Living in DR for months at a time...

[Kmacgregor]

I want to stay in DR for months at a time, not full time as of yet but who knows, I have no problems with 365 days a year and I am at the point in my life where I do this with no problems. I want put this plan in action my June/July of 2012. I have never been to DR before and my first trip of at least 3 trips before June will be in early March. My questions are:

1) Can one live in DR on $2000us a month? And yes I do have substantial savings as well. One bedroom, a/c, kitchen, internet, cable, etc.
I do not see myself getting pussy 24/7, but I can see getting it on the regular. I love the beach, points of interest like tours, nature reserves etc and i love the night life, so I want to be able to enjoy my downtime as well, lol.

2) Where are the best places for long term rentals as far as safety, location and piece of mind? Are there sections where guys like us are living long term? I have seen one complex so far that looks decent, Perla De Sosua, in my searches that looks good and the rent for one bedroom is good,I like their $800, 1 bedroom apt. My price range is $650 - $800 a month. Anyone know about this complex?
I am hoping some members on this site are living in DR and can drop some knowledge about the subject on me.

3) Extra credit question for me is, how one keeps a chica that he is fond of around on the regular without having to pay her everytime you wanna knock her boots? This question should be answered somewhere in the forums but I just added it in to keep everything in one place.

Hope I am posting this question in the right place. And thanks in advance for taking the time to help out a newbe.

Cheers

[swiggy]

You seem to be getting ahead of yourself, i mean you have never even been there.... You can get an apartment for probably half that, you are better off going there and then looking a bit while you are on vacation. If you have been reading the board then Roberts thread is the one to read about living there. I'm sure he could fill you in on a lot of things.

[Kmacgregor]

thanks Swiggy, for the reply,
yes Swiggy that is the plan to look around and check things out for myself. There is nothing like seeing things on the ground first hand but, I would rather ask these newbie questions here on this forum and find the answers than ask in DR and look like the newbe that i am, lol. Yes, I am hitting the forums, only been here for a couple of days so far, subscribed to the pictures and report section (reading it as I type, lol) and will track down Robert's thread for sure, thanks for that info. I just don't want to live in a place for $200 cuz it's a cheap price and have drama and don't want to overpay like you suggested. thanks again! Cheers

[uncle ruckus]

I want to stay in DR for months at a time, not full time as of yet but who knows, I have no problems with 365 days a year and I am at the point in my life where I do this with no problems. I want put this plan in action my June/July of 2012. I have never been to DR before and my first trip of at least 3 trips before June will be in early March. My questions are:

1) Can one live in DR on $2000us a month? And yes I do have substantial savings as well. One bedroom, a/c, kitchen, internet, cable, etc.
I do not see myself getting pussy 24/7, but I can see getting it on the regular. I love the beach, points of interest like tours, nature reserves etc and i love the night life, so I want to be able to enjoy my downtime as well, lol.

2) Where are the best places for long term rentals as far as safety, location and piece of mind? Are there sections where guys like us are living long term? I have seen one complex so far that looks decent, Perla De Sosua, in my searches that looks good and the rent for one bedroom is good,I like their $800, 1 bedroom apt. My price range is $650 - $800 a month. Anyone know about this complex?
I am hoping some members on this site are living in DR and can drop some knowledge about the subject on me.

3) Extra credit question for me is, how one keeps a chica that he is fond of around on the regular without having to pay her everytime you wanna knock her boots? This question should be answered somewhere in the forums but I just added it in to keep everything in one place.

Hope I am posting this question in the right place. And thanks in advance for taking the time to help out a newbe.

Cheers

Good luck on questions 2 and 3. As far as 1, $2000/month is about RD$76,000. The average middle class Dominican with a college degree makes about RD$20,000. You're going to be living very comfortably if that's your budget.

[Kmacgregor]

thanks uncle ruckus, you answered the most important question that i had! the rest should fall into place after i give the forums the once over.

[thunderstar]

Although I havnt stayed there - many people on this board have - they have nothing but love for the place.

http://www.condosdominicano.com/

Its a good place to start by the sounds of it.

Very envious of your position.

Have fun - enjoy - and yes - i think you can be comfortable on that amount of money.

