Accommodation in Dominican Republic: scams you should look out for

i am not well versed in matters such as the real estate horse trading, in the DR, but i am sufficiently familiar with the culture to proffer this bit of advice....

DO NOT cut corners trying to save money on attorney fees.  do your research, and make sure you get a reputable, COMPETENT attorney. you cannot throw a rock in the DR without hitting an ''abogado''. every guy who drove past a university campus is a lawyer. most of them are barely paralegals, but, by their admission, they are supreme court judges.

get a good lawyer...it is the best money you will ever spend in this country. fail to do that, and you will discover, in due course, that the house you think you own has 10 other owners. it is the Wild Wild West out there.

Hi Bhvana how are you?Do your dew diligence on a good Attorney. It is best to spend extra for guaranteed security.I use Guzman Ariza.
They have offices all over the country and are bilingual.The majority of Expats who have purchased land/property in my area and have further inquires have used this company for a number of years.
All the best john

A good topic for discussion. We have covered much of this already.

1. What are the most common scams in Dominican Republic?   NONE really its buyer beware period. They will tell you its a quiet neighborhood and it won't be. They will tell you the electricity is  24 hours and it won't be. ETC.    Basically they will tell you what they think you want to hear in order to rent a place.

2. What are the red flags to look out for when scanning through adverts?   Most places are not rented via adverts. Most are BOOTS ON THE GROUND -  identify an area you like, walk or drive it and look for signage. Call and follow up.

3. Is there a list of registered or accredited landlords or real estate agencies in Dominican Republic?
NO that does not exist here.

Make sure you know the areas you want to rent or buy in. IF buying and you have just arrived, please rent for  6 to 12 months first. It is not easy to sell if you decide you don't want to live here.

Take your time!   Do your research,  check the  availability of water,  electricity  circuits,  which cell phone service works,  which  internet  suppliers are in the area etc etc. Take NOTHING for granted like at home!   

Make sure your lawyer looks over the rental contracts!

Planner already answered this pretty well!

I will add just a little more based on my experience as a renter.

The best and most effective way to find a rental property is to go to the neighborhood where you wish to rent and look for "se alquila" signs. Make sure you look up and not just at street level. Oftentimes the sign will be on the railing of the balcony of the actual unit for rent and therefore the sign could be pretty high up. Ask people on the street if they know of any rentals nearby. Stop in at the colamados (small neighborhood stores) and ask.

I would reiterate that you should do your own research and absolutely do not rely on anything that is said to you by your potential landlord. It is indeed common to find out after the fact that most of what you have been told is a lie unfortunately.

Read your contract thoroughly. Ensure everything you agreed upon is included (water, parking, maintenance, etc). Does it address who is responsible for maintenance issues? Check to make sure the contract addresses quite clearly what condition the apartment should be in for you to get your deposits returned. If any language is vague, ask for clarification and then have the contract revised. Landlords are notorious for attempting to keep your deposit at the end of the contract. Also, oftentimes it is not sufficient to simply clean the apartment before you vacate, many landlords will expect you to paint as well.

If you do find yourself in a dispute with your landlord, you may file a claim at the fiscalia (prosecutor).

It is quite normal to have to paint when you leave IF it was freshly painted when you arrived.

And most renters here live out their deposit rather than try to get it back.

Here's what I did once to get my 10k deposit back.  When I came in, the landlord insisted that I pay it up front, and promised he would pay apy when I left.  But he tried to worm out of it, saying it would take a couple of weeks to get.  Of course, most gringos will just walk away.  What I did was to contract with a local man, one I pretty much trusted, to come with me to the landord....I said that I sold my deposit money to this local friend, thus the landord now owes 10k to this really tough looking young guy,  The landlords face turned white, and said no problem to my friend.   Within a week my friend got the 10k, and I gave him the 1k commission I promised him for this service.

Hahahahaha  this is brilliant!!!!   And clearly it works.

Recently the law changed and landlords are required to place deposit money in  a special account blah blah blah.  OF course none of them do that.  Big commercial companies, maybe. Even they are unlikely.

Getting back your deposit is NOT easy to do and landlords will find any and all excuses to hold onto it. I always take  photos when I look at the place first time.  Photos the day I move in, seriously detailed photos. Then I take photos of ANY and ALL improvements I make. Then when I move I take another set of photos.  Document EVERYTHING!

Yes, the photos idea should be done as well, so they can't say say you destroyed any tiles or whatever.  And with my solution about the deposit,  to get a local, they would never dare try to reneg on a 10k debt to a local man.

Yup, its brilliant.

One issue you run into when renting a location.  How do you check water,  outlets etc when there is no electricity? AND you cannot get electricity without a rental contract!

So you have to have a clause that says you will sign off on the state of the property AFTER you arrange utilities and you will meet with the landlord and check everything.   THEN once you check and come to agreement then and only then to you finalize the Addendum to the contract!

Case in point, I recently rented a house.  WE knew there were some issues.  However  once the electricity etc were one we discovered the water pump did not work and had not worked for months.  2 story house imagine no water on the second floor.

And because they had no used either shower on 2nd floor in months,  or maintained anything, none of the taps worked.  Toilets had issues.  Sinks had issues.  Taps and showers did not work. All of it had to be repaired.  The landlord is on the hook for this.

Once I signed off and took full possession then I am responsible for maintaining this.    Make sure if you are renting you understand if something breaks then normally you are fixing it......

Wow! Planner, l have been reading the threads on renting and buying in the DR. And l have decided to rent and not bother buying. I didn’t know that you had to worry about so much when simply renting. I am aware of the culture and the corruption in the DR.  I have visited and vacationed in Puerto Plata many times and l like the city. Also l think that Santiago De Los Caballeros is a much better and cleaner place to live. The streets are better and the city overall appears to be better maintained. What Are your thoughts about these two cities? Is it cheaper, are the apartments better?  Also I am looking at shipping my car to the Dominican Republic. Can you tell me if possible what I can’t expected to pay for car insurance?

There is a lot to look out for. 

Both Puerto Plata and Santiago have a lot going for them.  Puerto Plata has more expats, beaches,  more tourism type activity.

Santiago has more culture and the  population tends to be better educated.  Rentals should be less expensive in Santiago.  That said you need to look around.   Yes it is cleaner  in my opinion. 

Do not import your car!  IF you do it with residencia it will still cost you a lot of money. Without residencia its going to seriously cost you money!   Far better to get  our local expert (whose name escapes me)  to help you find a local vehicle! 

Car insurance is based on the type of insurance and the value of the vehicle.