Moving to the DR on a low budget! Questions and Musings

[SKing]

First things first, if thousands of americans start moving to Santiago......I'm moving out. If I wanted to live around a bunch of other Americans in the DR, I would move to POP.
I don't know about every public school in the DR but the ones I have seen are dirty, dark, and barely enough materials to go around.
I do agree though that the teaching is probably the same or better. I put my kids in a private school for the environment. I want my kids to be in a clean, safe environment while learning.
SHALENA

[AK74]

Originally Posted by SKing

First things first, if thousands of americans start moving to Santiago......I'm moving out. If I wanted to live around a bunch of other Americans in the DR, I would move to POP.
I don't know about every public school in the DR but the ones I have seen are dirty, dark, and barely enough materials to go around.
I do agree though that the teaching is probably the same or better. I put my kids in a private school for the environment. I want my kids to be in a clean, safe environment while learning.
SHALENA

If they approach you just say "no hablo ingles" like I do, and they won`t bother you. Most of them do not speak castellano or any other foreign language at all or speak on a very primitive rudimentary level.
So, it is easy to avoid communicating with them.

But they also drive up all the prices, and this is a problem of a bigger magnitude. That is what they did in Sosua, Cabarete, Santo Domingo.

[believer]

Originally Posted by Thandie

Where in the world do you live? Wow over $1200 a month that is insane?
I pay $100 for cable/internet and cell per month, and $100 for gas.

I live in Toronto, Canada and I know a few single mothers who live on what Believer lives on. So as hard as that is too believe it is possible. Creativity!

I just got a PM from someone who lives in the capital and they live on less than $500 a month, so it is possible to live on less than $1000 a month as a foreigner...

Some people dont think it is possible because they cant do it, but it does not mean it can be done.

Yeah...I don;t do big city rent that is for sure. I'm in Muskokas at the moment waiting out hurricane season. Beautiful here! I often share homes mostly because I hate isolation. There's lots we live without....but for us it is not about what we have or don;t have, its about how blue the sky is compared to the richness of the colored leaves! Thanks for the vote of confidence and for pointing out that I am not a lying loonie!

[jennahay1986]

hi everyone, i am coming to sosua in january to study spanish for 8 weeks. my parents are wanting to also come but to rent an apartment for that time. obviously we are looking for a good price and place that sleeps 3 as my course is costing alot as it is. if anyone could tell me the best places to check it would be a great help. thanks again everyone! jenna

[Mason3000]

To all the newbies, move here. Just do it, but don;t count on help from the ex-pat community here. Remember, the same people who tell you can't do it today are the same people who told Columbus the world was flat and he'd never make it in 1491.

You build an extraordinary life by doing what others are afraid to do, or have failed at.

[Lambada]

Originally Posted by Mason3000

To all the newbies, move here. Just do it, but don;t count on help from the ex-pat community here. Remember, the same people who tell you can't do it today are the same people who told Columbus the world was flat and he'd never make it in 1491.

You build an extraordinary life by doing what others are afraid to do, or have failed at.

Could I ask Mason3000 how much experience you have of living as an expat in the DR? And of seeing new people come...........and go? And understanding why the DR isn't everyone's cup of tea?

I would never ever advise 'all the newbies, move here, just do it'. I totally agree that some people will do well anywhere in the world, they will just get on & make it happen because those are the sort of people they are. Creative with a can-do spirit. But............not everyone is. There is no shame in not being creative with a can-do spirit, no shame in not being prepared to sacrifice some physical comforts, no shame in not being laid-back unperturbed by the ups and downs of life in the DR. It just means there is a likelihood that the DR is not for you, that's all.

It's great to be highly motivated to move here. But motivation on its own is not enough. At minimum people need an emergency fund. For emergencies. Including an exit strategy.

[erna]

Originally Posted by Lambada

Could I ask Mason3000 how much experience you have of living as an expat in the DR? And of seeing new people come...........and go? And understanding why the DR isn't everyone's cup of tea?

I would never ever advise 'all the newbies, move here, just do it'. I totally agree that some people will do well anywhere in the world, they will just get on & make it happen because those are the sort of people they are. Creative with a can-do spirit. But............not everyone is. There is no shame in not being creative with a can-do spirit, no shame in not being prepared to sacrifice some physical comforts, no shame in not being laid-back unperturbed by the ups and downs of life in the DR. It just means there is a likelihood that the DR is not for you, that's all.

It's great to be highly motivated to move here. But motivation on its own is not enough. At minimum people need an emergency fund. For emergencies. Including an exit strategy.

Well, as a newby, I go in to this forum and ask questions or only read the posts to be able to find out a little bit about the country in order to get some clues if this is my "cup of tee" or not. It might also give me a clue about if I have what it takes. But as nobody, not myself nor any other person, could know if I have the capacity or not, until I experienced it, all that I can do is to try to get as much information I can about the country to be able to make a choise, and out from there live in the country and see for myself before I make a final desition ( how to spell that one). So, going in to this forum is just a first step to get a glims of what it might be like. But even so, I or any other newby will never know if we have "the creativity whit the can-do it spirit," we can only guess, we can even fool ourselfs because we would like that picture of ourselfes. It´s good to be warned but everyone will do their own failures and succeses anyhow. And maybe this is not a forum for newbys but more a forum between expats allready living in the country? Tell me?

Carina

[chola1978]

To all newbies
i ma 30yaer, bilingual, know the culture, own my home free nad clear, have a old suv, Get US income, My wife supports my move to DR (estmaos todos juntos),
For my family moving here was not as easy as just sending everythign to Santiago.
We had to adjust to the everyday living. Its a challenge but no more of a challenge that it was moving form NYC to El Mirage , AZ....
If you are the type of newby that need others to encourage you to do something that at the end your are the only one that will get satisfaction...well your goingto have a hard time in dr1 cuz some of us do not like more outsides here, some of us love the idea of sharing our paradise...and some will not give an opinion.
I would suggest if your planing on coming to DR on a low budget or high, make sure that dr lifestyle is what you want,,, be like nike..just do it...
but please learn from others mistake otherwise it will cost you money, your health and in some case your emotional relationships.
suerte and welcome all.

[El Tigre]

The best suggestion for someone who wants to move to the DR is one that is given by many expats on this board, especially AZB. GO DOWN AND RENT for a few months. Just don't buy right away. Rent & explore. It is the only way you can tell if you can adapt to living in the DR.

Plus, renting is not too expensive (depending on where you want to live). I know that in Santiago you can get a descent 3 bed/2 bath apartment in a descent area for USD$400 - $500 bucks a month (13,000 to 15,000 pesos). So this will be the best thing to do.

[Chennifer]

I think that neither erna, Mason3000 nor the others who have posted before them in any way think that they need the expat community to encourage them to move. They simply want some answers. I've been looking around this forum for some time now, and I see that it is hard to get answers. And many times the answers are only ironic. It says that this is also a forum for newcomers, and many of you encourage newcomers to get as much information as possible before they move. Well, isn't asking questions on this forum exactly what they should be doing then? No one is looking for your encouragement, just your advice. And if you don't want new people to move there, why have a forum? Most of us asking questions here ARE going to move, do we have to wait until then to get answers from you? I'm not saying that none of you answers, but as chola1978 said "...some of us do not like more outsides here, some of us love the idea of sharing our paradise...and some will not give an opinion."