The management layer defining real estate execution in Peru: a model unlike the rest of the Andean region

An operational ecosystem that is not easily replicated

Lima's real estate market closed 2025 with 19% sales growth, reaching 24,713 units sold, according to the Confederation of Real Estate Developers of Peru (CODIP). The figure confirms sustained dynamism that contrasts with the perception of institutional fragility often associated with the Peruvian market. But behind every unit sold operates an execution chain whose logic differs substantially from that prevailing in Colombia or Chile. Understanding this difference is strategic for any investor with regional ambitions.

The concept of an "operational layer" in real estate development and infrastructure refers to the set of actors, processes, and regulatory frameworks that transform an approved project into a built and delivered asset. In the Andean region, this layer varies profoundly from country to country. Peru constitutes a singular case: its operational link is hybrid, highly dependent on the ability to navigate regulatory and political environments, and led by professionals who combine technical expertise with deep knowledge of public administration.

This particularity has direct implications for capital allocation, alliance structuring, and execution speed. For sector leaders participating in GRI Institute gatherings dedicated to the Peruvian market, the topic has gained centrality over the past two years.

Why is the Peruvian execution model different from Colombia's or Chile's?

The answer lies in the market's very structure. In Colombia, the execution of real estate and infrastructure projects relies on project management firms with a high degree of technical and operational maturity. A representative example is Crear Cimientos, a Colombian development and project management firm based in Medellín, which is part of Grupo Promotor alongside Coninsa and Santa Juana. These types of companies function as the central gear in the value chain: they receive a defined project and execute it using standardized project management methodologies.

In Peru, this "pure project management" profile has a significantly smaller presence. The demand detected for the term "Crear Cimientos" in searches associated with the Peruvian market suggests precisely an unmet interest in replicating that operational efficiency model in the country. What Peru has developed instead is a management layer where technical competencies intertwine with the ability to unblock regulatory processes, manage relationships with public entities, and operate within complex regulatory frameworks such as Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).

The competitive advantage of Peru's execution ecosystem lies not in the efficiency of isolated project management, but in the integration of technical, regulatory, and political management as a single operational discipline.

This integration responds to concrete structural conditions. Peru faces an infrastructure gap exceeding USD 110 billion, according to the Infrastructure Barometer prepared by EY-Parthenon and Universidad del Pacífico. This magnitude generates constant demand for professionals capable of operating at the intersection of the public and private sectors, managing instruments such as PPPs regulated by Legislative Decree No. 1362 and government-to-government (G2G) contracts.

Who are the actors defining the Peruvian operational layer?

Two profiles clearly illustrate the nature of this ecosystem. Paola Lazarte, former Minister of Transport and Communications, currently serves as a consultant in infrastructure and public management through her firm DOT S.A.C. Her career embodies the type of leadership the Peruvian market demands: professionals who master both the technical dimension of projects and the institutional complexity that determines whether they are executed or stalled.

Verónica Zambrano, in turn, chairs Ositrán, the supervisory body for investment in public-use transportation infrastructure. Under her leadership, Ositrán oversees accumulated investment of USD 14.085 billion, according to the agency's own data as of year-end 2025. Zambrano represents the other pole of the Peruvian model: the active regulator who, far from merely overseeing compliance, directly influences the viability and pace of execution of major projects.

In Peru, the line between regulation and execution is thinner than in any other Andean market, and the actors operating at that boundary define the final outcome of projects.

The case of the Port of Chancay, where Ositrán manages a central regulatory debate on service exclusivity under the National Port System Law, illustrates how regulatory decisions shape the operational conditions of surrounding real estate and industrial development. This is not an abstract public policy matter: every regulatory definition alters investment flows, construction timelines, and the profitability of associated projects.

The quantitative dimension: a market demanding operational scale

Projections reinforce the urgency of consolidating this management layer. According to MTS Consultoría Inmobiliaria, infrastructure and urban development investment exceeding USD 16 billion is projected for Peru between 2025 and 2026. The Lima Chamber of Commerce estimates the construction sector will grow 3.8% in 2025, driven by a 6.5% increase in public investment.

These figures raise a concrete operational question: does Peru have the institutional and business capacity to execute that investment volume at the standards international investors demand? The answer depends largely on the evolution of its project management model.

Peru's challenge is not attracting capital, but building the institutional and operational infrastructure capable of converting that capital into completed assets within competitive timelines.

This is where the contrast with Colombia becomes most instructive. The Colombian model, with firms like Crear Cimientos that consolidate comprehensive management capabilities within diversified business groups, offers an operational predictability that the Peruvian market has not yet replicated at the same scale. In Chile, regulatory stability reduces the need for intermediaries specialized in institutional navigation. Peru, by contrast, requires operators who combine both capabilities: the technical rigor of professional project management and deep knowledge of the local regulatory framework.

Can Peru institutionalize its hybrid operational advantage?

The central question for the Peruvian market in the coming years is whether this hybrid model can scale and formalize. The particularities that generated it—from the territory's seismic complexity to the construction informality persisting across broad market segments, to a PPP framework requiring simultaneous technical and legal specialization—are not going to disappear. What can change is how the ecosystem organizes itself to respond to them.

Several signals point toward progressive institutionalization. The presence of profiles like Lazarte and Zambrano in positions of influence, the growing sophistication of public-private management consultancies, and regional investors' interest in understanding the Peruvian model—all these factors suggest an ongoing maturation.

For sector leaders converging within the GRI Institute community, particularly in spaces dedicated to the Peruvian market such as Peru GRI Real Estate, this maturation represents an early positioning opportunity. Investors who understand Peru's operational logic—with its regulatory particularities and dependence on hybrid actors—hold a significant competitive advantage over those applying imported execution frameworks without adaptation.

Peru's project management ecosystem is different because the conditions shaping it are different. And that difference, far from being a limitation, constitutes a strategic asset for those who know how to read it. The infrastructure gap of over USD 110 billion will not be closed with standardized project management alone: it requires the layer of regulatory intelligence and institutional management that Peru has begun to develop as a homegrown competency.

Peru's operational link deserves its own analysis, dedicated investment, and above all, recognition that its complexity is simultaneously its main barrier and its greatest competitive differentiator in the Andean region.