[SeaWeed]

a lot of the DR guys will chime in for sure.........
isn't Robert living on like $2,000 - $2,500 a month?
I certainly wouldn't mind Robert's lifestyle at all........
pay for a subscription and get all your research going.......
and then you can make an educated decision on your future.....
being there and staying for extended vacations will pay big rewards as regards to eventually setting yourself up in the DR

[deezl]

2) Where are the best places for long term rentals as far as safety, location and piece of mind? Are there sections where guys like us are living long term? I have seen one complex so far that looks decent, Perla De Sosua, in my searches that looks good and the rent for one bedroom is good,I like their $800, 1 bedroom apt. My price range is $650 - $800 a month. Anyone know about this complex?
I am hoping some members on this site are living in DR and can drop some knowledge about the subject on me.

I have a friend who lived at Perla for a while and I got the impression it was a little on the dumpy side for the price you're quoting.

Haven't stayed there but heard only good things about Club Residencial
http://clubresidencial.com/index.php

And as thunderstar mentioned, lot of guys love Condos Dominicano

[Kmacgregor]

a lot of the DR guys will chime in for sure.........
isn't Robert living on like $2,000 - $2,500 a month?
I certainly wouldn't mind Robert's lifestyle at all........
pay for a subscription and get all your research going.......
and then you can make an educated decision on your future.....
being there and staying for extended vacations will pay big rewards as regards to eventually setting yourself up in the DR

thanks SeaWeed for the link, that's some good info for me and is on my list I am compiling. I have lived in Jamaica for extended periods, a rented house in Sav-la-mar for over a year, just outside of Negril and loved it and i am looking forward to checking out apartments while making future visits to DR in the month before July.

[Kmacgregor]

I have a friend who lived at Perla for a while and I got the impression it was a little on the dumpy side for the price you're quoting.

Haven't stayed there but heard only good things about Club Residencial
http://clubresidencial.com/index.php

And as thunderstar mentioned, lot of guys love Condos Dominicano

Thank deezl your info is appreciated for sure. Digging up the info from the leads I get is no problem for me, I find it very enjoyable and knowing what is at the end of the rainbow for all the work is priceless!

[weyland]

I live in the DR fulltime on about US$2500 a month. I pay US$218 per month for a two-bed apartment with no drama. I reckon with US$2000 you will be on a tight budget (I wouldn't be happy living on that) and you certainly don't want to be paying US$800 just for accommodation. What Dominicans live on is irrelevant to you. You don't want to live like a Dominican and you couldn't do it even if you tried.

I don't have a pool, but most guys would want one. I suggest you look to pay no more than US$500, tops, for a place with use of a pool.

A/C is expensive and not an essential. There are maybe about three weeks each year when I wish I had it, but otherwise fans are sufficient. You will soon get acclimatized.

Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap is easy. Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap and fucking around with other chicas is a lot more difficult. Good luck with that.

[Kmacgregor]

Thanks weyland that advice is straight to the point with good insight. I do have a nice stash but i don't want to have to dip into it just to survive. Good point about the A/C, i am use to the heat, if i can take the heat of Jamaica I'm sure DR would not be a problem.
Is it your opinion that $1500 a month, if rent of $500 is paid, is not enough to live decent in DR? I will not be on the prowl 24/7, i am only human, lol.

You guys are on the ball with your input, I'm starting to get a good feeling about what i am trying to accomplish. And i like your line about keeping a regular chica on the cheap. LOL

[yayow]

I live in the DR fulltime on about US$2500 a month. I pay US$218 per month for a two-bed apartment with no drama. I reckon with US$2000 you will be on a tight budget (I wouldn't be happy living on that) and you certainly don't want to be paying US$800 just for accommodation. What Dominicans live on is irrelevant to you. You don't want to live like a Dominican and you couldn't do it even if you tried.

I don't have a pool, but most guys would want one. I suggest you look to pay no more than US$500, tops, for a place with use of a pool.

A/C is expensive and not an essential. There are maybe about three weeks each year when I wish I had it, but otherwise fans are sufficient. You will soon get acclimatized.

Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap is easy. Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap and fucking around with other chicas is a lot more difficult. Good luck with that.

Excellent post, once again Sir Weyland has hammered the nail home. He is an expert at hammering nails by the way lol

I think he has hit all the essentials, I actually have a bit more to survive on in my budget per month, but because as he says, I like to drink, fuck different chicas, gamble and party as hard as I want, I struggle on a budget almost twice as much, it depends on you and what your style is.

