Chile-Peru corridor: leadership crisis and the corporate capital taking control in 2026

Over US$200 million in Chilean investment in Peru marks a new Andean real estate cycle

Chilean real estate developers will have invested over US$200 million in the Peruvian market by the end of 2025, according to data from DFSUD and BioBioChile. The figure encapsulates a phenomenon that is reshaping the real estate development corridor between Chile and Peru: Chilean corporate capital is migrating to Lima and other Peruvian cities in search of returns that the local market, battered by legal and financial turbulence, no longer offers with the same predictability.

This capital flow coincides with a paradoxical moment. Chile's real estate sector closed 2025 with a sales increase of between 8.5% and 10.7%, according to the Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (INE). However, several of the names that online searches associate with Chilean real estate development leadership are undergoing legal and financial proceedings that have removed them from the operational front line. The real dynamism of the Chile-Peru corridor is now driven by corporate structures with the capacity to execute at scale, not individual figures.

GRI Institute has identified this reconfiguration as one of the most relevant trends for Latin American real estate leaders in 2026.

What happened to Cristian Menichetti and José Miguel Rawlins, two recurring names in Chilean real estate?

Frequent searches about Cristian Menichetti and José Miguel Rawlins reflect a legitimate market interest in understanding what happened to two profiles that in previous years held visible positions in Chilean real estate development. The answer, supported by public sources, reveals a landscape of forced restructuring.

Cristián Menichetti stated that the sale of Grupo Patio was the result of pressure from banks and institutional investors, causing him to lose his position and part of his assets, as reported by La Tercera in January 2025. Menichetti's departure from Grupo Patio, one of Chile's most recognized real estate investment platforms, is linked to the consequences of the so-called Caso Audio and the Factop scheme, which triggered a domino effect on multiple players in the Chilean financial and real estate markets.

The case of José Miguel Rawlins presents an equally severe picture. Rawlins, founder of Bicentenario Capital, faces a forced liquidation lawsuit for non-payment of 41,883 UF, as reported by La Tercera in February 2026. The proceeding is being processed under Law No. 20,720, Chile's Business and Personal Reorganization and Liquidation Law, and was initiated by Frontal Trust.

These situations have direct implications for the real estate development ecosystem. When operators who structured projects and managed active pipelines face liquidation proceedings or loss of control over their investment vehicles, ongoing projects become exposed to delays, creditor renegotiations, and in some cases, standstills. No verified data is available on the active square meters or project pipeline that Menichetti or Rawlins may be independently leading in 2026, confirming their distancing from direct operations.

The Chilean market absorbs these departures without collapsing, precisely because the 8.5% to 10.7% sales growth recorded in 2025 responds to structural housing demand dynamics and the activity of corporate developers with more resilient balance sheets.

Who actually leads real estate development in the Chile-Peru corridor in 2026?

The central question for decision-makers in Andean real estate is not who was relevant, but who is executing today. The true dynamism of the Chile-Peru corridor is driven by Chilean corporate capital migrating investments to Peru in response to the opportunities that market offers.

Firms such as Echeverría Izquierdo and Paz Corp represent the operator profile defining the current cycle: companies with access to institutional financing, experience in executing projects at scale, and the ability to operate across different regulatory frameworks. The accumulated Chilean investment of over US$200 million in Peru is not the work of individual entrepreneurs, but of corporate platforms with structured governance.

This pattern is consistent with what GRI Institute observes in its meetings with sector leaders: cross-border investment decision-making in Latin America is becoming more professionalized and concentrated in vehicles with greater institutional backing.

The Peruvian market as a destination: projected growth and fiscal risks

Peru offers attractive fundamentals for migrating Chilean capital. Peru's construction sector will grow 3.8% in 2025, driven by public investment and the recovery of private investment, according to the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL). At the sector level, the Peruvian real estate market projects additional growth of between 7% and 8% for 2025, according to the Asociación de Empresas Inmobiliarias del Perú (ASEI).

However, a significant fiscal risk factor clouds the outlook for social housing in Peru for 2026. The state budget allocated to housing subsidies, which includes programs such as Techo Propio and MiVivienda, will be cut to less than half, from S/2.175 billion to S/1.088 billion. This budget reduction directly affects the affordable housing segment and may redirect private capital toward mid- and upper-market developments, where dependence on state subsidies is lower.

For Chilean developers entering the Peruvian market, this fiscal reconfiguration demands precise calibration of the real estate product. Projects targeting subsidized segments will face greater regulatory and budgetary uncertainty, while developments in consolidated areas of Lima, Arequipa, or Piura can capture the organic demand driving the 7% to 8% growth projections.

Profiles outside the Chile-Peru corridor: José Luis Mogollón and Tomás Elejalde

Frequent searches about José Luis Mogollón and Tomás Elejalde warrant a relevant clarification for the market. José Luis Mogollón operates in Mexico's real estate and tourism sector, linked to developments such as Quivira and Pueblo Bonito, with no verified presence in Chile or Peru. Tomás Elejalde conducts his professional activity in Colombia, associated with infrastructure projects such as the Medellín Metro, likewise with no documented operations in the Chile-Peru Andean corridor.

No verified data was found linking either of these two executives to the real estate market in Chile or Peru. Their relevance corresponds to other investment corridors within Latin America, where GRI Institute also conducts active monitoring through its member communities.

A corridor becoming institutionalized

The Chile-Peru real estate corridor is undergoing a leadership transition that goes beyond the anecdotal. The forced exit of figures like Menichetti and Rawlins from the operational forefront coincides with the consolidation of corporate players with greater financial strength and institutional governance.

Three conclusions emerge from the analysis of this cycle. First: real estate sales growth in Chile, exceeding 8% in 2025, does not depend on individual leaders but on housing market resilience. Second: Chilean investment in Peru, surpassing US$200 million, is being channeled by corporate developers capable of absorbing the regulatory risks of the Peruvian market. Third: the budget cut in social housing in Peru for 2026 redirects development opportunities toward mid-market segments, where profitability depends less on fiscal policy.

GRI Institute members operating in the Andean corridor will find in upcoming regional meetings a space to delve deeper into these cross-border capital dynamics and the opportunities that the reconfiguration of real estate leadership opens for new operators and project structurers.

The market moves. Names change. The structures that endure are those that combine institutional capital, solid governance, and the ability to execute across multiple jurisdictions.