[AdSuiteAdobe]

This is a serious question, I have been thinking about it lately and, I have come to the conclusion that the majority of people in the DR have a higher net worth than those in the US. They actually own their homes (no matter how sencilla they may be), own their motorcycle, but their food with cash, own their car outright, pay little to no property tax, and typically have considerable savings.

I have friends in the US who appear to be well off, but I can guarantee their net worth is actually negative. House on a 30 year mortgage with maybe 20% paid off, car is either a lease or bought with financing that has high interest rates, eating out and groceries are typically paid with credit cards until they get paid to pay them down. I almost feel like they are so leveraged that anyone lower-middle class or above in the DR actually is better off than they are. I understand credit here exists in the form of "fiando" but people are MUCH more likely to pay these off on time since their name is on the line. In the US people can go years ignoring their credit cards and just accumulate interest until it gets to a point where they just default.

Another point is people here that have absolutely no income eat MUCH better than their US counterparts. Healthy foods here are actually cheaper than processed food, and others are more likely to help them out. When we first started our internet business in the US, my buddy and I ate ramen noodles and McD double cheeseburgers everyday for 2$ per day, for 100 pesos a day here somebody can have one huge nutritious meal with a ton of vitamins and minerals. Maybe the idea that things here are so bad comes from the Dominican trait of over-exaggeration how bad things are.. ask any Dominican business owner how business is doing and you will get a very similar answer almost every time .. "Las cosas estan mal" "Pero estamo vivo gracias a Dios" "Ya tu sabe" .. Maybe it's all a hoax just to make us think it's worse than it REALLY IS!!?

[RedImmik]

Are you Pichardo's sister by chance?

[AdSuiteAdobe]

Are you Pichardo's sister by chance?

Are you Cris Colon's boyfriend?

[muytreda]

You make an interesting point. There are two answers:

Yes and no

Yes
Yes if you look at amount of leverage. Luckily personal credit is not as widespread in DR society and thusly people own what they have free and clear in much higher percentage then in the US. Exceptions typically are moto's and cars if they are still young or have been able to secure credit on them.

No
No if you look at the general state of the economy. Generally the DR consumers have less and they have less of it then the US consumers. The ability of the DR economy to generate new money going forward is severely hampered by massive debt and endemic corruption, when compared to the US. Thus this situation is likely not going to change.

Concluding

It can be stated that the future economic earning capacity is generally much higher in the US then in the DR. Thusly the economic outlook is better in the US, this goes also for consumers.

On a personal level the consumers in the DR are generally less in debt then in the US making them better positioned to deal with a lower economic outlook. American consumers IMO should be much more frugal in their spending because although their percentage chances are better, if they are hit with personal setbacks the consequences can be devestating

[BILBONDER]

The US is a credit driven economy (or used to be until Obama took over) and that with a relatively functioning government (low taxes, high infrastructure) while the DR has very little credit available and a very corrupt government(high taxes, low infrastructure). The effect for the common man in the States is they have to maintain employment at the risk of losing everything up until their twilight years while for the common man here doesn't work generally as hard and consequently has less material possessions. Also, if it weren't for the bad water, Dominicans penchant for sopita and "grasa" with plantain 5 times a week and they'd probably live on average 15 years longer than they do now.

[appleiphoneees]

I struggled in the DR for 5 years trying to make a decent living on the North Coast despite a Computing Science degree and multiple years of technical experience in programming and admin systems support. I ended up doing odd jobs, website development work or wireless setups, things outside my expertise. I made enough to live on but never enough to build any savings or much less buy a house or any other high dollar items. I've been back in the U.S. for less than two years. I've bought a house, a nice auto and work and live in a great environment without worrying about high crime or having electricity and water.

