SANTO DOMINGO.– 75% of the trusts established in the Dominican Republic up to the present month of May 2024 correspond to real estate development, reported Noel Bou, business director of Fiduciaria Reservas, yesterday.
According to statistics provided by the professional during his presentation at the “1st Construction Forum Copymecon 2024: Present and Future of Public and Private Investment”, there are currently 1,662 trusts in the country dedicated to construction, emphasizing that since the creation of Law 189-11 to date, more than 160,000 units have been delivered through the low-cost housing program.
Bou highlighted the impact that the trust structure has had on the real estate sector in recent years, noting that in 2023 alone, 65,000 housing units were delivered through low-cost housing trusts.
He explained that from 2019 to 2022, 26,175 low-cost housing units were managed through the Banreservas Trust Company.
The official explained that of the low-cost housing trust assets, Banco de Reservas holds a 22% stake, FIDUCORP 18.1%, Fiduciaria La Nacional 17.9%, Fiduciaria Popular 17.4%, BHD 10.1%, Universal 8.7%, DAF Partners 2.6%, APAP 2.2% and HTS Fiduciaria 0.1%.
The business director of Fiduciaria Reservas highlighted the confidence generated by projects built through trusts, because it is the trust that manages the resources of the buyers.
“These are milestones created around the trust, through which the real estate developer complies with the appropriate permits or technical aspects of construction. With these milestones, the trustee only allows you to use those funds from the buyers when you meet the requirements,” he noted.
He said that this has been the major change brought about by Law 189-11 on the Mortgage Market and Trusts, which offers confidence to various stakeholders, especially to buyers purchasing a dream home. "The trust provides the guarantee that we have these parameters that the developer must meet, and it also gives confidence to the bank.".
He opined that this law came to boost Dominican real estate development and the increase of housing units in the Dominican Republic.
He stated that regarding the issue of real estate scams, there are buyers who invest through a trust project because they know the existing guarantee, especially Dominicans residing abroad.
