Can a developer in Peru change the project after you sign?

The contract binds both sides

When you buy off-plan in Peru, you sign for something that does not exist yet. Civil Code article 1534 calls it a sale of a future asset (compraventa de bien futuro):

“En la venta de un bien que ambas partes saben que es futuro, el contrato está sujeto a la condición suspensiva de que llegue a tener existencia.”

(In the sale of an asset both parties know is future, the contract is subject to the condition that it comes into existence.)

The building not existing yet does not make its description optional. Article 1361 is the basic rule:

“Los contratos son obligatorios en cuanto se haya expresado en ellos.”

(Contracts are binding on what they express.)

Article 1362 adds that contracts must be performed “según las reglas de la buena fe” (in good faith). If your contract describes a two-bedroom unit facing the street with access to a pool, that is what the developer committed to deliver.

Changing what was agreed is amending the contract. Article 1413 says “las modificaciones del contrato original deben efectuarse en la forma prescrita para ese contrato” (amendments must be made in the form required for that contract). Our reading is that this means a new agreement with you, not a decision the developer makes alone.

What you were offered outside the contract counts too

Many changes hit things that are not in the contract but in the brochure, the website, the model or the show flat. Consumer law covers that gap. Article 46 of Ley 29571 says:

“El contenido de la oferta, promoción o publicidad, las características y funciones propias del producto o servicio y las condiciones y garantías ofrecidas obligan a los proveedores y son exigibles por los consumidores, aun cuando no figuren en el contrato celebrado o en el documento o comprobante recibido.”

(The content of offers, promotions and advertising, and the features and guarantees offered, bind the supplier and can be enforced by consumers even when they are not in the signed contract.)

Two more articles complete the picture:

• Fitness. Article 18 measures compliance by “la correspondencia entre lo que un consumidor espera y lo que efectivamente recibe, en función a lo que se le hubiera ofrecido, la publicidad e información transmitida” (the match between what you expect and what you get, based on what you were offered and the advertising).
• Liability. Article 19 makes the supplier answer for “la falta de conformidad entre la publicidad comercial de los productos y servicios y éstos” (any mismatch between its advertising and what it delivers).

Article 76.2 also requires the developer to tell you “las características sobre el inmueble que está adquiriendo” (the features of the property you are buying), including “materiales empleados en la construcción y en los acabados” (construction materials and finishes).

So keep everything you were shown before signing. Our reading is that the model, the renders and the brochure are offers or advertising under article 46; the law does not list them one by one.

The clause “the developer may modify the project”

Most developer contracts are standard-form (contratos de adhesión): the company writes them and you sign. Article 49.1 of Ley 29571 says that in these contracts, non-negotiated terms that “en contra de las exigencias de la buena fe, coloquen al consumidor, en su perjuicio, en una situación de desventaja o desigualdad o anulen sus derechos” (against good faith put you at a disadvantage or cancel your rights) are unenforceable.

Article 51 lists this among the terms that can be unfair depending on the case:

“b. Las que permitan al proveedor modificar unilateralmente las condiciones y términos de un contrato de duración continuada, en perjuicio del consumidor, salvo que obedezca a motivos expresados en él y el consumidor goce del derecho a desvincularse del mismo sin penalización alguna.”

(Terms that let the supplier unilaterally change an ongoing contract to the consumer’s detriment, unless the contract states the reasons and the consumer can walk away without penalty.)

Read it carefully. That paragraph refers to ongoing contracts (de duración continuada), and it is not clear an off-plan purchase is one. But the article 51 list is, in its own words, “enunciativa, aunque no limitativa” (illustrative, not exhaustive). A clause letting the developer change the project at will can be assessed under the general rule in article 49.1. And that assessment, under article 49.2, takes into account “la información que se haya brindado” (the information you were given).

Article 51(b) is still a useful yardstick on two points: a change clause looks better if it states which reasons allow a change and whether it lets you leave the contract without penalty. An open clause with no reasons and no way out is further from what the law tolerates.

Article 50 adds two kinds of terms that never apply: those letting the supplier “suspender o resolver unilateralmente un contrato” (suspend or end the contract on its own), unless another rule says otherwise, and those that “excluyan o limiten los derechos legales reconocidos a los consumidores” (exclude or limit consumers’ legal rights). The general rules on unfair terms are in adhesion contracts and unfair terms.

A clause that can cost you: taking the quality risk

Check whether your contract says you take the risk on the property’s size or quality. Civil Code article 1535 says that in that case, if the property comes into existence, “el comprador debe pagar íntegramente el precio” (the buyer must pay the full price), “cualquiera sea su cuantía y calidad” (whatever its size and quality). See which clauses to check in an off-plan contract. Against a developer, that clause can also be challenged under article 49; we found no decision that settles it.

“The municipality approved it”

This is the most common reply. Municipal approval of a project change is a matter between the developer and the municipality about the building. Ley 29571 article 18 is clear about its effect on you:

“Las autorizaciones por parte de los organismos del Estado para la fabricación de un producto o la prestación de un servicio, en los casos que sea necesario, no eximen de responsabilidad al proveedor frente al consumidor.”

(Authorizations from state bodies do not release the supplier from liability to the consumer.)

Our reading is that this rule covers municipal approval of a changed project. How building changes get approved, and what happens when the building does not match the permit, is covered in certificate of completion with changes.

If the change is in floor area

If what changed is the area, the Civil Code has its own rules for price per square metre and lump-sum price. They are in home smaller than promised. Where to complain is covered in buying a home in Peru.

What this page does not cover

We did not review Indecopi decisions or court rulings on project changes, or on phrases such as “images are for reference only”. We do not cover how much compensation you may be owed, ending the contract for breach, or the technical rules on which building changes need municipal approval.