About Dominican Republic - Tourism & Investment Real Estate

More foreign tourists fly in to the Dominican Republic than any other island in the Caribbean, though the Bahamas receive just about as many tourists on cruise ships.

Over the past 10 years, the Dominican Republic has undergone unprecedented development, attracting investors from around the world. According to the central bank statistics in 2014 total air passenger arrivals averaged 490,000 each month for an astonishing 4.7 million total arrivals. Over half of these came from North America with Canadian arrivals at 7,000,000 , Americans at 1.6 million. Europe was the majority of the rest at 1.1 million.



Because most of them still pay in cash, the economic crisis has not generated a significant number of foreclosures.

Different parts of the island appeal to different types of investors. The south La Romana, Boca Chica and the capital Santo Domingo, which have many all-inclusive resorts and condominiums, is popular with North Americans and locals having the famous colonial zone from the Christopher Columbus era and the “Malecon” water front boulevard. From the 2014 statistics it received around 1 million tourists between combined airports. The southeast, which includes the huge tourist destination Punta Cana, attracts a whopping 2.5 million however most of these are only vacationers here for an average one week stay on a large resort compound and tend not to try to navigate through the country. The North Coast between combined airports fell behind at 400,000. However the area is preferred by most vacation home owners and retirees.



A lot of people would say the North Coast was forgot about by the Santo Domingo politicians and the Ministry of Tourism and has not benefited from the tourism boom. However this has recently changed with former President Dr. Leonel Fernandez Reyna and Minister of Tourism Francisco Javier Garcia, along with many others working together to facilitate Carnival Cruise Lines new port in Maimon.


With vast resources in Dominican Republic and the major Caribbean island being in the earthquake zone, the concrete-block with reinforced steel foundation is cost effective and built to withstand tremors. Almost all structures are done this way. This has benefits of a long lasting structure however many older structures were built in the early development stages of the country which no or little permits were required. Many of these buildings have major issues including filtration, electrical and plumbing problems. The DRListings team recommends structures built in the last 10 years for clients looking for the headache free retirement or vacation home. Some of the newest buildings can also being energy efficient and cost of electricity is high on average compared to North American prices per kilowatt.

There are no restrictions on foreign buyers. A reputable lawyer should handle any real estate transaction that specializes in real estate. There are a lot of lawyers with no or little real estate experience. It is always safer to hire a lawyer with a firm rather than a freelancer. They normally charge one percent of the sale price. Please visit our page guide to paradise for better legal navigation including the government deslinde title process.

The Dominican Republic does not license its agents, and novice buyers may sometimes be pressed to buy something without proper paperwork or leaving a deposit with no diligence done, buyers are strongly advised to educate themselves about the market and deal with an agent through referrals. Typically, sellers pay the agent’s commission on a sale, which may range from 3 to 10 percent. 3 percent transfer tax is paid by the buyer and recently, almost all foreign buyers paid in cash, as local banks offered mortgages at high interest rates with North Americans are not accustomed too.

May 26, 2014

David Logan

Owner/Broker DRListings.com copyright 2005