[balcoach]

Probably your best resource right now, on the ground is Robert12345.
He is doing it on about 2500, If you squeeze real tight, it can be done on 2G.

I just spent a year in Sosua, and spent way too much in my first 6 months, doing stupid shit. But you can do right. While your vacationing, look at the Playero (supermarket) for places for rent outside the door, as well as a couple of websites below can give you some rental places.

www.dominicancentral.com
www.sosuarentalservice.com

these are worth checking out. if you choose to live in el batey, you can do it, including everything, elec, cable, internet for under 400/month USD

Best of luck and PM me if you have any ?'s.

Coach

[hugrad95a]

Do you speak any spanish.. It does help.

[Dave Diaz]

I live in the DR fulltime on about US$2500 a month. I pay US$218 per month for a two-bed apartment with no drama. I reckon with US$2000 you will be on a tight budget (I wouldn't be happy living on that) and you certainly don't want to be paying US$800 just for accommodation. What Dominicans live on is irrelevant to you. You don't want to live like a Dominican and you couldn't do it even if you tried.

I don't have a pool, but most guys would want one. I suggest you look to pay no more than US$500, tops, for a place with use of a pool.

A/C is expensive and not an essential. There are maybe about three weeks each year when I wish I had it, but otherwise fans are sufficient. You will soon get acclimatized.

Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap is easy. Keeping a regular girlfriend on the cheap and fucking around with other chicas is a lot more difficult. Good luck with that.

Spoken like a true vet, every word. I must say I thoroughly enjoyed this post just for the insight value alone. Thank you

[donquixote]

you have received some good advice on what to consider before you commit to long term rentals..try first.

my family rents apartments to not only weekly but also long term tenants.

a one bedroom for long term(6months or more) with us rents for $495. per month plus utilities,,,if used properly, about $75.00 per month.

we also have a programe called long term rates but short terms in which you guarantee to stay a minimum of 24 weeks but over 3 years. this rents for $625. per month including utilities and cleaning service.

there are many good places but as we do have many long term tenants we feel we offer good value for you to consider.

to see all the amedities look at our site\

www.sosuavacationrentals.com

we are one of the two renters who support this site(the other being rockies) to bring all the information to those like yourself looking for advice. and we also offer members always a member discount
thankyou
donquixote

[Seville]

I am living here on $2100 per month. It can be done if you are low maintenance (which yayow is NOT). I currently rent a one bedroom apt for $375 per month. That includes everything, TV, internet, utilities. I don't use the A/C. The place has a small pool and off-street, gated parking. It is not the Ritz but it is just fine for me. I don't drink much alcohol, as a rule, and that can be a big expense. I go out two or three times a week and the rest of the time I spend at home in the evenings. I have a car and health insurance here. Everything depends on your lifestyle and needs. I am not pounding two or three chicas a day but I get all the ass I need. Of course it would be great to have another $1000 or more to spend a month but I have no complaints. It beats working, shoveling snow and fucking fat, old, ugly women.

[el toro]

Being within budget as far as rent goes is easy from what I understand and as others mentioned you could do a lot better than $800 plus per month.

When it comes to living cheap in DR everything outside of the cost of rent requires a little experience and savy that may take more than just a few visits down to aqcuire. A lot depends on your Spanish skills for the type of negotiator and type of guy that refuses to get gringo taxed everyday.

You'll go down for your first trip or two and do the regular gringo stuff like Classico's and/or Passions and see what us tourists pay and live like. Then hopefully you'll meet Robert132 and get to see him laugh in a chicas face once or twice at the idea of giving her the tourist gringo rates. You have to get that tourist gringo look off you face really quick and become a miserly old bastard (to some people) and then you'll be living the dream.

[Seville]

Being within budget as far as rent goes is easy from what I understand and as others mentioned you could do a lot better than $800 plus per month.

When it comes to living cheap in DR everything outside of the cost of rent requires a little experience and savy that may take more than just a few visits down to aqcuire. A lot depends on your Spanish skills for the type of negotiator and type of guy that refuses to get gringo taxed everyday.

You'll go down for your first trip or two and do the regular gringo stuff like Classico's and/or Passions and see what us tourists pay and live like. Then hopefully you'll meet Robert132 and get to see him laugh in a chicas face once or twice at the idea of giving her the tourist gringo rates. You have to get that tourist gringo look off you face really quick and become a miserly old bastard (to some people) and then you'll be living the dream.

Should I take that as a compliment?