President Gustavo Petro warned construction firms against deceptive housing pricing practices and requested probes by the Superintendence of Surveillance. He accused some companies of scamming customers by indexing prices to the minimum wage, despite drops in material costs. He also urged withholding subsidies from irregular firms.
Colombia's President Gustavo Petro issued a warning on social media to construction companies for what he called deceptive practices in setting housing prices. Petro stated that claiming values must adjust to the same percentage of the vital minimum wage amounts to a 'criminal scam', as labor costs are just a fraction of total construction expenses and imported materials have decreased, contradicting hikes passed to buyers.
He requested the Superintendence of Surveillance to launch investigations and impose sanctions if irregularities are found. He also asked the Ministry of Housing to halt subsidy payments to firms scamming customers, amid government efforts to control prices and enhance transparency in subsidy access.
This comes amid the 2026 minimum wage hike of 23.7%, directly affecting prices of Social Interest Housing (VIS) and Priority Interest Housing (VIP), which are indexed to the wage. A VIS up to 150 minimum wages would rise from about 213 million pesos to 262 million, an increase of nearly 49 million. For 135 minimums, it would go from 192 to 236 million.
Analysts like Julián Cortés from Banco Popular note the worrying impact on low-income housing prices. The Camacol guild estimates the shock could raise construction costs by 4% and housing prices by up to 10%, straining affordability. Camacol President Guillermo Herrera stated: 'Improving the income of those currently in formal employment cannot come at the cost of halting new job creation, pressuring inflation, and making social housing more expensive'.
The government is considering de-indexing caps to prevent families from being excluded from the formal housing market.