Don't get me wrong, I loved my time in the DR wrought with adventures, but the difference is night and day as far of quality of life and opportunities. Sure, if you have a big nest egg saved up here in the U.S. before going to the DR, or sell a big house or business, then of course it makes your life much easier. But, if you're a gringo going over to the DR to work and try and make a comparable living, forget it. In the U.S. I'm very marketable with many job options that pay good money. In the DR I'm just another extranjero with a skill set that most businesses there find useless. I mean, how many North Coast hotels, restaurants and colmados need a Oracle database administrator.

[Desflahd]

Sayanora before you ask this question again take a look at different websites loaded with Dominican women looking for foreign men. True US women are online looking for partners but 99% are looking for US based women. I'm referring to those women looking for a productive relationship. Unless if one is well off before going to the DR he/she will struggle in various ways. There are way more older vehicles running in the DR like Toyota Corollas or Hondas dating back to 1980's versions than in the US. In the US if a person has a so-so job and wants to have a new or newer vehicle every 3 or 4 years it can easuly be obtainable unlike the DR where you have to have a heck of a job or good money saved up to do the same...its just one example to compare both countries with. Next I will attend physical therapy school to obtain my doctorate in physical therapy for the love it to cure people to help them recover but will also be able to make a modest living doing so unfortunately I couldn't do the same in the DR very little physical therapy opportunities there to make a competitive income and live a good lifestyle.

[AdSuiteAdobe]

Sayanora before you ask this question again take a look at different websites loaded with Dominican women looking for foreign men. True US women are online looking for partners but 99% are looking for US based women. I'm referring to those women looking for a productive relationship. Unless if one is well off before going to the DR he/she will struggle in various ways. There are way more older vehicles running in the DR like Toyota Corollas or Hondas dating back to 1980's versions than in the US. In the US if a person has a so-so job and wants to have a new or newer vehicle every 3 or 4 years it can easuly be obtainable unlike the DR where you have to have a heck of a job or good money saved up to do the same...its just one example to compare both countries with. Next I will attend physical therapy school to obtain my doctorate in physical therapy for the love it to cure people to help them recover but will also be able to make a modest living doing so unfortunately I couldn't do the same in the DR very little physical therapy opportunities there to make a competitive income and live a good lifestyle.

Golddiggers in the US don't have to look for foreign men..

[Jueqelyl]

This is a serious question, I have been thinking about it lately and, I have come to the conclusion that the majority of people in the DR have a higher net worth than those in the US. They actually own their homes (no matter how sencilla they may be), own their motorcycle, but their food with cash, own their car outright, pay little to no property tax, and typically have considerable savings.

well, the thing about houses is that majority of dominicans do not actually own them as such. the poor live on stolen property, the land they built on was never purchased, there are no titles, no paperwork, no documents. every one is willing to stand on the top of their d***s to scrap up monies for the house, that may be constructed over the years, piece by piece, floor by floor. mortgages are impossibly difficult to pay off, the interest rates are way higher than in europe.
motos, cars, computers and other expensive items are bought by the wondrous means of fiao, the interest rate being as high as 20% a month. but it is important to show off so people make sacrifices.
also, the only people who actually do have savings are the rich ones. i do not know a single poor dominican who manages to put away few pesos every month. most folks here live from one payday to another. whatever is not eaten and spent straight away gets lost anyway in payments for luxurious items. even a middle class does not have much in terms of savings. whatever they have they invest in their own comfort and in the education of their kids.

[tropicana]

The US is a credit driven economy (or used to be until Obama took over)...

Dang, Chip, don't you ever give it a rest? I swear, there's so much "Obama-is-an-evil-bogeyman" non-thinking passing for political discourse these days, it's truly hard to have a grown-up conversation.

To the OP, I'd say the economy is far worse in the DR.

Using the top echelon of the socio-economic strata amongst Dominicans, along with expats (many of whom are either pensioners or independently, erm, "comfortable" prior to arrival) to determine overall economic "health" of a society is misleading. The DR has made tremendous strides in the last decade, but on both an absolute as well as per-capita basis, still lags far behind all first world nations, including/especially the US.

Personally, I'd do comparisons to other caribbean/central american nations, in which the DR would likely be more competitive.

