SANTO DOMINGO.– Following the COVID-19 pandemic, real estate agencies have grown in the country, and with them, the AEI, the Association of Real Estate Agents and Companies, has experienced an increase in its agent membership of around 70% and a 118% increase in the registration of companies that have become part of the association.
“Two years ago I took over the AEI with 400 agents and so, and today we are 775, an increase of 71%. As for companies, there were 80 and currently we have 175, representing a growth of 118% in the two years,” explains Alberto Bogaert, president of the entity.
He clarifies that although there are 775 registered agents, those who are part of the 175 firms are also protected by the entity, so he estimates that the number of brokers linked to the organization reaches 2,500, mainly distributed in Punta Cana, Santiago and Santo Domingo.
“This growth goes hand in hand with the proposal we have made these past two years, based primarily on training, which is the main demand of the agents to the AEI, and we are responding to it in an exceptional way,” he explained.
The entity brings together in its members the main Dominican real estate firms, who generally use the AEI to train their new employees, through the CBR 01 Certification, intended for beginners; in addition to the advanced program that it provides with the CBR02.
2023 Plans
Commenting on the plans for 2023, Bogaert assures that they will continue “offering constant and quality training to all those interested in entering the real estate industry and also to all our members; we are committed to a high-level, renewed and updated education,” he explains.
To this year's agenda, the union leader adds the offering of in-person international certifications for the East, North, and National District regions. "We're starting 2023 with the relaunch of the East Zone chapter, based in Punta Cana, which will undoubtedly be organized soon, given our constantly growing membership in the area," Bogaert emphasizes.
It states that in the coming weeks they will convene the sector's leadership to outline strategies on issues related to real estate development in the country, and that they will also be launching AEI Mujeres (Women in the Real Estate Industry).
“This 2023 we have many surprise activities planned, which will be announced in due course, and of course, the usual AEI congress, which this year will be phenomenal. This year, without a doubt, the real estate market will be important; major projects are already being announced, many of our real estate companies are expanding and growing, and we will see the fruits of the millions of tourists who visited us, many of whom will return this time with real estate tourism to invest in this paradise.”.
