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PRICED TO SELL! $175,000 US $158,750 US Seller will consider exchange (trade)!
This photo and those below are of a lovely property with apartments in la Otra Banda, built following simple lines and North American quality. Every step of construction was supervised by an experienced builder from Canada. The locals were so impressed with the quality built into this building, they nicknamed him 'el Engeñero' (the Engineer). This shot was taken on a cloudy day of the southwest view. To the north there are beautiful mountains. The second floor has a spectacular view and the main floor's view is very cozy and pleasant. Here are the particulars:
The small building to the north is the generator room. It holds a 15 kW propane, American-built generator. All of the wiring goes through this room then through two-inch, underground conduit to the main building. There is plenty of room on the remaining property to build your dream home or more apartments. Presently it is being used as a garden.
Above is the floor plan. As you can see, it is simple, but very desirable in this area. Units renting around here for as much as RD$2,500 per month, do not have indoor plumbing and have wooden walls. Obviously, as the scale shows, this is set to 100:1, so what is showing in cm (centimeters) should read in m (meters).
Across from the building is a vacant lot with a mango tree offering cool shade from the afternoon sun. The panorama from the rooftop is spectacular (taken 2006). Have a look for yourself by clicking here (please be patient, it is a 500 kb file).
You can tell just by looking at it that this was well designed, engineered and constructed. No corners were cut.
The owner of the land to the north has built two lovely four-plexes. The complete panorama of the view across the road can be viewed by clicking the picture above or here.
The kitchen cupboards are open to allow aeration. There is ample room for fridge, stove, table and chairs.
All floors are covered in ceramic tiles. The bedrooms empty onto a private, secure balcony. Each has its own closet, shower, toilette and sink.
Each apartment has its own meter. Each one is responsible for their own electricity costs. The landlord pays the cable.
The pole and transformer on the left belong to the building. This yields very stable voltage.
The property is located on the upper side of town (north-west side). It is elevated and overlooks the town with a clear view all the way to the Caribbean Sea. In just forty minutes you can drive to the beaches of Bávaro—among the finest in the world!
La Otra Banda is called the bedroom city for Bávaro and Punta Cana. Centrally located, it is also very close to services in the city of Higüey.
The property has a clear title. Both properties are on the same title but can be separated at any time. The exact square metres are shown. Just a note concerning this area and island: The Dominican Republic is one of the most stable economies in the area and where we live, real estate is going up very quickly. Cap Cana is located twenty to thirty minutes from here making our location, La Otra Banda de Higüey, the bedroom city of choice. (See http://www.capcana.com/2005/updates/default.htm) The area around this building is very tranquil and picturesque. Have a look at the panorama by clicking here. Be patient it is a very large file. Note on the country's economy: Here is a quote from www.dr1.com, for Friday, 15 December, 2006: "The Dominican economy grew by 10% in 2006, achieving the second highest growth rate in the region, and will finish this year with five consecutive trimesters with a double-digit growth rate. Venezuela also enjoyed a 10% increase in its growth rate. These figures were published in a study by Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). ECLAC, which is known as CEPAL in Spanish, points out that the driving force in the figures is the increase in investment and not in consumption. ECLAC, a United Nations organization, expects a continued growth estimated at around 7%. Although there was in increase in the international price of oil, there is an expected inflation rate of only 4.5% in 2006 compared to 7.4% in 2005 and 28.7% in 2004." Real estate here has doubled in the past two years. We bought property here for RD$266 per square meter in December, 2004. Fourteen months later the property next door sold for RD$425 per square meter! As of this writing we are forming a very responsible gentleman and his wife to manage the building at a cost of RD$6,000 (roughly $170US) per month, including gardening, renting, water control, small repairs, etc. Gross revenue is RD$37,400 per month or RD$448,800 per annum. Running costs, including management, are about RD$230,300 per annum. This leaves a return on investment of 4.1%. That does not take into account that the rents here increase by about 15% or more per annum (no rent control board). It also does not include the real estate capital gains. As of right now, moneys earned here are tax free, as long as they are declared here (there is nothing to file here, you simply consider it as moneys earned here). This property, all things being equal, will sell for roughly RD$10,000,000 (about $357,000CDN) in a few years. This could be used as a unit to rent, furnished, to northerners looking to come for the real flavour of the place for two weeks to two months. Those kinds of rentals are four times what the locals would pay (roughly $490 US per month). We can help set that up if you like. What if the economy fails at it did a few years ago? Any investment carries some element of risk. I invested in metal funds with the Royal Bank of Canada a few years ago. That investment has lost 65% to date. The agent's poor choice of investing and my poor choice of agent. J The best way of reducing the risk is to find something that will likely perform well over the long term. Mark Twain, although not the best manager of his own finances, did make a statement that has proved true over and over: "The thing that I like most about property is that God's not making any more of it." My