punta Cana attract the tourists dedicated to exclusive resorts, there is another form of adventurous traveler that is looking more individualized, unique experiences within the Dominican Republic. In order for this tourist to be able to access the areas that they want to visit, they usually need to start their trip in Santo Domingo in order to stay a few nights before going to other parts of the Dominican Republic. Due to this rise in tourism in Santo Domingo, there are many new excursions, restaurants and tours that have opened up for visitors to enjoy in addition to the already well known resorts, and experiences that exist within Santo Domingo.

Established Network to Help Foreign Investors

Santo Domingo is a city that has long-established ties with foreign commerce. The Dominican Republic also has an extensive history that is connected to working with the United States. For this reason, there is a high level of English when it comes to facilitating the purchase of property or working with trusted banks and qualified real estate agents. This established network is a major asset to potential foreign real estate investors given that they are able to avoid common pitfalls that occur in other countries where locals do not have as much experience dealing with foreign real estate investors.

Final Remarks

The Dominican Republic will only continue to prosper for foreign real estate investors due to the perpetual growth that the local economy is experiencing. In particular, the boom in tourism is something that has the potential to open up a plethora of ways for foreign real estate investors to make a substantial amount of capital on their real estate investments. Santo Domingo is an appealing city to invest in due to the affordable buy in for real estate investors that is matched with large potential yields. In addition, Santo Domingo is an excellent choice due to the widespread transparency about how real estate transactions occur and the plethora of qualified real estate agents that are able to facilitate the buying and selling of investment properties to foreign real estate investors. It will be fascinating to see how the Dominican Republic, particularly Santo Domingo, continues to increase in value in the years to come.

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Jacquelyn Annete Garcia Vadnais is an Investment Consultant and field expert blogger for Barracuda Consulting.

Jacquelyn has a JD/ MBA from Suffolk University, an LL.M in International Law from the University of Miami, and a B.A. from the George Washington University in International Affairs with a Concentration in International Politics. Jacquelyn speaks English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese and has lived in ten countries. Jacquelyn has done work for firms such as Boston Consulting Group and has worked with firms based in over ten countries in the fields of Real Estate, International Law, Expat Living, International Business, Forex Trading, and Travel. She has also volunteered her time and expertise at the Victims Rights Law Center based in Boston, MA.

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