PUNTA CANA– Colombia continues to lead the statistics from the Ministry of Tourism (MITUR) as one of the destinations that brings the most tourists to the Dominican Republic in recent times. The reasons are analyzed by one of the leading real estate developers in that South American country.
“The high level of organization in Punta Cana makes those who travel to this tourist destination feel like they are arriving in the first world, while being close and at very reasonable costs,” explains Pablo Torres, leader of Keller Williams RED in Colombia.
“Furthermore, our country is undergoing a major political transformation, which is causing many existing investors to seek alternative destinations. The Dominican Republic has become an excellent option for Colombians, offering them a safe and attractive market return on their capital,” he notes.
He says that Colombians come to the Dominican Republic also because of the proximity between the two countries and the fact that there are direct flights.
Torres was one of the speakers at the "Millionaire Investor" course, which was recently held by Keller Williams Punta Cana, with the participation of a large group of real estate agents interested in learning tools to become investors.
The real estate advisor considers the favorable conditions in which the real estate career is practiced in the country, highlighting the average property prices and the range of commissions received for sales.
“Market conditions in Colombia are quite different; the average property price is $80,000 and commissions are 1.5%, hence we are talking about a radically different business, from an economic standpoint,” he explains when comparing the Dominican and Colombian markets.
He explains that although Colombia stipulates a 3% commission for real estate brokerage, transactions always involve more than one agent, resulting in a commission of 1.5%. He adds that Colombia has approximately 350,000 independent real estate agents scattered throughout the market without any brand representation, who work for 1% or even less, which creates a competitive market.
Building entrepreneurs
During his presentation, Torres showed attendees the methodology for building an investment business leveraged in the real estate business, taken from the book "The Millionaire Investor" by Gary Keller, owner of the worldwide franchise.
“Here we teach our associates to become entrepreneurs in the real estate sector, not salespeople. When you change that mindset, you have different expectations of income. This book teaches us what we want to do with that income: whether to spend it or become a great investor. In addition, our agents are the first to see opportunities because they are the ones in the market, continuously analyzing what is happening,” he elaborates.
As a leader, he affirms that continuous knowledge and learning has worked for him, "which is something that never stops because what I can see today is based on what I know today; if tomorrow I know a little more, I can see my future further away or bigger. The continuous training process is about being and doing, about best practices, about how I become the best version of an entrepreneur in order to capitalize on the opportunities that the business has.".
He states that el inmobiliario is a profitable and lucrative business if viewed as a business. “If you look at it as a house seller, you'll just be another player in the market, and a seller has no other intention than to pursue a commission.”.
