Countries › Paraguay › Guide › 11. Real estate and land › Condominiums and apartment buildings in Paraguay: unit ownership, the building regulation, owners' meetings, registry and taxes

Condominiums and apartment buildings in Paraguay: unit ownership, the building regulation, owners' meetings, registry and taxes

Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Flats and floors are owned under the Civil Code regime of propiedad por pisos y departamentos: each owner holds the unit outright plus an undivided share of the land and common parts in proportion to value, and can sell or mortgage it without the other owners. Every building needs a co ownership and administration regulation by public deed, registered and binding on later buyers; meetings decide by value weighted majorities, with two thirds of value for improvements and 30 days to challenge a resolution in court. Each unit is a separate registry title and is taxed separately on its own area plus its share of common areas, and sellers must register flat sale contracts within 30 days.

USD figures use PYG 5,868.31 per US dollar, the Banco Central del Paraguay reference quotation in the planilla for Wednesday 28 October 2026, https://www.bcp.gov.py/webapps/web/cotizacion/monedas. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Majority to amend the building regulation	2/3 of owners holding at least 50% of value shareLey 1183/1985 Código Civil art. 2146, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Quorum of an owners meeting (first call)	2/3 of owners holding 2/3 of building value shareLey 1183/1985 Código Civil art. 2154, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Majority to approve improvements to common parts	Majority of owners and 2/3 of value shareLey 1183/1985 Código Civil art. 2156, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Time for a dissenting owner to challenge a meeting resolution in court	30 daysLey 1183/1985 Código Civil art. 2157, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Time for the seller to register sale contracts of flats	30 daysLey 3966/2010 art. 266, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Destruction share of value that lets any owner force a sale of land and materials	2/3 shareLey 1183/1985 Código Civil art. 2161, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. What can be owned separately. The floors of a building and the flats into which each floor is divided, and the flats of a single storey house, may belong to different owners when they are independent and open onto the street directly or through a common passage. Each unit must be identified by a number registered in the Registro de Inmuebles. Each owner holds exclusive title to the unit and co owns the common parts: the land, foundations, main walls, roofs, courtyards, entrance halls, stairs and doors, central services such as lifts, heating and cooling, water, gas and the switchboard, the caretaker and administration premises, and dividing walls; the list is open and the parties may define more. The share in the common parts is proportional to the unit's value, agreed by the owners or, failing that, the official value used for property tax; an owner cannot waive it or escape contributing to upkeep. Common parts are subject to forced indivision unless all owners agree to divide them. Owners may sell or mortgage their unit without the others' consent, and the sale, mortgage or attachment of a unit carries its rights over the common parts, which cannot be dealt with separately. The land under a building with several owners cannot be mortgaged unless the mortgage covers the building and all owners agree.
Cost to do it: No fee to own a unit; numbering and registration of each unit go through the registry (charges not verified).
Example: A buyer of a PYG 1,056,295,800 flat acquires the unit plus an undivided share of the land and common parts in proportion to its value; the share cannot be sold separately. / A US$180,000 flat can be mortgaged by its owner alone, but a developer cannot mortgage the land under a building already sold in units without every owner's consent.Ley Nº 1183/1985 Código Civil, Libro IV, Título VI (De la propiedad por pisos y departamentos), Art. 2128 to 2137, 1985-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. The building rules (reglamento de copropiedad y administración). To set up a building under this regime, the person or group must adopt a co ownership and administration regulation by public deed, registered in the Registro de Inmuebles together with every amendment; amendments need two thirds of the owners representing at least half of the building's value. The regulation must cover how the representative or administrator is appointed and paid and what powers they have, the proportions in which owners pay common expenses, hiring and dismissal of staff, how owners' meetings are called and the quorum and majorities, the location and numbering of units and common parts, and the value assigned to each unit. Once formalized, the regulation binds later buyers under any title, and it can be registered before the building is finished. Where it is silent, the Civil Code applies. The municipality regulates by ordinance minimum unit size, access and fire safety for buildings by floors or flats.
Cost to do it: A public deed and registry filing are needed; notary and registry charges were not verified and are not reproduced.
Example: A developer pre selling 40 flats registers the regulation before completion, so every buyer is bound by the expense shares and voting rules from day one. / For a US$180,000 unit, the regulation's value table decides both the unit's share of common expenses and its voting weight; check it before signing.Ley Nº 1183/1985 Código Civil; Ley Nº 3966/2010 Orgánica Municipal, CC art. 2146 to 2149; Ley 3966 art. 264, 1985-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Owners' meetings, administrator and expenses. Owners must pay the common building insurance, and the costs of keeping the common parts, providing common services and approved improvements are shared in proportion to unit value unless agreed otherwise (costs of parts that serve only some owners fall on those owners). The administrator collects contributions, pays common expenses, carries out conservation work, must insure the building against fire and similar risks, and accounts yearly; if the meeting does not appoint one, a civil judge appoints one at an owner's request. A meeting is quorate with two thirds of the owners present, representing two thirds of the value; resolutions pass with a majority of those present representing at least half of the value. At a second call within ten days, a resolution is valid with a third of the owners representing at least a third of the value. Appointing or removing the administrator, authorizing litigation and extraordinary repairs need a majority representing at least half of the value, and improvements need a majority of owners and two thirds of value. Resolutions bind all owners; a dissenter may challenge them in court within 30 calendar days (from the resolution, or from notice for absent owners), but the challenge does not suspend them unless the judge orders it. Owners and tenants may not endanger the building's safety, change the external architecture, use units for purposes other than those in the regulation, disturb neighbours or add floors without the other owners' consent.
Cost to do it: Common expenses and the administrator's fee are set by the meeting and the regulation; there is no statutory tariff.
Example: In a building valued at PYG 29,341,550,000, a facade renovation needs a majority of owners holding at least two thirds of value; a dissenting owner has 30 days to go to court. / In a US$5 million building, owners holding US$2.5 million of value can replace the administrator; owners holding US$3.34 million are needed to approve improvements.Ley Nº 1183/1985 Código Civil, Art. 2138 to 2141 and 2150 to 2158, 1985-12-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. Registry, taxes and municipal filings for units. The Registro de Inmuebles keeps special books for units (Registro por piso o departamento), with the land recorded as a finca matriz and each unit as a linked unit title (finca filial); all the owners together, or a sole owner, can ask to merge the unit titles back into the parent title if they are free of liens. Municipal taxes and fees are charged to each owner separately, valuing each unit individually together with its share of the common parts, and for property tax the Servicio Nacional de Catastro values each unit as its own area plus its proportional share of common areas under the registered regulation. Sellers of flats in these buildings must register sale contracts or boletos with the municipal cadastre, the Dirección General de los Registros Públicos and the Servicio Nacional de Catastro within 30 days of signing.
Cost to do it: Property tax is 1 percent of the unit's fiscal value a year (Ley 125 art. 61).
Example: A flat with a fiscal value of PYG 250,000,000 including its share of common areas pays PYG 2,500,000 of property tax a year; the boleto for its sale must be registered within 30 days of signing. / That is about US$426 a year of property tax on a unit whose fiscal value is about US$42,602; market prices are usually higher than fiscal values.Ley Nº 1183/1985 Código Civil; Ley Nº 125/1991 art. 60 (text of Ley Nº 5513/2015); Ley Nº 3966/2010 Orgánica Municipal, CC art. 2145, 2159 and 2160; Ley 125 art. 60; Ley 3966 art. 266, 2015-10-23 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley 5513/2015, promulgated on 23 October 2015 and published on 29 October 2015, rewrote Ley 125 art. 60 to value units in horizontal property, gated communities and similar regimes as own area plus a proportional share of common areas.

