Expropriation of 49 apartments in Villa Arauco to regenerate the housing complex

The Ministry of Housing and Urbanism approved the expropriation of 49 apartment units of the Villa Arauco Housing Complex, in the commune of Viña del Mar, through Exempt Decree No. 53, issued on November 4, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette No. 44,597 on Thursday, November 12, 2026, in Section II, under the official reference CVE 2899420. The decision is adopted within the framework of the Housing Complex Regeneration Program and enables the demolition and reconstruction stages of the residential facility.

The legal framework of the measure

The decree is based on Article 51 of Law No. 16,391, which empowers the Housing and Urbanization Services to expropriate according to programs approved by supreme decree of the ministry, and on DS No. 18 (V. y U.), of 2017, which regulates the Social Housing Complex Regeneration Program. The text specifies that the properties are not subject to a declaration of public utility derived from Article 59 of the General Law of Urbanism and Construction, but that their acquisition is necessary to execute the regeneration program.

The complex was incorporated into the program through exempt resolution No. 9,519 (V. y U.), of November 22, 2018, and has a Regeneration Master Plan approved by the Regional Technical Table on November 25, 2021, an act endorsed by exempt resolution No. 2,305, of November 30, 2021, from the Regional Ministerial Secretariat of Housing and Urbanism of the Valparaíso Region. This plan contemplates the total demolition of the 256 original homes—distributed across 16 four-story blocks—and the reconstruction of the same number of units, including urban works, facilities, and green areas. It is based on a 2020 structural diagnosis that detected significant damage and a risk of partial or total collapse in the event of magnitude earthquakes.

The 49 affected units

The homes are concentrated on the fourth floors of the complex and in Lot C, according to the details of the Expropriation Plan 49 Units, scale 1:500, sheets 1 and 2, prepared by the Serviu of the Valparaíso Region in October 2026:

• Co-ownership A (Lot A), De los Niños Street No. 50: 8 apartments, with 402.86 m² of built area and 621.22 m² of pro-rata share in common areas.
• Co-ownership B (Lot B), Millaray Street No. 650: 1 apartment, of 50.51 m² and 75.25 m² of pro-rata share.
• Co-ownership C (Lot C), Millaray Street No. 655: 40 apartments, with 2,004.83 m² and 2,770.06 m² of pro-rata share.

In total, the approximate area to be expropriated reaches 2,458.20 m² of apartments and 3,466.53 m² for rights in common domain assets. The decree individualizes each unit with its tax appraisal roll number, block, floor, area, and the name of the apparent owner, including Rosa Ester Aguirre Fuiguerola, Miguel Ángel Ojeda Atienza, Erica Tatiana Hernández Leiva, and María Albina Neira Sanzana, as well as the estates and co-owners appearing in cases of shared ownership.

Deadlines, financing, and technical support

The current programming of the intervention sets the relocation of families during the first semester of 2027 and the total demolition of the complex in the second semester of that same year. With these expropriations, the acquisition of all fourth-floor apartments and the entirety of Lot C is completed.

The supporting documents for the decision are:

• Technical Report dated October 22, 2026, from the Director of Serviu of the Valparaíso Region, SIBIS ID No. 05-01268, which recommends the expropriation.
• Appraisal Report dated August 4, 2026, from the Serviu Land Management Office.
• Ordinary Official Letter No. 1859, dated October 27, 2026, from the Regional Ministerial Secretary, which reports favorably on the measure.
• Serviu Official Letters No. 6,662, dated September 9, 2026, and No. 7,073, dated October 1, 2026, which submit the list of affected units.

The execution and payment of indemnities will be financed through the “Habilitación de Terrenos de Villa Arauco” initiative, BIP code No. 40010709-0, with a Favorable Recommendation from the Ministry of Social Development and Family dated June 12, 2026, and financing from the Transitory Emergency Fund (FET), within the framework of the Reconstruction Plan.

Urban compatibility and procedure

According to the technical report, the properties are located in Zone V7 of the Communal Regulatory Plan of Viña del Mar, from 2002, which allows for residential housing use, and are compatible with the Metropolitan Regulatory Plan of Valparaíso (PREMVAL), from 2014. The complex also borders a ravine mapped in the PREMVAL, subject to flood risk AR-1 and its restriction strip. The decree is exempt from the toma de razón (legal review) procedure according to resolution No. 36, of 2024, from the Comptroller General of the Republic, and orders its publication in the Official Gazette and in a newspaper of the Valparaíso province. The act bears the signature, by order of the President of the Republic, of Minister Iván Poduje Capdeville, and was transcribed by Undersecretary Natalia Aguilar Bravo.

The impact falls directly on the owners and residents of the 49 apartments, who will see the property transferred to Serviu and must relocate before the demolition scheduled for the second half of 2027. The publication closes the expropriation stage that was remaining to complete the full intervention of Villa Arauco, one of the first Chilean experiences of integral regeneration of a social housing complex built in height.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,597, Thursday, November 12, 2026, Section II, pages 1 to 5 (official reference: CVE 2899420).