This is a contract under which one of the parties, or seller, agrees to transfer
ownership of an asset to the other party, or buyer, in exchange for the latter handing over
ownership or title to another asset. In other words, it is a contract in which
ownership of one asset is transferred in exchange for receiving full title to or ownership of another asset
(as if it were a barter).
However, there may also be cases in which one of the contracting parties gives
the other the asset plus a sum of money, because the value of the asset they will receive
is higher than the value of the asset they will hand over. For this to be considered a
swap contract (contrato de permuta), the cash amount must be less than the value of the asset, since if
the amount of money given or received is greater than the value of the asset, the contract
would become a purchase and sale contract.
This type of contract is governed by the Dominican Civil Code, which addresses
swaps before purchase and sale because, before money was introduced,
merchants based their trade on bartering or exchanging goods.
This type of contract is bilateral, since two parties are involved (buyer and
seller); it is also onerous (since receiving one asset requires handing over another);
it allows ownership of the assets covered by the contract to be transferred; it is likewise
consensual (since it requires consent); and it can be instantaneous or of successive
performance, depending on whether the asset to be exchanged is delivered in a single act or
not.
The method for buying lots that many engineers are forced to use is the one described
above, with a swap of real estate. In other words, of the cost of the lot, the owners
receive a percentage of the payment in cash and the rest in apartments inside or outside the project.
Advantages and benefits of a sale with a real estate swap:
- By negotiating, they can acquire the apartments at a lower cost.
- The possibility of designing and adapting the apartment to their requirements.
- Choosing apartments including the terrace, an additional parking space, lockers, the
orientation, sizes, the view, etc. - They don't have to go out and look for a new place to live or go through the process of
getting used to new streets, traffic jams, etc. - A real estate swap undoubtedly gives them the privilege of continuing to live in the area where they grew up
and raised their children. - Family togetherness: parents, children and grandchildren live in the same building, sometimes
right next door to each other. - They make safe, profitable investments in real estate.
