Quito regulates the application of the Organic Administrative Code on municipal assets

The Metropolitan Council of Quito issued Metropolitan Ordinance No. 126-2026, published in the Special Edition No. 1619 of the Official Registry of Ecuador on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, to regulate the application of the Fifth General Provision of the Organic Administrative Code (COA). The regulation establishes the administrative procedure through which real estate properties lacking a registered title of ownership become the domain of the Decentralized Autonomous Government of the Metropolitan District of Quito (GAD DMQ) or its metropolitan public companies.

The ordinance was discussed and approved in two debates: Ordinary Session No. 197 on April 3, 2026 (first debate) and Ordinary Session No. 216 on August 4, 2026 (second debate). It was sanctioned by Mayor Pabel Muñoz López on August 8, 2026, and enters into force from the date of its sanction, according to its final provisions.

Legal framework and background

The Fifth General Provision of the COA stipulates that real estate properties in the uninterrupted, good-faith material possession of administrations for more than five years, and which lack registered titles, become the property of the possessing administration by mandate of law. The National Court of Justice, through a consultation response dated November 18, 2021 (official letter No. 885-P-CNJ-2021), specified that this is an internal administrative process, not a judicial action, which is resolved by administrative order and registered in the Property Registry.

The new ordinance incorporates Title V into Book IV.6 of the Municipal Code for the Metropolitan District of Quito, with articles 4119.1 to 4119.12, and defines key concepts such as possessing administration, material possession, good faith, and administrative act of regularization.

Requirements and procedure

For a property to be registered through this procedure, the following requirements must be met:

• That the property lacks legally registered titles of ownership, according to the search certificate from the Property Registry.
• That it is in uninterrupted, good-faith material possession for more than five years, as verified in a report from the possessing municipal body or public company.
• That the possession is linked to public purposes, provision of services, public works, investment, or institutional use compatible with the administration’s competencies.
• The declaration of good-faith possession, which is presumed according to the Civil Code and may be refuted by anyone who proves a legitimate interest.

The procedure may be initiated ex officio by the Metropolitan Directorate of Real Estate or at the request of the possessing entities; in the case of metropolitan public companies, the initiative corresponds to their General Manager. The processing requires reports from the Metropolitan Directorate of Cadastre, the Zonal Administration, and the Metropolitan Attorney General’s Office, with a favorable opinion.

Right to Defense and Effects

Once the initiation act is issued, an extract of the procedure is published in a widely circulated media outlet and on the GAD DMQ website. Any natural or legal person who considers themselves to have ownership rights may present their defense within a term of twenty (20) days from the publications. If the opposition refutes the factual or legal premises, the authority shall deny the act with justification and archive the procedure.

If no opposition is presented, the administrative act of regularization is issued, which constitutes sufficient title for its protocolization and registration in the Property Registry of the Metropolitan District of Quito, with subsequent cadastral updating. The ordinance was certified by the general secretary of the Council, Libia Rivas Ordóñez, and electronically signed by Mayor Pabel Muñoz López.

Relevance

The regulation provides a clear and predictable procedural framework for the regularization of municipal properties that lack a registered title, avoiding discretion and guaranteeing the right to defense for potential owners. For the citizenry, it implies greater legal certainty regarding the public assets of the Metropolitan District and an agile administrative channel for the registration of public-use assets.

Source: Official Registry of Ecuador, Special Edition No. 1619, September 8, 2026, Metropolitan Ordinances, p. 2 (official reference: Metropolitan Ordinance No. 126-2026).