Santo Domingo
Country Background
In 1492, while on a journey to the “New World,” Christopher Columbus discovered an island that he would call Hispaniola. At the time of discovery, The Taino Indians occupied the island. After years of Spanish reign the Taino Indians eventually died off, due to years of slavery and diseases brought to the island by the Spaniards. In 1496 the capital city Santo Domingo was founded. The nation toggled between Spanish rule and a Haiti invasion eventually recognizing Independence on February 27, 1844 as the “Dominican Republic.” (PwC, 2015)
The Dominican Republic occupies the eastern two-thirds of the Hispaniola Island today. The island lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean and is about the size of New Hampshire. …show more content…
(Gonzalez, 2016) The Dominican Republic has a population of about 10.41 million. (World Bank, 2016) The country has a pretty diverse mix of people, with about half of them claiming to be of “mixed” ethnicity. Although English is pretty well known throughout within the tourist industry, Spanish is the official language of the country. Dominican pesos are the national currency, currently converting at about 46 Dominican Pesos for $1. The economy is thriving through the countries servicing industry, predominately, tourism, retail, manufacturing and financial services.
While the tourism industry is thriving, the country is still continuing to have major issues with its immigration. Particularly the influx of Haitian’s in the country. The unemployment and underemployment rates are pretty high. They have also recently reported that they are seeing an increase in Puerto Ricans attempting to obtain citizenship and escape from the economic status of the United States.
Business Climate
The Dominican Republic is a very large tourist destination. It is one of the most visited destinations in the Caribbean. In 2015 the Dominican Republic hosted over 2 million tourists. The boost in this sector alone is allowing numerous opportunities to expand business opportunities and create possible jobs. They recently made some significant changes in the requirements to establish a business, making it less time-consuming.
Business Culture
The Dominican Republic is known for having a fairly formal, yet informal business culture. Appointments are typically required and punctuality is a must. First impressions are the utmost importance and first meetings are typically like that in the United States, pretty formal. In the D.R. first impressions are everything, you will need to arrive on time and dressed well. Business on this level is similar to that of business in the United States; networking and personal contacts are an extremely important concept of business relations in the Dominican Republic. The saying “it’s not what you know, but who you know,” also plays very heavily in the Dominican society. Dominicans are very status-conscious making it utterly important to be respectful and mindful of those in senior leadership positions.
Current Economic Climate
The Dominican Republic has been standing out as one of the fastest emerging economies in the Americas since the mid to early 90’s. In past years the Dominican Republic has been recognized primarily for the exportation of sugar, coffee and tobacco. In more recent years, however, their servicing industry has taken over the island as the largest employer, attributed to the growth in construction, tourism and free trade zones. This country suffers from hierarchal income inequality, marking large differences not only between genders but between classes. There are currently large unemployment and underemployment rates in the D.R. The economy is highly dependent upon services; trading, manufacturing, telecommunications and construction; agricultural resources and remittances from emigrated Dominicans in the United States. (Britannica, 2016) They are currently rebounding from the global recession with an improving fiscal situation.
Articles
Hard Rock International To Launch Santo Domingo Resort In 2017
Earlier this year, the All Inclusive Collection announced that they will be opening a second Hard Rock Hotel & Casino location in the Dominican Republic.
The new 400 room resort style hotel will be opening in late 2017 in the capital city, Santo Domingo. The hotel is set to enhance the night life in the city and hopefully bring tourism a bit more inland from Punta Cana. It is said that this hotel will be another “familiar brand to American travelers in the historic Santo Domingo.” (Major) A new roadway was recently constructed between Punta Cana and Santo Domingo to reduce traveling time and allow guest to visit both destinations in the same …show more content…
trip.
House Hunting in … the Dominican Republic
There was a recent article in the New York Times detailing the Real Estate market in the Dominican Republic.
It is said that the market has not fully recovered from the 2008 world financial crash. Mr. Herrera Gutierrez is quoted saying, “The bottom has been hit and now, up it goes.” The article is focused on the luxury home buying market, with the majority of buyers coming from the Northern America. The homes are being purchased for retirement and vacation or rental properties and boast some of the lowest per square foot prices in the Caribbean. (Popescu) The most interesting piece of the article is the fact that the majority of the buyers are from the North America because they recognize the Re-Max brand in the DR. Home buying in the Dominican Republic is often handled through a lawyer; the buy and the seller much each obtain their own separate counsel. The lawyer plays a crucial role in the home-buying processing, ensuring that the due diligence is complete when it comes to the house being lien
free.
Conclusion
With tourism on the rise and some of the best prices in the Caribbean for luxury homes, it’s no wonder the Dominican Republic is one the fastest growing economies in the Caribbean. Throughout their history, they have been mainly known for the exportation of their agriculture, but things are certainly taking a turn with tourism industry skyrocketing this nation’s economy. Whether you’re in the market for a place to retire, vacation, or simply looking to establish a business in the busy tourist central, the Dominican Republic may be the place to start looking. If you weren’t familiar with the Dominican Republic before, there is no better time than now to begin to explore this rising country.
