The wire is the highest-risk part of your closing

The Promesa de Venta is exciting. The walk-through is exciting. The wire is the day you should be most careful. Six-figure international wires are the favorite target of escrow fraud. Here's how serious buyers handle it.

The basic rule: wire USD to a U.S. account

For 90% of DR closings, your purchase funds wire from your U.S. bank to your DR real estate attorney's escrow account at a U.S. correspondent bank, in USD. Do NOT wire to a personal account, ever.

Verifying the wire instructions

Email is the #1 attack vector. Hackers compromise the attorney's email and send substitute wire instructions to the buyer. The instructions look legitimate because they came from the right email address. You wire to the wrong account. The money is gone.

Protect yourself with two steps:

1. Call your attorney at a phone number you obtained independently (not the one in the email signature) and have them read the wire instructions to you live.
2. Wire a $1 test at least 48 hours before the main wire. Confirm the test landed. Then send the real amount.

What it costs

• Outbound wire from U.S. bank: $30-$50
• Cable/correspondent fee: sometimes deducted on the receiving end ($10-$25)
• Currency conversion (if you convert to DOP at any point): 1-2% spread

For wires over $50,000, use a service like Wise Business or HSBC International to reduce the conversion spread. Savings on a $300,000 wire: $3,000-$5,000.

When you need to wire DOP

Rare for purchase price. Common for closing costs (transfer tax, registry, attorney fees can be billed in DOP). Standard approach: wire USD to the attorney, let them handle the conversion at the DR end with a documented rate.

Wire timing

• Domestic U.S. wire: same-day if before 3pm ET
• U.S. to DR USD wire: 1-2 business days
• U.S. to DR DOP wire: 2-3 business days (extra conversion step)

Always wire at least 48 hours before closing. "Same-day" is a recipe for delays.

What to keep in your records

• Wire confirmation from your bank
• Receipt from the attorney acknowledging the funds
• Signed letter of receipt at closing
• Bank statement showing the debit

If anything is ever questioned, these are your paper trail.

What we ask every client

We confirm wire instructions verbally with the attorney 48 hours before any major payment. We've seen one attempted compromise in three years. The verbal step caught it.