Learn more about the new Real Estate Rental and Eviction Law.

Santo Domingo —Approved in a single reading by the Chamber of Deputies, the new Law on Real Estate Rentals and Evictions updates the current legal framework, creating regulations, conditions, and obligations to provide legal certainty in the development of the country’s real estate projects.

The current legislative piece replaces Law 4314, enacted by Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina on October 22, 1955, which, since then, has only presented slight modifications with Law 1799 of February 5, 1988.

The new regulations establish in Article 7 that the payment of the brokerage commission will be the responsibility of the person who hires it, directly establishing that the party requesting the broker’s services must cover that commission.

In addition, the paragraph states that the legal costs of the rental or lease agreement must be shared equally between the landlord and the tenant.

Article 14 specifies that the landlord or tenant must register the rental agreement with the Civil Registry and Mortgage Office of their nearest town hall in order to enforce their rights against non-parties.

If a citizen fails to pay the rent stipulated in the rental agreement, the landlord may seize the tenant’s property to guarantee payment of the outstanding amounts. This is established in Article 17.

In the event of difficulties arising from the return of deposits or guarantees, these will be resolved by the magistrates’ courts, and in the case of rental housing, by the court of first instance.

For businesses and non-profit organizations, please get in touch with the jurisdiction to which the property belongs.