Introduce yourself HERE!

Wow Gypsy $350 a month all included? I guess you can still get some good deals after all, it is no where possible to find a deal like that here in the states :-( Gotta Love Caribbean Living. I do agree with you in the sense that you don't need a lot to be happy, happiness means different things to different people and it is all relative to each person's individual need

NICE!!!!   yes you make good points, its critical to have some contacts.  In the beginning it makes all the difference in the world!!!!

Attitude is everything here folks!  Come in be humble, watch, learn and enjoy! Treat everyone with courtesy and respect and you will be more then welcome here.

yes, $350 a month. furnished but, nothing fancy. you would want more kitchen stuff, more pots & pans, decent knives, toaster oven etc. maybe a bigger tv & so on. they have a large clean pool & deck area. locals live therr also so it can be a bit noisy. there are other comparable places in town. have a good time & explore the area. playero & the little playero ( super mkts.) have bulletin boards with all sorts of stuff to sell & rent. again, use the ex-pats you meet for info. remember, ask 5 people the same question & if 3 of them give you the same answer you can go with it.

Great tips Gypsy. That is what I love about this forum, everyone drops little pearls of wisdom

Soooo true.

My husband and I are renting a house in Luperon in 2015.
We were wondering about grocery shopping?
Does the Super Mercado have every thing we need or should we bring anything with us?
We didn't see any meat for sale? Where can you purchase things like ground beef, pork or chicken?

No idea in Luperon but all is available in Puerto Plata!!!

Oh and by the way, welcome to the forums!!!

Officially welcome to the forum and I answered your PM this morning.

Your best bet is a trip to la Sirena in Puerto Plata.

Bob K

Is there any expats on the forum who are living in or near Luperon right now?

I've just messaged someone from Luperon to come on and help you!

There is a large expat community in Luperon. You can find them at several places. Wendys bar, JR Bistro, Petulla's all will be very helpful.

Meat - fresh chicken at most mecados. Beef not sure of the days, but it is a fresh cut of meat at the buthcher shop on the main st. Pork fresh every sun at the motor choncho corner.

Where are you staying, they are you best resource. You can send me a pm.

Hi
I'm Peter from Hungary. Live in Santo Domingo from march - this year.
  Establish here a small company ( EIRL) , but for administrative and other reasons it faild, or just temporary "out of order" - in the better case.
But nose up ! I find the sense of my life - "The Queen of Dominican Republic".
  She help me to learn spanish and so many other thinks!
Back to me : I speak hungarian, romanian, english, little french and spanish.
Try to find some volunteer or "low payd" job, to make myself busy, and to do something usefull untill can start my own business.
    I like farmering, gardenering ,etc.
In Hungary I had my own farm, here this is the only think what I miss...
  So , if I can help somebody with my knoledge , I do it with pleasure!

Welcome Peter!!!  Sorry to hear of the business but sounds like you are finding your way.....

Peter let me add my welcome. It sounds like you are adapting to the Dominican life.  Good luck on your adventure.

Bob K

We are planning a trip to the DR in March and are looking at Sosua area and Caberate area any help or suggestions would be great. We are wanting to retire to the DR in the next few years. We have lived overseas before in the South Pacific and got a taste of the island life.

Jones2  welcome to the forum. There are lots of good folks here with lots of good information for you.  My wife and I came to the north coast full time 8+ years ago from the US.  IN fact I have been back in the states for a total of 29 days in those 8+ years.  We live between Sosua and Cabarete and built a villa here.

You do need come for an extended period of time (2-4 months) renting and apartment an see if the Dominican Republic "fits" for you.  It is not for everyone.  You might also want to explore other parts of the country before deciding on where you want to live.  The north coast worked perfect for us a good mix of local Dominicans, Expats and tourists.

Please feel free to ask any questions you may have about living, moving, visiting here and we will all try to find the answers you need.

Again welcome

Bob K

I second the welcome.  Great advice from Bob...  if you tell us more about the lifestyle you envision we can direct you a bit better!!!

My wife and I currently living in Missouri and are about 3 years from retirement. We have lived in Saipan, Northern Marianas Islands 5 years ago when I took a job there. Needless to say living there was great but working there was another story. Also it was too far from the US for us to come back for visits. We have been intrigued by the Dominican and have watched house hunters international. We have vacationed there which we know is completely different than living there.We are also looking at Peurto Rico but see that the housing is more expensive. Our concerns about the DR is health care and the costs of it. Also how the mail system works and long distance calling. We know that in PR it would only be a long distance call and in the DR it is a international call. Also it looks like airfare is a lot more expensive to get back and forth to the US. We have been bitten by the island life and loved our time there. We know that here in the states you take things for granted like having electricity everyday and drinking out of the faucet. We still laugh about things that we experienced. It is funny to read peoples stories about their times and experiences.
Is it possible to rent a villa for around 800.00 a month and what would utilities run? Yes we know it will be high if you run your air all the time. We used to have to shut our hot water heater off during the day so our utility bill wouldn't be 500.00 a month. We bout had a heart attack when we got our first bill, lol...

Welcome to the forums.  Lots of info on various threads for you.

Health care - insurance is readily available at various costs.  You must get insurance and use private clinics and hospitals.  I offer 2 plans with good coverage one is currently us 37 and a better plan is us 47.  There are other companies and plans out there. You must enrollbprior to age 65.

