What documents must a developer give you when you buy off-plan in Peru?

The general rule: everything that proves the project is real

If you buy from a developer, builder or promoter, Peru’s Consumer Protection Code (Ley 29571) protects you. Its chapter on real-estate products and services runs from article 76 to 80. Article 76.2 sets the basic rule:

“76.2 El derecho del consumidor a la información obliga al proveedor de productos y servicios inmobiliarios a informar sobre las características sobre el inmueble que está adquiriendo así como a proporcionar toda aquella información que acredite la existencia de autorizaciones municipales, el área del inmueble, el proceso de titulación, habilitación urbana, saneamiento, materiales empleados en la construcción y en los acabados, inscripciones registrales del terreno y declaratoria de fábrica o de edificación, reglamento interno, independización y toda aquella documentación relevante.”

(The developer must tell you about the property and provide the information proving municipal permits, area, title process, urban development, materials, land registrations, the building declaration, internal regulations, unit subdivision and any other relevant documents.)

That list is broad, but it does not say when you get each item. Articles 77 and 78 do, for two moments: before signing and at signing. Article 80 covers what comes after.

This page is only about documents. What to check in general before buying is in buying a home in Peru.

Before signing: free and in advance

Article 77.2 says the information is given “de manera previa y gratuita a la suscripción de un contrato” (before the contract is signed, and free). You do not have to pay a reservation to see it. The list:

Two items matter most off-plan:

“a. Partida registral en el caso de bienes inscritos o título en el caso de bienes no inscritos, que acredite que quien suscribe el o los contratos de compraventa es propietario del inmueble ofrecido o del inmueble matriz del cual se independizará el producto ofrecido.”

(The registry record or title proving the seller owns the property or the parent property.)

“h. Tratándose de bienes futuros, el documento que acredite la aprobación del proyecto de habilitación urbana o el anteproyecto de arquitectura, según corresponda.”

(For future property, the document proving the project or preliminary design was approved.)

The first tells you whether the seller owns the land. The second tells you whether the municipality approved anything. How to check those papers yourself is a separate topic; here the point is that you have a right to receive them.

If the developer finances you

If you pay the company directly in instalments, article 77.3 requires a summary sheet (hoja resumen) signed by both sides, with interest, charges, instalments and “la cantidad total a pagar por el inmueble, incluyendo el precio al contado más los intereses y gastos administrativos” (the total payable, cash price plus interest and fees). If a bank lends the money, article 77.4 says the bank explains the terms.

At signing

Article 78.2 lists what is handed over “a la firma de los contratos de compraventa” (when the purchase contract is signed). For a future building:

“b. Edificaciones: - Aprobación del anteproyecto o proyecto. - Plano de distribución. - Características de los acabados, servicios públicos domiciliarios, áreas comunes y otras características relevantes.”

(Buildings: the approval of the preliminary design or project, the layout plan, and the features of finishes, utilities, common areas and other relevant items.)

If you buy a plot in an urban development, the list is different: the municipal resolution and approval plan, the subdivision plan showing the plot’s location, the plot plan with area and boundaries, and the development’s features.

If the property is already finished, you get a copy of the registry record and the service installation plans. Plans of shared installations go to the owners’ association.

The contract itself must identify the registry record; for future property, “del inmueble matriz” (of the parent property) (art. 78.1.c). The rest of the contract’s minimum content is in the general guide.

Building declaration, internal regulations and unit subdivision

Here the law says less than people think. Article 76.2 includes the declaratoria de fábrica, the reglamento interno and the independización in the information the developer must provide. But neither article 77 nor 78 puts them on the before-signing or at-signing lists, and no article in the chapter sets a deadline for handing them over.

Indecopi’s guide fills this in as a duty of legal title work (saneamiento legal):

“Es obligación del proveedor realizar los trámites de conformidad de obra, independización e inscripción del inmueble en los Registros Públicos. Para dar cumplimiento a esta obligación, el proveedor deberá realizar los trámites de manera idónea y en un plazo razonable […].”

(The developer must process the completion certificate, unit subdivision and registration, properly and within a reasonable time.)

In practice, these papers exist once the building is finished and processed. You can request them under article 76.2 and, if they are delayed without reason, complain on the basis of that duty of diligence. What each step is and the order they go in is in building declaration, internal regulations and unit subdivision.

At handover and after

Article 79 gives you the right to state your approval or objections in writing when you receive the property. For future property you can object to “desperfectos, deficiencias u otras condiciones que desmejoren el valor del inmueble que se le entrega, o que impidan o limiten su uso” (defects or conditions that lower its value or prevent or limit its use). That written record is one more document to keep.

Afterwards, article 80 requires the developer to inform you of the warranty periods and give you the owner’s manual:

“b. El manual de uso del propietario, que debe contener como mínimo la descripción de los componentes del inmueble, los cuidados que hay que observar para el mantenimiento adecuado y los riesgos que pueden derivarse del mal uso.”

(The owner’s manual, describing at least the components, maintenance care and the risks of misuse.)

For structural matters, the warranty is “como mínimo diez (10) años desde emitido el certificado de finalización de obra y recepción de obra por parte de la municipalidad” (at least ten years from the municipal completion and acceptance certificate) (art. 80.a).

If they will not give you the documents

Ask for each document in writing, citing the article. If the developer refuses, record it in its complaints book. If that does not fix it, you can file a complaint with Indecopi. If the project never gets built, see what happens to your money.

What this page does not cover

It does not explain how to check with Sunarp or the municipality that the documents are genuine, or what to do if the unit is smaller than agreed, handover is late or the land is mortgaged. It does not cover the specific rules of Techo Propio or Mivivienda, or the fines Indecopi can impose for withholding information. We did not review Indecopi decisions on these articles.