5. Destruction, old age and the 1960 law. If the building is wholly destroyed, or destroyed in a proportion representing two thirds of its value, any owner may ask for the land and materials to be sold unless another solution was agreed. The earlier Ley 677/1960 on ownership by floors and flats remains in the Supreme Court's digest of laws complementing the Civil Code, but Civil Code art. 2810 repealed whatever in it conflicts with the Code, so the Code's chapter governs and the 1960 law only fills gaps (for example its fine of 1 to 10 percent of the unit's value for breaching the building prohibitions, and its rule that unpaid building expenses follow the unit, which cite articles of the former civil code).
Cost to do it: No fee.
Example: Under Ley 677 art. 10, an owner who adds a floor without consent risks a fine of 1 to 10 percent of the unit's value, so up to PYG 105,629,580 on a PYG 1,056,295,800 unit, if that rule is applied as consistent with the Code. / On a US$180,000 unit the Ley 677 fine range is US$1,800 to US$18,000. Buyers should ask for a statement of unpaid building expenses before closing.Ley Nº 1183/1985 Código Civil; Ley Nº 677/1960 sobre propiedad por pisos y por departamentos, CC art. 2161 and 2810; Ley 677 art. 10, 16 to 18, 1960-09-21 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Decision	Owners	Value
Quorum, first call	2/3 of owners	2/3 of value
Ordinary resolution, first call	Majority of those present	At least 1/2 of value
Second call (within 10 days)	At least 1/3 of owners	At least 1/3 of value
Appoint or remove administrator, authorize litigation, extraordinary repairs	Majority	At least 1/2 of value
Improvements to common parts	Majority of owners	2/3 of value
Amend the regulation	2/3 of owners	At least 1/2 of value
Adopt the first regulation	By deed of the person or group setting up the regime	Not stated

Owners' meeting thresholds (Código Civil art. 2146, 2154 to 2157)

Worked example

A foreign buyer pays US$180,000 (PYG 1,056,295,800) for a flat bought from a developer company: VAT of 5 percent on 30 percent of the price, PYG 15,844,437 (US$2,700), is charged by the seller (see the property purchase page).
Before closing, the buyer checks that the regulation is registered, reads the value table that sets the flat's share of expenses and votes, and asks the administrator for a statement of unpaid expenses.
Holding: with a fiscal value of PYG 250,000,000 including the share of common areas, property tax is PYG 2,500,000 (about US$426) a year, charged to the unit separately.

Step by step

Confirm the unit has its own registry title (finca filial) linked to the parent title, or, for off plan purchases, that the regulation is already registered.
Read the regulation: use restrictions (short term rental, offices), expense shares and the value table that drives votes.
Obtain the administrator's statement of common expenses and check property tax on the unit.
If buying off plan from the developer, make sure the boleto is registered within 30 days with the municipal cadastre, the registry and the Servicio Nacional de Catastro.
After closing, register the deed and notify the administrator so expense invoices and meeting notices reach the new owner.
Track meeting resolutions: a challenge must be filed in court within 30 calendar days.

Common traps

Without a registered regulation the building's expense shares, use limits and administrator powers are uncertain for every buyer.
Common parts cannot be sold or mortgaged separately from units, and the land cannot be mortgaged without all owners once units are sold.
Adding floors or using the roof terrace for construction needs the other owners' consent, and the owners can object to a higher building that harms aesthetics, light or air.
A court challenge to a meeting resolution does not suspend it unless the judge orders a stay.
Many references in Ley 677/1960 are to articles of the former civil code; rely on the 1985 Civil Code chapter first.

Sources

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