Depending where you are looking, yes it is very possible to get a place for 800. Utities and specifically electricity you need to actively manage! They dont have to be too expensive. 

You do need an electric backup - inverter and batteries or generator depending on your needs.

Drinking water is cheap and delivered so dont sweat it.

Calls - almost all companies now offer international calls at local prices so again not much of an issue anymore.

Airfare - no idea, I've not left in over 9 years.... no reason everything I need is here.

Jones2  where in Missouri?  I lived in KCMO for 4 years for school in the 1980s.
Just to add to Planner's response.

Medical care. Insurance is cheap but you must apply before age 65.  INternational insurance is also cheaper than insurance in the US and many plans, like ours qualifies us to be omitted from Obamacare.  Do escape that mess as an expat you must live out of the country for 330 days a year.  So only allowed back in the US for basically a month. Health care itself can vary from scary to very good and the same for hospitals.  We are very comfortable with the care in Santiago (HOMS hospital), which is about 1.5 hours away.  Care here on the north coast is ok in Puerto Plata (30 min from us). but I would not go there for serious problems.  For this either Santiago of a flight back to the US (our international insurance covers the US as well)

Mail system.... a joke here.  You can use UPS but expensive and usually works.  There are also multiple shippers for small packages (large ones as well) that we use for our online shopping (TVs, printer, dog meds, household goods).  We do almost everything on line and have not received "mail" in 8 years and don't miss it.

Calling home.  We use our local cells phone to call the US for the same rate as calling across the street. We also have Magic Jack and have maintained our US phone number (same for the last 25 years) that rings here in the villa and all calls are "free"

Yes airfare is expensive, especially here in Puerto Plata, but you can get cheaper fares flying to and from Santiago and then use a cab for $100 or so for the just over an hour drive.  My wife goes back to visit her mom in the nursing facility 3 times a year.  Me I have been back in the US 29 days in 8+ years.  We have friends and relatives coming here to visit  all the time which is nice.

Here on the north coast $800 is doable but it may be hard to find what you are looking for.  A couple of hundred more and you will have a multitude of choices on a long term rent.  Electricity is expensive but if not using the AC all the time not that bad.  Electric service can be bad at times so everyone has either a back up generator or inverter and anything you rent should have a back up system already so not a problem with a rental.  Bottled water is very cheap and we  DO NOT drink from the tap. A large 5 gal (blue bottle you are used to back in the States) here will cost you about 80 cents.

Hope this helps.  Keep the questions coming

Bob K

Bob, we are from the Columbia, Mo area and are just tired of the cold winters. We kind of have a 3 year plan and want to find out everything we can. We are going to come to the DR in April and want to have an idea of where we want to live. We have done a lot of looking and think that Caberate and Sousa area are the best fit for us. I have been looking on line at realtors and have been communicating with Century21 a Joe Ciotti about some villas for sale in gated communities. We feel like a gated community would be a good fit for us, we don't want to be away from the locals because we want to be a part of things. We don't want to live on the beach we want to live just far enough away that it would be a 5 or 10 minute drive. We would also like a view of the ocean or a view of something from our place that we either buy or rent. I think that it helps that we have lived on an island so we know what to expect and the things that can happen. We found that most of the locals are great if you just treat them like you want to be treated and respect them.
What kind of insurance plan are you on and if I can ask, around how much is it for husband and wife? We are both in good health and do not have any kind of health issues.
Thanks again for your help
Glenn

Glenn our insurance cost us $2880RD (Less than $67 a month) for the two of us.  We also maintain an international policy.

As to living and buying here I sent you a PM as not to discuss all here on the board

Bob K

Hello. I am a girl from the Dominican Republic (23 years old) actually living in the US. I came to the States a year ago to pursue my master's degree. I am a Manufacturing Engineer and I will be working in the US for a year. I just joined this forum to make friends and help as much as I can. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask. Thanks.

Welcome to the forum!!! Your perspective will be a welcome addition!!!

Welcome Mariposa   New teammates are always welcomed, look forward to your contributions.

Mariposa let me add my welcome.  Where in the DR are you from and where in the US are you studying?

Bob K

I am from San Pedro de Macoris and I just finished my master at Rochester Institute of Technology.

Congrats on the degree. After you one more year there are you planning on returning to the DR?

Bob K

Yes. I have to return. I miss DR so badly!! Can't wait to go there in Christmas for vacation

We look forward to you being active here on the forum. I am sure you have lots to contribute

Bob K

Hello. Welcome to the DR. You will fall in love with my beautiful Quisqueya. I am Dominican and if I can be of any help, do not hesitate to ask. Good luck mo ing in!!

Please make sure to write in English Butterfly, this forum is English only....

And I feel the same way about this country, the people and the culture!

Ok. Sorry, I will edit that

thank you

Thanks honey!!!

Yes the country is easy to fall in love with.

Bob K

Regards to everyone

I need some help. Know somebody about foundation or organization (NGO), who really need volunteers ?
I'm interested in ecologic agriculture, education , enviromental development... and similar.
  Where I wrote untill now , they do not answer- or need just donations.
I can not give donations, but I have to-to much free time, and a lot of knowledge about.
So,  if anyone knows of such Foundation address- addresses, please Inform me.
Thanks