How Santiago Changed How I Think About the Dominican Republic

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I’ve visited Santiago a bunch of times over the years.

I always thought of it as a clean, organized city — but one that lacked a few things for me.

In the Dominican Republic, beaches are the number one asset. And Santiago doesn’t have one.

So it felt logical to assume the market was limited when it came to long-term real estate value. On top of that, my trips around the city made it feel more like a big town wanting to be a city — not necessarily a place I could see myself raising a family.

Those two variables had me either limiting Santiago… or eliminating it entirely.

When people asked me:

Where would you live with a family?
Punta Cana. Cabarete. Piantini in Santo Domingo.
Maybe Santiago at #4 or #5.

Where’s the best real estate appreciation?
Miches. Punta Cana. Cabo Rojo. Las Terrenas.
Santiago wasn’t even part of the conversation.

That changed.

After spending real time exploring the city — with guidance from David Bermúdez and his family at Camp David — and hearing what’s actually happening behind the scenes… it all clicked.

My family list changed.

Santiago moved to #2.

And if you’ve followed me for a while, this will sound like a hot take:

If it’s not Punta Cana… it’s Santiago.

Here’s why.

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First, the city is organized.

It’s easy to navigate. The roadways make sense. Drainage systems are clearly thought out. You don’t feel like you’re fighting the city just to move through it.

Second, the city is clean.
Noticeably clean. Punta Cana is clean. Parts of Santo Domingo are clean. But Santiago stood out.

Third — and this is the big one — the city is futuristic.

If you’re thinking like I do — not just about living in the DR, but about your kids having real opportunity here — Santiago has made some very smart bets:

• A monorail system for movement through the city
• Airport expansion
• A serious push into medical tourism
• Strong industrial zones and zonas francas

They’ve essentially created a Miami-type market… without the beach.

When I step back and look at it through that lens, Santiago lands in my top 5 for real estate appreciation potential.

Yes, this is speculative.
Yes, this is my opinion.

But at some point you have to recognize the brilliance of the policymakers and influential families there.

How do you stand out as a destination in a country known for things you can’t claim?

Beach access will always be king in the Caribbean. Always.

So Santiago leaned into clean infrastructure, modern medical facilities, industrial opportunity, and dense, livable neighborhoods with secure, high-end mini-suburbs inside the city.

You get weather.
You get opportunity.
You get access.

And that can quietly fuel real estate prices over time.

Now — here’s the part I don’t want anyone to misread.

Punta Cana is still king.

For families, there’s still:
• Less crime
• More open and green space
• An airport that’s 5–10x more significant in global connectivity
• More money and investment per capita than anywhere else in the country

The Santiago trip elevated my view of Santiago — but it also solidified something else:

While I may have slept on Santiago…
a lot of people are still sleeping on Punta Cana.

They’re stuck on:

“It’s not real DR.”
“It’s just a tourist town.”

Both of those are false.

There are seven bilingual, K-12, U.S.-accredited schools in Punta Cana, all full — plus multiple Spanish-only private schools. That doesn’t happen by accident. That’s supply responding to demand from families moving in from Santo Domingo, Santiago, and other countries.

Tourist hub? Yes.
But also a real city and real community.

And it’s filled with Dominican people — just higher on the socioeconomic ladder.

My wife, who was born and raised in Higüey, said it best when people repeat the “not real DR” thing:

“Our lives here are dictated by Dominican laws, Dominican customs, and Dominican policies — for us and for all of our neighbors… who are overwhelmingly Dominican.”

Ironically, what I saw in Santiago actually elevated Punta Cana even more for me.

Here’s why.

The Punta Cana airport can’t be beat — and that gives the region a massive leg up in logistics and production.

Santiago is winning in things like textiles — lower-cost, lower-margin labor.

Punta Cana, on the other hand, is attracting:
• International airline maintenance hubs
• Semiconductor component manufacturing
• High-value logistics and air-based production

The logistics hub in Punta Cana has to justify shipments by air — which means it can only manufacture or store higher-end products.

That matters.

Then there’s the beach — still the top asset in the country.

Yes, there are real challenges: crowding, sargassum, infrastructure pressure.
But because Punta Cana is the cash cow, money gets directed there first to mitigate those risks.

And then there’s Grupo Punta Cana.

They own the airport.
Let me say that again.

They own the biggest airport in the country.

That means a war chest — one they’ve already deployed in Puerto Plata, Cabo Rojo, and Miches.

But their core focus?

Punta Cana.

They didn’t just build resorts.
They built an airport.
Then neighborhoods.
Then schools.
Then shopping centers.
Then luxury — quietly.

Cap Cana talks about high-end living loudly.
Punta Cana Resort executed that vision quietly.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve shared photos from Tortuga or Hacienda and people respond with:

“Wow — Cap Cana is beautiful.”

…having no idea the image was from Punta Cana Resort or that the Resort even exists!

Here’s the kicker.

Show me another developer that builds a community —
then moves into it for generations.
Educates their kids there.
Lives it.

This isn’t glazing Punta Cana.
It’s recognizing a structural advantage as we go forward.

Santiago has a powerful conglomerate of families co-owning hospitals and major assets with a shared goal of advancing the city — and that’s exactly why Santiago is ascending.

But from this expat’s perspective, that collective influence still doesn’t match the power of one family running the economic engine of the country.

Because Punta Cana is the engine.

Understanding that hierarchy — not just the hype — is how you make better decisions in the Dominican Republic.

For any help you need with a realtor, attorney, mortgage broker or anyone else i’ve worked with to help with your Dominican Republic needs - click here for my referrals page.

If you haven’t watched the Santiago video yet, it’s here 👇

— Jamie