What to Do When a Dominican Real Estate Agent Behaves Badly

Something went wrong. The deposit is not where it should be. The property was advertised by someone who turned out not to be instructed on it. You were told the title was clean and it was not. Or the agent simply stopped answering once the commission cleared.

The common assumption is that there is nothing to be done — that in the Dominican Republic your only options are a lawyer or letting it go. That is not quite right. There is a functioning disciplinary process, most foreign buyers have never heard of it, and it is free to use.

Here is what it is, what it can and cannot do for you, and how to use it.

The Short Answer

If the agent is a member of the Asociación de Agentes y Empresas Inmobiliarias (AEI), you can file a written complaint with its Comité de Ética. The committee hears both sides and can impose sanctions running from a public reprimand through a six-month suspension to permanent expulsion from the association.

If the agent is not a member, this route is closed and your options are civil or criminal. Which is precisely why checking membership before you engage anyone matters so much.

What the Disciplinary System Actually Is

AEI's code of ethics establishes two bodies:

• The Comité de Ética — oversees application of the code
• The Comité Disciplinario — resolves conflicts

Decisions can be appealed to the Junta Directiva, the association's board. Importantly, a sanction is executed while an appeal is pending — it does not sit frozen until the appeal resolves.

The code also obliges members to prefer AEI's own arbitration over the courts, and to conduct business in a way that avoids litigation in the first place. For you, that is useful: a member has a professional incentive to settle a complaint at committee stage rather than let it escalate.

What Counts as a Violation

Not everything that annoys you is a breach. These are the obligations the code actually imposes, and any of them being broken is a legitimate basis for a complaint.

On honesty and diligence:

• Acting with loyalty and truthfulness in negotiations
• Verifying the client's identity, legal capacity, and the facts about the property
• Presenting offers objectively and promptly
• Maintaining confidentiality, including after the engagement ends
• Consulting a specialist — and referring you to a lawyer — where the situation calls for it

On money and authorisation:

• Never receiving a deposit in their own name
• Never advertising a property without the owner's written authorisation
• Not misusing property access granted for inspection
• Protecting the rights and safety of the person they represent

On documentation:

• Putting agreements in writing with clear terms
• Keeping relevant documents available
• Informing you that you may work with a different broker

On advertising:

• Competing fairly, without damaging competitors
• Not using photographs or video from another broker's listing without authorisation
• Only using the AEI logo while genuinely in compliance with the statutes and code

That last one is worth noting. Displaying AEI's logo while breaching the code is itself a breach.

How to File

The code sets out the mechanics clearly.

1. Put it in writing. Complaints must be written. A verbal report to someone at an event does not start the process.

2. Bring evidence. The code requires pruebas fehacientes — reliable, convincing proof. In practice: the brokerage agreement, WhatsApp threads, emails, bank transfer records, the listing as advertised, screenshots with dates. Assemble these before you file, not after.

3. Send it to AEI. Their contact page carries the current details. The headquarters is at Calle Cub Scout #16, Plaza Franchesi, Local 203, Ens. Naco, Santo Domingo, and there are regional delegations for the Zona Norte and Zona Este.

4. Stay engaged. This one catches people out. The committee can dismiss a complaint after 30 days if the complainant appears to have lost interest. If you file and go quiet, your complaint dies. Respond to correspondence.

5. Both sides are heard. The committee hears the accused as well as you. But if the accused fails to appear without justification, or does not produce evidence, the code allows the accusation to be taken as established.

Key Takeaway: Silence works against them, not you. An agent who ignores an ethics complaint is in a worse position than one who answers it.

What the Sanctions Actually Are

Three levels, applied according to severity:

1. Reprimand — verbal and private, or written, privately or publicly
2. Temporary suspension — up to six months
3. Permanent expulsion

A suspended member keeps paying dues but loses participation in assemblies and access to member benefits — including, critically, the MLS and the ability to publish listings, which is restricted to members in good standing.

Expulsion can be applied immediately in serious cases, without a prior warning step.

There is also a provision worth knowing if you dealt with a junior agent: a member broker is responsible for the conduct of agents and associates working under them who are not themselves affiliated. If the person who mishandled your transaction was operating under a member firm, the firm carries the responsibility.

What This Process Cannot Do

Be realistic about the limits.

It will not get your money back. This is a professional disciplinary process, not a court. The committee can sanction a member's standing in the association. It cannot order restitution or enforce a payment.

It only reaches members. No membership, no jurisdiction.

It is not a criminal complaint. If what happened to you was fraud — a forged document, a deposit taken and disappeared, a sale of property the seller did not own — that is a matter for a Dominican lawyer and potentially the Ministerio Público, and you should be pursuing that in parallel rather than instead.

So why bother? Because it is free, it runs alongside anything else you do, and the threat of losing MLS access and association standing is a genuine lever with a member who is otherwise ignoring you. In a lot of disputes, the letter announcing that a complaint has been filed does more than the complaint itself.

Where This Is Heading

The disciplinary system above depends entirely on voluntary membership. That is the structural weakness, and the Dominican legislature is addressing it.

The intermediation bill that passed the Senate in first reading on 23 April 2026 would create a public register of licensed intermediaries — and a public register of sanctions imposed on them, maintained through MIVHED. Violations would be graded minor, serious or very serious, with fines and licence revocation available. Deceptive advertising alone would carry penalties of up to 50 minimum salaries.

That would put enforcement behind the whole market rather than only its members. Our full read of the bill is here, and our reference on AEI itself is here.

Before It Goes Wrong

Most of what lands people in front of an ethics committee is avoidable at the front end. Read the pitfalls of buying property in the DR, run proper due diligence, and never let a deposit sit anywhere other than escrow.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I file a complaint against a real estate agent in the Dominican Republic?

If the agent is an AEI member, submit a written complaint with supporting evidence to AEI's Comité de Ética via the association's published contact channels. The complaint must be in writing and backed by convincing proof — verbal reports do not start the process.

Can AEI make an agent refund my money?

No. AEI's disciplinary committees can sanction a member's standing in the association — reprimand, suspension of up to six months, or expulsion — but they cannot order restitution. Recovering money requires a Dominican attorney and, where fraud is involved, a criminal complaint.

What if the agent is not an AEI member?

Then the association has no jurisdiction and this route is unavailable. Your options are civil action or, where there is fraud, a criminal complaint through a Dominican lawyer. This is the main practical reason to check membership before engaging an agent.

How long does an AEI ethics complaint take?

The code does not fix an overall timetable, but it does set one deadline that affects you directly: the committee may dismiss a complaint after 30 days if the complainant appears to have lost interest. Stay responsive to correspondence once you have filed.

Is a real estate company responsible for its agents?

Under AEI's code, yes. A member broker is responsible for the conduct of agents and associates operating under them who are not themselves affiliated to the association.