SANTO DOMINGO – “We chose the Dominican Republic because we see a developing country with a very well-defined policy, significant economic growth indicators, and benefits that it offers to both foreign companies and clients who invest in these real estate projects,” is the response offered by Alejandro Consuegra Santos and Jorge Iván Ocampo, two Colombian businessmen, when El Inmobiliario asked them about their reasons for investing in this Caribbean nation.
Adding to the benefits is the human warmth that flows from the Dominican people, "how they accept you, how they open their arms to people who come and invest, that is, it is a country that is carrying out a policy of attracting foreign investment very well focused.".
The two businessmen run the construction company Consuegra Santos, a family brand with 44 years in the Colombian market, boasting a portfolio of over 2,000 housing units and 150 commercial spaces. They had been exploring options for expanding their services abroad for more than three years.
“We saw all those advantages and started looking for a good location to build a project that would be very similar to what we do in Colombia, which are housing projects for middle and upper social strata,” the executives explain.
They added that they conducted studies in several countries, finding in the Dominican Republic a great deal of legal, economic and political stability "which for us is one of the most important elements.".
For those investors who are thinking of bringing their capital to the country, Alejandro Consuegra Santos and Jorge Iván Campo tell them that “they have the same treatment as Dominicans, in rights and duties, secondly, the political stability that this country has shown, has defined legal issues which offers peace of mind,” they emphasize.
As with everything in life, there will surely be many things to improve, they consider, "but within what exists in the region, it is a country that opens its doors and that additionally has a public policy to attract investors that makes it increasingly interesting.".
Fearless
Consuegra Santos and Ocampo are not intimidated by the real estate fraud allegations that have surfaced in the country in recent weeks. They understand that for them, coming from another country, it presents a challenge in dealing with potential clients.
They assert that they have partnered with a major business group in the region, which, along with their years of experience in the South American country, constitutes their best guarantee. “We have thoroughly researched the situation and are surrounded by highly credible people in the country,” they emphasize.
They explain that the project with which they will inaugurate their work in the Dominican Republic has the backing of a construction company, like the one they own, with many years of experience and significant solidity that generates the security required when making an investment.
They are referring to Palm View, the first complex of 250 apartments, with one, two and three bedrooms, that they will build in Cabeza de Toro, Punta Cana, for whose project they have created the company Entorno Group in the country.
They assure that it is a real estate development that will have sufficient comforts and amenities to appeal to the taste of buyers, with a strategic location, in a point that aims to become a space of development within the main Dominican tourist center.
“As a project, the units are designed by experienced Colombian architects, with a good layout, well-lit, generous spaces, which meet all the expectations of those who wish to acquire, within an 18-hole golf course, access to a private beach club, amenities that differentiate it,” the investors comment.
They maintain that initially they will focus on building housing units, which is their strength and area of expertise. They wish to apply the best practices they use in their native Colombia, which they have learned over time and through the numerous projects they have built there.
“We are very judicious in the construction process; it doesn't mean that if we find some kind of commercial or industrial project along the way we couldn't take it on, but it would be hasty. We are going with the housing project, to carry it out so that we can show the Dominican Republic who we are, that we came not just for a project, but to stay and develop a task for a long time.”.
Although they affirm that it's still possible to work in Colombia, their arrival in the Dominican Republic is a result of the company's growth and, on the other hand, a way of not putting all their eggs in one basket given the situation in their home country. "If the economic situation starts to deteriorate, these moves are part of what a company must do to maintain stability in the face of an uncertain future," they explained.
Cover photo: Alejandro Consuegra Santos, Belkis Cuello and Jorge Iván Campo. (Justo Feliz/El Inmobiliario).
