El Cajon couple says their dream house in Mexico has become a nightmare

Humberto and Elsa Valdez are counting down the days to retirement. They’re also nervously counting down the days to be refunded more than $74,000 they paid for what was to be their dream home in Rosarito.

“It was in a good location — an excellent location — not beachfront, but just on the other side of the freeway,” said Humberto, remembering how excited they felt in 2018 after signing a contract with Grupo Concordia, a Mexican real estate company that sells residential developments in Baja California to U.S. residents.

The Valdezes agreed to pay $128,570 in 130 monthly installments of $989 each. In return, they would receive a lot and a house to be built on it later.

However, Humberto said, everything began to fall apart a few years later when they visited the property and saw zero construction. He said they were told the pandemic was to blame.

“They blamed it on that and said,  ‘OK, things are slowing down, but we’re going to keep going,' " Humberto said. "By that time, I was already invested three years, so I said I have to go with it."

And go with it they did. They continued making their payments every month until this past December, when, Humberto said, Grupo Concordia rejected his payment and told him construction of the house was no longer on the table.

“I don’t have to tell you how disappointing it was for me and my wife," Humberto said. "She started crying. I would start like, 'Man, this is my future.' "

At that point, they had paid $74,175. They said they were offered the option of keeping the lot without a house built on it. They turned it down.

“They gave me the runaround.... You cannot contact anybody,” Humberto said, describing his efforts to find answers.

In January, Humberto and Elsa sent Grupo Concordia a letter demanding a refund of every single cent they paid. They said the company’s San Ysidro office helped them draft the letter. The following month, Grupo Concordia agreed to refund the money in five monthly installments, starting in May. 

Humberto said he still feels uneasy about the agreement and hopes Grupo Concordia will follow through this time.

Three other viewers called NBC 7 and Telemundo 20 Responds about Grupo Concordia. They said they were also having trouble getting their money back, but they eventually got full refunds. They were owed much less than Humberto and Elsa, which could explain why they got their refunds faster.

In one of NBC 7's many conversations with the company, the San Ysidro office said that at least 19 other contracts were affected by construction issues in Mexico.

Grupo Concordia corporate attorney Jose Roberto Figueroa explained what happened.

“It was an unusual situation — a global one," Figueroa said. "The pandemic was an unfortunate circumstance that affected all economic sectors. Not just real estate, not just Grupo Concordia, but we’re trying to make things right.”

Figueroa added that the construction company in charge of the project was unable to continue building the houses, which threw a big wrench in the whole project.

“Being in the eye of the hurricane complicated finding the right solutions to move forward with the project,” Figueroa said.

Figueroa noted that Grupo Concordia has been in business for more than 20 years and manages over 40 developments in Baja California. Still, they admit they could’ve done better updating their clients like Humberto and Elsa about the setbacks.

“We are here," Figueroa said. "We are here now. We are in front of the media and our clients, finding the best possible ways to salvage our contracts and our agreement by offering alternate resolutions."

“Nah, man, that’s the problem: I don’t have any trust in the company anymore,” said Humberto, indicating all he wants is to get his money back, sooner rather than later, adding, “if I have to wait five months, so be it, but I want them to know that I’m not happy about it."

Figueroa said any complaints or inquiries regarding the company should be sent directly to its Tijuana office. Its contact information can be found on the company website or they can be contacted directly at their office at 011-52-663-203-3429.