In 1492, while on a journey to the “New World,” Christopher Columbus discovered an island that he would call Hispaniola. At the time of discovery, The Taino Indians occupied the island. After years of Spanish reign the Taino Indians eventually died off, due to years of slavery and diseases brought to the island by the Spaniards. In 1496 the capital city Santo Domingo was founded. The nation toggled between Spanish rule and a Haiti invasion eventually recognizing Independence on February 27, 1844 as the “Dominican Republic.” (PwC, 2015)
The Dominican Republic occupies the eastern two-thirds of the Hispaniola Island today. The island lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean and is about the size of New Hampshire. …show more content…
(Gonzalez, 2016) The Dominican Republic has a population of about 10.41 million. (World Bank, 2016) The country has a pretty diverse mix of people, with about half of them claiming to be of “mixed” ethnicity. Although English is pretty well known throughout within the tourist industry, Spanish is the official language of the country. Dominican pesos are the national currency, currently converting at about 46 Dominican Pesos for $1. The economy is thriving through the countries servicing industry, predominately, tourism, retail, manufacturing and financial services.
While the tourism industry is thriving, the country is still continuing to have major issues with its immigration. Particularly the influx of Haitian’s in the country. The unemployment and underemployment rates are pretty high. They have also recently reported that they are seeing an increase in Puerto Ricans attempting to obtain citizenship and escape from the economic status of the United States.
Business Climate
The Dominican Republic is a very large tourist destination. It is one of the most visited destinations in the Caribbean. In 2015 the Dominican Republic hosted over 2 million tourists. The boost in this sector alone is allowing numerous opportunities to expand business opportunities and create possible jobs. They recently made some significant changes in the requirements to establish a business, making it less time-consuming.
Business Culture
The Dominican Republic is known for having a fairly formal, yet informal business culture. Appointments are typically required and punctuality is a must. First impressions are the utmost importance and first meetings are typically like that in the United States, pretty formal. In the D.R. first impressions are everything, you will need to arrive on time and dressed well. Business on this level is similar to that of business in the United States; networking and personal contacts are an extremely important concept of business relations in the Dominican Republic. The saying “it’s not what you know, but who you know,” also plays very heavily in the Dominican society. Dominicans are very status-conscious making it utterly important to be respectful and mindful of those in senior leadership positions.
Current Economic Climate
The Dominican Republic has been standing out as one of the fastest emerging economies in the Americas since the mid to early 90’s. In past years the Dominican Republic has been recognized primarily for the exportation of sugar, coffee and tobacco. In more recent years, however, their servicing industry has taken over the island as the largest employer, attributed to the growth in construction, tourism and free trade zones. This country suffers from hierarchal income inequality, marking large differences not only between genders but between classes. There are currently large unemployment and underemployment rates in the D.R. The economy is highly dependent upon services; trading, manufacturing, telecommunications and construction; agricultural resources and remittances from emigrated Dominicans in the United States. (Britannica, 2016) They are currently rebounding from the global recession with an improving fiscal situation.
Articles
Hard Rock International To Launch Santo Domingo Resort In 2017
Earlier this year, the All Inclusive Collection announced that they will be opening a second Hard Rock Hotel & Casino location in the Dominican Republic.
The new 400 room resort style hotel will be opening in late 2017 in the capital city, Santo Domingo. The hotel is set to enhance the night life in the city and hopefully bring tourism a bit more inland from Punta Cana. It is said that this hotel will be another “familiar brand to American travelers in the historic Santo Domingo.” (Major) A new roadway was recently constructed between Punta Cana and Santo Domingo to reduce traveling time and allow guest to visit both destinations in the same …show more content…
trip.
House Hunting in … the Dominican Republic
There was a recent article in the New York Times detailing the Real Estate market in the Dominican Republic.
It is said that the market has not fully recovered from the 2008 world financial crash. Mr. Herrera Gutierrez is quoted saying, “The bottom has been hit and now, up it goes.” The article is focused on the luxury home buying market, with the majority of buyers coming from the Northern America. The homes are being purchased for retirement and vacation or rental properties and boast some of the lowest per square foot prices in the Caribbean. (Popescu) The most interesting piece of the article is the fact that the majority of the buyers are from the North America because they recognize the Re-Max brand in the DR. Home buying in the Dominican Republic is often handled through a lawyer; the buy and the seller much each obtain their own separate counsel. The lawyer plays a crucial role in the home-buying processing, ensuring that the due diligence is complete when it comes to the house being lien
free.
Conclusion
With tourism on the rise and some of the best prices in the Caribbean for luxury homes, it’s no wonder the Dominican Republic is one the fastest growing economies in the Caribbean. Throughout their history, they have been mainly known for the exportation of their agriculture, but things are certainly taking a turn with tourism industry skyrocketing this nation’s economy. Whether you’re in the market for a place to retire, vacation, or simply looking to establish a business in the busy tourist central, the Dominican Republic may be the place to start looking. If you weren’t familiar with the Dominican Republic before, there is no better time than now to begin to explore this rising country.