buying property

[Sabor_NYC]

Please advise:
I have a relative who's considering buying a small farm with a built house on it near Santo Domingo. He is purchasing this property from an elderly foreigner living abroad. He's concerned after hearing comments that depending on the person's age (if it is over a certain limit), his family (wife, sons, etc.) may be able to invalidate this purchase or have legitimate claims over the property in the future if they do not furnish a written consent for the sell of the property during the transaction. This would only make sense to me if the person is declared mentally disabled, but on the other hand I know very little about DR law.
Any truth to these comments?
Thank you all.

[Escott]

Spend your money on a Attorney and don't listen to people that tell you anything. Find a good attorney and get it done.

[Sabor_NYC]

Thanks Jazzcom, sound advise ..... In the meantime I was just wondering if anyone had heard of such a thing.

[AlaninDR]

Several years ago while I was living and working in Russia, many real estate transactions were undone based on mental incompetence. If the seller was able to find a person willing to pay more after the transaction was completed, he would go to court and say he didn't understand what he was doing. It worked well at first because many Russians didn't have a grip on actual ownership of property, they lived where the housing bureau told them to live. It became standard practice to have a psychologist attest to a persons mental state of being. Buying real estate in DR is a lot easier than in many parts of the world. I agree with Jazz, get a good lawyer and go for it.

[Golo100]

If you should not be worrying more about what you're going to do with this property and if you or somebody extremely trustworthy is going to take care of it for you.

Unless you have 24 hr. security in this property you might as well donate it to the local bandits so they can at least let you use it when you visit DR. If it's for animals and cattle you will be feeding the community with free meat and if its agricultural products, your plants will never bear fruit for you, since the vegetables and fruits will be "maroteadas" by everyone, including the town's doctor.

TW

[Fabio J. Guzman]

There is no legal requirement stating that an elderly person, just because of his age, is required to have the assistance of his spouse or children to sell property. It would be a different story if the person were mentally incompetent or in any other manner unable to express his/her consent properly (i.e. drunk, drugged, etc.)

However, the belief that assistance is required just because the seller is old is widespread among Dominican farmers despite the fact that there no legal basis for it.

[Sabor_NYC]

You guys are all terrific - I do appreciate your advise and will take your suggestions into account. Again, thank you all.