3,496 complaints, $212 million claimed

Step 1: what Acodeco reports

According to Infobae, citing Acodeco’s statistical report, the agency counted 3,496 complaints against real estate companies between January 2020 and September 2026, with a cumulative amount claimed of $212.3 million. Abusive clauses are the main reason: 893 complaints for $120 million, which Brax calculates as about 26% of the complaints but 57% of the money.

Next come refund of money (831 complaints, $12.1 million), lack of information (658, $22.4 million), hidden defects (425, $19.2 million), breach of contract (316, $23.2 million) and breach of warranty (249, $11.4 million).

Step 2: the table

Counts and amounts as reported by Infobae; the average is a Brax calculation. “Amount claimed” is what complainants asked for, not what was proven or paid.

Step 3: what happened to the complaints

The same report lists 2,499 resolved complaints with $146.9 million attached (this includes cases received in earlier years that closed in the period). Of those, 1,277 ended in agreements between the parties ($85.6 million) and 65 in rulings for the consumer through the agency’s public defender ($6.8 million). Other ways of closing are not itemised in the article.

Cross-check: La Estrella (April 27, 2026) reported 3,178 complaints and more than $197.3 million for January 2020 to December 2025, with abusive clauses at 876 complaints and $118.2 million. La Estrella (September 25, 2026) reported 280 complaints and $13.2 million for January to August 2026, with 14 on abusive clauses. The three reports are consistent with each other: by difference, nine months of 2026 added roughly 318 complaints and about $15 million, and only 17 new abusive-clause complaints. The $120 million in that category was built mostly before 2026.

Step 4: how to read it, and the developers’ counterpoint

Three cautions. First, a complaint is a claim: the agency’s figures count what consumers filed, and the article does not say how many were upheld beyond the resolved cases above. Second, the averages hide the shape: abusive clauses average about $134,000 per complaint against $15,000 for refunds, which suggests a small number of large claims weigh heavily, but the article does not give the individual amounts. Third, 3,496 complaints over almost seven years sits next to a large number of homes sold; the sector argues the problem is small.

That is the position of Convivienda, the developers’ association. In the April La Estrella piece its president said complaints against member developers were 273 in 2020–2025, “0.08%” of the total, against 34,643 homes built in the same period. Brax could not reproduce the 0.08% from the numbers printed: 273 is about 0.8% of 34,643 homes and about 8.6% of 3,178 complaints. The base may be different, and we do not know the full definition, so we report the claim and our arithmetic and leave it there. The association also noted that not every complaint concerns a member.

Step 5: what to do before you sign

Acodeco’s own advice, as reported: read the sales contract carefully before signing, check each agreed condition with the seller, ask in writing for any relevant information, and keep contracts, receipts and proof of payment. The agency also announced a mobile app to file complaints with photos and documents and track their status, according to Infobae.

Ours, labelled as suggestions and not legal advice: (1) get the delivery date, the penalty if it slips and the refund terms for your deposit in writing; (2) read every clause on what the seller may change after you sign, including finishes and areas; (3) ask who answers for defects and for how long, in the contract and not in the brochure; (4) have a lawyer you chose review the contract; (5) keep every message. More on deposits: presale deposit risk.

Related: Presale deposit risk, The presale window.

Questions about a specific contract or unit? Jacky, from the Brax team, answers on WhatsApp: +507 6776-4203. Brax is paid a commission by developers on new-build units.

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