personal experience in real estate investment bears this out. Property bought nine years ago in Peterborough, ON, Canada for $105,000CDN sold recently for over $200,000. That's an annual increase of 9.5% accrued, or much better than my mutual funds. The accrued rate is nine times greater than a savings account and six times greater than savings bonds for the same period. When the economy failed a few years ago, the cost in US dollars for property here went down. That situation lasted a few months, after which property values continued their upward trend. Case in point: A friend of mine benefited from the dip in the peso by buying a house for roughly $12,000US. That house was worth $24,000US before the problems started. Now, three years later, that same house is listed at $197,500US. I admit that he bought it a shell and did all the finishing, but it is still a good turnaround. (Click here to view that listing.) So, as anywhere, real estate needs to be looked at long term, not month by month. Another example: Property bought just across the road from these apartments before the crisis was renovated by the owner and had a value of RD$1,200,000 two years ago. It now has a value of over RD$1,800,000. And it's not a particularly nice house sitting on a very small piece of land. The property next to the one that our building sits on was bought for RD$266 per square meter two years ago. One year ago the property right next to it sold for RD$425 per square meter. It now has a value of RD$550 per square meter. So the value of property here continues to increase. What will it do in the future? Who knows? But it is an investment I personally would repeat. The owners are self-supporting missionaries serving on this island and need to move to the north of the island, near Puerto Plata. Once this is sold, they will likely buy another property up there just to keep their investment growing.* What if I can't rent this out? There are more people here than apartments giving a 0.1% vacancy rate (unofficial count). That there is any vacancy at all is usually because of landlord indifference or bad timing (vacancy in December—no one rents in December and only a few in January). Since this is becoming the bedroom city of the East island, this situation is not likely to change much. Experience on this building over the past two years has been very low vacancy. Often the apartment is rented before the old tenants move out. What if there is another cyclone (hurricane)? The tourist industry here fought back after the last hurricane and given that there is a lovely, very busy airport in Punta Cana, that they are building a highway from La Romana to Bavaro, and that there is already a huge commitment to this area despite the fact that the investors are aware of this risk, a hurricane can only mean greater profits for you. Why? Our building has been build to withstand hurricanes and earthquakes. It will very likely still be here when the dust settles. Apartments like these will be in even greater demand as more workers flood the area to help with the reconstruction of hotels and houses that would follow a hurricane. Their loss will be your gain. How can I be sure that this is legitimate? The deed for this property was registered by the law firm of Guzmán Ariza & Asociados, S.A. Their Web site can be found at http://www.drlawyer.com/. You can ask them about CERTIFICADO No. 85-121. Our lawyer in that office is Dr. Christoph Sieger (CSieger@DRLawyer.com; 809-552-1452). He speaks English, Spanish and German. He is also very busy, so don't expect him to remember this deal right off the bat. Give him a little time to look things up. You are also welcome to come and visit. We will be happy to pick you up at your hotel (anywhere from Puerto Plata to Punta Cana) and show you around. Or you can rent one of these apartments from the owner, in which case we will pick you up at the airport (Punta Cana or La Romana—there is an extra pickup charge to get you at Las Americas airport in Santo Domingo of $100). Your rent will be deducted from the purchase price should you choose to buy but must be paid up front, before arriving through our PayPal account or directly to our bank in Canada. If this is such a good investment, why are they selling? Basically, for two reasons.
We have a clear title (a rarity here) with both properties on one deed. I built this place, so it has Canadian engineering and quality (also rare here). The building has its own power source (15 kW propane). I will include an inverter along with the batteries in the sale. The property has enough room to build one or two more eight- or twelve-unit buildings of the same size, depending on how parking is arranged, or whatever other configuration the new owner would choose. I would suggest four, small, two-bedroom units. Or you can simply build your dream home and have your local revenue right next door. If you would like to use a local contractor, I know two very honest, hardworking contractors willing to take this on. Such a construction would greatly increase the property value, much more than what you put into the construction. Since we are not leaving the country, we will be available to the new owners as consultants if they so wish. Price and conditions: The owner is flexible on closing conditions. Price has been reduced to $158,900 US. They are willing to exchange for a duplex in Canada, specifically a student rental in Peterborough, Ontario, worth about $170,000CDN or more. The owner will also consider a trade for a house in Sosúa or Cabarete as long as there is some cash back on the trade. They are also willing to make a straight cash sale paid to their account ($US or $CDN) in Canada. The main-floor double apartment is ready to move in should the new owner wish to live here or reserve an apartment for himself. Call directly to 809 929-9440 (ask for William) or write to:
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* Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
© WMT Enterpirses (William M. Thompson Services). 2009– all rights reserved.
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