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Land · Zoning check

What can you build on that lot?

Every square metre in the north of Samaná sits inside a zoning unit that fixes how much you may build, how much must stay green, how high you may go, and how many bedrooms you may register. Pick your area and enter the lot size.

MITUR Res. 06/2011Free · no signup
Examples
A · Where is the land?Samaná north
Tap your area on the mapMITUR zoning units
2.6×
Barbacoa — second line, inland (Sección 2da Línea) — zone 6Barbacoa — coastal strip (Sección Turística) — zone 6Cosón — zone 14El Jobo — zone 14El Limón — the countryside (Sección Rural) — zone 7El Limón — the coastal strip (Sección Turística) — zone 7El Limón — the village (Sección Urbana) — zone 7El Portillo — zone 14El Portillo — the lagoon / El Parque — zone 14El Portillo — the beachfront strip (Punta Popy to Punta Portillo) — zone 14La Ceiba — zone 3La Majagua (towards El Catey airport) — zone 1Lanza del Norte — zone 8Las Caobas — zone 9Las Colinas (hills south of the Boulevard) — zone 4Las Lomas (mountain, 100–300 m above sea level) — zone 5Las Terrenas — town centre — zone 14Las Terrenas — urban expansion (west of the centre) — zone 14Las Terrenas — beachfront strip (Las Ballenas, Los Pescadores) — zone 14Las Terrenas — hills east of town — zone 14Playa Bonita — zone 14Puerto del Valle / Playa El Valle — zone 10Yakson / Punta Batalá — zone 2Zona de Proximidad (by the Salto El Limón waterfall) — zone 11Fronting the Avenida de Abra Grande — zone 13Fronting the Boulevard Turístico del Atlántico — zone 12
Your coordinate stays in this browser. It is never sent anywhere and never stored.
…or pick from a listas people name it locally
Zone 14 · Las Terrenas. Atlantic to the north, the Boulevard Turístico del Atlántico to the south, the Jobo river and El Jobo to the east, Cosón to the west (Art. 24).
Is it on the first line?caps height at 2 levels
First line is the first 40 m inland of the 60 m public maritime strip — roughly 60–100 m from the high-tide line. Nothing inside it may exceed 2 levels.
B · Lot sizem² of land
Total land areafrom the title or survey
m²
That is 2.4 tareas — the unit most Dominican titles use.
Buildable footprint
525 m²
About 35% of your 1,500 m² lot in Playa Bonita — the most ground your building may cover.
Zone 14 · Las Terrenas
Building 35%Green area 30%Open ground 35%
Ground you may cover525 m²35% of the lot
Green area to keep450 m²min 30%
Height3 levelsmaximum
Bedrooms535 per hectare

Total floor area

Across all levels
1,575 m²
Your 525 m² footprint repeated on each of the 3 levels you may build.Art. 8.4 · 35% × 3 = 1.05

The footprint and green-area rules leave 35% of the lot unassigned. That is not wasted space — it absorbs the driveway, parking, pool, terraces, septic, and service areas that every build needs but that neither rule counts.

If you subdivide or build new here

Art. 24 (UA B Bonita)
Minimum lot1,000 m²
Maximum lot5,000 m²
Minimum frontage25 m
Front setback5 m
Side setback3 m
Rear setback5 m

Setbacks come off the buildable footprint before you draw anything — on a narrow lot they, not the occupation percentage, decide the shape of the house.

Figures for Playa Bonita come from Art. 24 (UA B Bonita) of Resolución MITUR No. 06/2011 (DPP), and its outline on the map is traced to about ±75 m, so a lot near an edge can fall in the next unit. Evalúa publishes the law as written — the ministry decides how it applies to your parcel.

What you may build is most of what land is worth.
Two neighbouring parcels at the same price per square metre can differ by a factor of three in what they will hold. Check the zoning before the price.
Check a fair price →
Not sure which area your lot is in?

The plan draws its boundaries along roads, rivers, contour lines and parcel numbers — not neighbourhood names. If your land sits near an edge, check it against the official zoning map before relying on any figure here.

Standing on the land? Use “Use my current location” under the map — it reads your position in the browser and highlights the unit you are in. The coordinate is never sent anywhere and never stored.

Open the official MITUR zoning map (3 sheets, PDF) →

Questions people ask about this

What law does this calculator use?