[Desflahd]

DV8 good valid points.... interesting to know what is the percentage of jeepetas dated 2007 and above that are being financed? The remaining monthly income will be spent quite frugally.

[BILBONDER]

With all due respect can one say they own a house when the fact is the bank own's most of it? I expect the more correct thing would say is that one is paying for a house and one day it will be theirs if everything goes as planned. For millions and millions of Americans lately, things have not being going as planned.

[tq4F7YKs]

I would say the economy in the US is worst and people have more to lose than dominicans. As the OP stated they have most things already paid off so they can withstand and are more tolerant to bad economic times.

[popsicesHoupe]

In the US though you live a comfortable life you surely are heavily in debt; Not just with house, car, credit cards but even a simple cellphone most people don't even "really" own, as they obtained a special price on the device as long as they commit to a 2 year plan.

but the plus side is that there is more work and higher pay in the US.

I guess if you are contempt with the simple things in life; you will consider living in DR more fruitful.

[wJswn5l3]

I would that the overall economy of the DR is worse, but Dominicans are able to live with far less. For example if the power goes off in Texas, Mid-West...etc during the summer in the USA people die like flys because of the heat and no air-conditioning or fans. That doesn´t happen in the DR.There always some kind of inexpensive vegetable or fruit to eat in the DR, even in the cities, not so in the USA.

[AdSuiteAdobe]

DV8 good valid points.... interesting to know what is the percentage of jeepetas dated 2007 and above that are being financed? The remaining monthly income will be spent quite frugally.

I don't know of any that are financed here, extremely unlikely to get a 2007+ vehicle on financing, more likely to get a PoS 85 camry with financing.

[Krruqgwt]

The premise of the OP is patently absurd and shows a total lack of economic knowledge.

The Per Capita GDP of the U.S. is around $48,000.

The Per Capita GDP of the Dominican Republic is around $9800.

The US is about 5 times as large and more productive, per capita.

I don't know what other metric would show otherwise.

But I also agree with M-D: Dominicans are better prepared to live a primordial existence than Americans are should the world economy collapse. Well, except for survivalists in Montana and Idaho.

[Npbfamgt]

But I also agree with M-D: Dominicans are better prepared to live a primordial existence than Americans are should the world economy collapse. Logically,those that know what it is to have their electricity turned off and pay a kid 20 pesos to get water to their apt. and how to make it for a week with a little rice, beans, eggs and smoked porkchop with a nice aguacate for a special treat and how to get around pidiendo bola aren't as phased by an economic downturn as spoiled Americans are.

[Jueqelyl]

with all due respect, CB, i think that OP, apart from stirring controversy, is looking for less mathematical approach to this matter. let us imagine a sumo wrestler and one of 'em flat chested skinny bitches from catwalks. two human beings with different needs. while musahimaru koyo will require truckload of food a day a lollipop model will possibly munch on an apple and half of an egg.

americans require a lot more to feel happy, stuffed and satisfied, not only because they resemble musashimaru-san in size an appetite but also because wealth is something they got used to. an average american does not know hunger, he eat regularly. average american does not walk anywhere, cars are cheap and teens often have their rides as soon as they can get the license.
but an average dominican... he manages to live on less. a lot less. he's lived on little for as long as he can remember. he will live happily in a wooden shack, ride a moto and eat once a day when necessary.

[AdSuiteAdobe]

The premise of the OP is patently absurd and shows a total lack of economic knowledge.

The Per Capita GDP of the U.S. is around $48,000.

The Per Capita GDP of the Dominican Republic is around $9800.

The US is about 5 times as large and more productive, per capita.

I don't know what other metric would show otherwise.

But I also agree with M-D: Dominicans are better prepared to live a primordial existence than Americans are should the world economy collapse. Well, except for survivalists in Montana and Idaho.

I understand a little bit about economics.. How does national debt figure into the equation?

1 United States15,813,740,000,00026 June 2012

80 Dominican Republic11,626,000,000