Quintana Roo Cracks Down on Illegal Real Estate

Quintana Roo, Mexico — The Secretary of Territorial, Urban, and Sustainable Development (Sedetus) has filed two criminal complaints against irregular real estate developments and is preparing seven more. The agency has issued over 15 fines, which total more than 1.1 million pesos in the last three months.

José Alberto Alonso Ovando, head of Sedetus, announced that eight of the closures were in Isla Mujeres. To date, the department has publicly listed 116 developments that lack the proper permits to construct housing. Furthermore, they have conducted 137 inspection verifications at construction sites across the state to identify more irregular subdivisions.

The number of inspectors has been increased from two to twelve, and fines are now more severe. The amount of fines levied against developers who lack authorizations explains why collected penalties have risen from 116,000 pesos for all of 2024 to over one million pesos since inspections were intensified.

"We have two criminal complaints and we are preparing others because there are people who, despite being asked to stop, insist on continuing. We really do not want a confrontation with people. What we want is for them to get in order, to regularize their situation, but sometimes they simply do not want to," stated Alonso Ovando.

Of the total operations implemented, 28 resulted in preventative closures; 29 resulted in financial sanctions; 15 were closed after compliance with regulations was achieved; and 72 remain in process, the official added.

The municipalities with the highest number of proceedings are Tulum with 42 case files; Playa del Carmen with 25; Benito Juárez with 17; Isla Mujeres with 14; and Othón P. Blanco with 11.

Alonso Ovando said the goal is not confrontation, and developers are even given the opportunity to regularize their status. This is despite the fact that many market housing knowing full well that these properties lack permits, which is itself a criminal offense.