Resolución No. 06/2011 of the Ministry of Tourism (DPP), signed 26 March 2012 — the Plan Sectorial de Ordenamiento Territorial Turístico and Reglamento Normativo for the north of the Samaná peninsula. It divides the territory into 11 Unidades Ambientales, two road corridors, and a special plan for the Las Terrenas macro-unit, and fixes four building parameters for each: maximum ground occupation, minimum green area, maximum height in levels, and maximum bedroom density per hectare. Individual articles add lot sizes, frontages, setbacks, and floor-area coefficients.

Is this a zoning certificate I can rely on?

No. It is an orientation tool. The binding determination is the Ministry of Tourism's own No Objection letter, issued through its Manual de Tramitación (Resolución 02/2012 DPP) and conditioned on an environmental permit from the Ministry of Environment. Zone boundaries follow roads, rivers, contour lines and named parcel numbers, so a lot near an edge can fall in a different unit than its neighbourhood name suggests. Always confirm with MITUR and a Dominican architect before buying or designing.

Why can I only build on 30% of my land?

The "índice de ocupación máxima del suelo" is the share of the plot the building may cover, measured at roof plan. Separately, a minimum percentage must stay green. The two rarely add to 100% — the remainder is what makes the site work: driveways, parking, pool, terraces, septic and service areas. Going up rather than out is how you get floor area back, within the level limit.

What is the "first line" and why does it cut my height?

Article 8.1 defines first line as the first 40 metres inland of the 60-metre public maritime strip established by Ley 305-68 — so roughly 60 to 100 metres from the ordinary high-tide line. Inside that band nothing may exceed 2 levels (7 metres flat roof, 8 metres pitched), and Article 8.2(c) forbids roof terraces above the second level "en ningún caso", whatever the zone otherwise allows. It is the single rule that most often surprises beachfront buyers.

What does "bedroom density" actually limit?

The resolution caps habitaciones per hectare, which is how it controls intensity of use rather than just building bulk. On a small lot it produces a small number — a 1,000 m² lot at 30 hab/ha allows 3. For a single family home that is rarely the binding constraint; for a condo, villa complex, or boutique hotel it usually is the one that decides how many units the project can hold.

My lot is smaller than the zone minimum — can I still build?

Probably, but confirm it. The minimum lot sizes in the resolution govern NEW subdivisions and parcelaciones: they say what lots may be created going forward, not that existing smaller titled lots become unbuildable. Many legally titled lots in Las Terrenas predate the 2012 plan. How MITUR treats yours is a question for the Ministry and your lawyer, and the calculator flags it rather than guessing.

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Frequently asked questions

All questions →
Who decides what I can actually build?

The Ministry of Tourism, through its No Objection letter — issued under the Manual de Tramitación (Resolución 02/2012 DPP) and conditioned on an environmental permit from the Ministry of Environment. A calculator, a seller, and even an architect’s first sketch are all orientation; the ministry’s letter is the decision.

Does the 60-metre beach rule mean nobody owns the beachfront?

Not quite. Ley 305-68 puts a 60-metre strip measured inland from the ordinary high-tide line into the public domain, and Ley 64-00 declares it inalienable and unseizable. Titles predating 1968 can reach into it, but the construction ban is not written as subject to that exception — so even a grandfathered owner cannot build there. Beyond that strip, MITUR’s first-line rule caps the next 40 metres at two levels.

Why does the same lot size allow so much more in town than on the coast?

The plan deliberately concentrates density. Las Terrenas town centre allows 70% ground coverage, four levels and 150 bedrooms per hectare; a conservation unit like Las Caobas allows 20%, one level and 15. That spread — not the price per square metre — is usually what separates two parcels that look identical in a listing.

From the guide · Land & buildingWhat the Samaná zoning plan actually allowsThe MITUR units, the first-line cap, and how density rules decide what a lot is worth before you ever price it.Read the article →
Orientation only — not legal advice, not an architectural study, and not a zoning certificate. Figures are computed from Resolución MITUR No. 06/2011 (DPP) as transcribed from the official sealed scan; the resolution contemplated its own revision from five years after issue, and has not been checked here against any later amending instrument. Zone boundaries in this tool are approximated from each article's written delimitación and from named areas, not from surveyed cadastral lines — a lot near a boundary may fall in a different unit than its neighbourhood name suggests. The binding determination is the Ministry of Tourism's No Objection letter (Manual de Tramitación, Resolución 02/2012 DPP), which is itself conditioned on an environmental permit. Bedroom density, setbacks and frontage rules interact with your lot's shape and access in ways no calculator can see. Confirm everything with MITUR and a licensed Dominican architect before buying, designing, or building.