A construction project that drags on inevitably carries large financial consequences, as the accounts shared by Alejandro and Emily in recent weeks have made clear.
The impact on buyers’ personal lives, however, should not be underestimated. Damien, speaking under a pseudonym, and his wife, for instance, had to put plans for a second child on hold because of their financial situation, despite both earning good salaries.
"We are constantly walking a tightrope", the father told RTL, adding: "We’re stable, but it would only take one unexpected expense to push us into the red."
They find themselves in that position because they are simultaneously paying off a loan and covering rent while waiting for their flat to be handed over. "It comes to over €5,000 a month", he said, after showing RTL proof of payment.
Like Emily, Damien and his partner had bought a flat in the "West Valley" development in Moutfort. In their case, however, construction had reached a much more advanced stage before grinding to a halt in mid-2024.
The couple had signed the deed of sale just over a year earlier, in March 2023. Work then resumed briefly before stopping again in July 2024, the father explained.
Nearly a year later, there had still been no progress on the site. The co-owners had, however, been invited to two information meetings, the first in June and the next in September 2025.
In the meantime, they had learned of the difficulties the Capelli Group was facing in France. Ultimately, the developer and the buyers agreed on a new deadline for the residence’s completion: the end of 2026.
A year on, it is now clear that meeting that deadline is highly unlikely. Throughout this time, Damien and the other owners have had to fight to get answers. He contacted members of parliament and even wrote a letter to the Prime Minister.
Three MPs had replied, he said, all of them talking about what was going to change and what improvements would be made. Yet none of them had wanted to discuss what was being done, or could be done, to help people in situations like his. It was, in his words, as if they just wanted to move on.
The young father did not give up, however. He coordinated with the other owners in the development to find a joint legal representative. Lawyer Olinger took on the role.
He now represents a large number of buyers from lot 16, as well as Emily, who had purchased a property in the neighbouring development. When RTL spoke with him, he highlighted the ineffectiveness of the legal avenues available to buyers purchasing off-plan (VEFA).
They were, Olinger said, at the mercy of the developer. Damien, for his part, criticises the imbalance of responsibilities in a case like his.
He points out that buyers are required to "pay the developer on time, pay the VAT, ensure the work is actually done, chase up the developer when things stall, find a lawyer", and then navigate Luxembourg legislation on the matter.
"It all falls on our shoulders, and in the meantime, no one is making sure that our rights aren’t being trampled on", Damien said.
In addition to reaching out to several elected officials, the father also tried his luck with the relevant authorities. He contacted the Ministry of Housing, the Ministry of Justice and, as mentioned, the Ministry of State.
They had all just passed the buck, he said. They had eventually been told that it was a private matter and that they would be better off hiring a lawyer. It was, he said, an unbelievable response, and he would even go so far as to call it plainly rude.
When RTL spoke with Damien in early October, he confirmed that scaffolding had been put up around the residence in September. However, "nothing has moved since then", he insisted. And under those circumstances, it is not just his finances that are suffering.
The waiting and uncertainty are also causing other consequential harm. Decisions have had to be made, in particular regarding the couple’s family plans.
If they could not have a second child right now, Damien confided, it was solely because of all these extra costs. He estimates his financial loss at over €50,000, including rent and interest.
How things play out for the company Moutfort Todenweg Sàrl will determine what happens next. If it were to go bankrupt, the completion guarantee could be triggered, but this could also bring to light any overbilling.
Damien is firmly convinced it would. If his suspicions were confirmed, it would be very bad news for the co-owners, since overbilling is not covered by the completion guarantee.
"Pay poorly, pay twice", as a lawyer RTL consulted on the matter recently put it.
In that context, it is worth noting that Christophe Capelli recently told RTL that the Moutfort Todenweg company would not go bankrupt.
When asked about the Moutfort project in late September, the business owner insisted that he intended to see his commitments through.
He also said that nearly €200,000 had been reinvested in "West Valley" over recent months. Work, he said, was under way on one house and on the residential building at lot 16.
His account, however, is difficult to reconcile with the reactions of buyers and neighbours who have been in touch with RTL since Emily’s testimonial was published.
"Nothing has happened for quite some time. Some of the construction sites have even become dangerous for children (as they have been abandoned and are therefore poorly secured)."
"We narrowly avoided an accident recently", a concerned neighbour wrote to RTL. According to her, pests have been making the construction sites their home for months.
Then there are the buyers who had not come forward until now but who decided to do so in early October. They tell RTL that work on their properties remains at a complete standstill.
RTL was also contacted by a man in his thirties who bought a house in the development. "We aren’t in any WhatsApp groups, and there is practically no communication with us, except through lawyers", he wrote.
He cites numerous construction defects and fears having to pay hundreds of thousands of euros more if a bankruptcy does occur. And that, he says, is only the tip of the iceberg.
The "West Valley" project in Moutfort involves dozens of buyers whose lives have been turned upside down by their purchase.
Since the publication of RTL’s first report (featuring Alejandro’s account), many other buyers have been in touch to say they are in similar situations.
Numerous bankruptcies have occurred over the past three years, putting dozens of property projects at risk in the process.
RTL contacted the Ministry of Housing to gauge the scale of the problem. The response, however, was that it was impossible to provide figures on the matter.
A joint response from the Ministries of Justice, Finance and Housing was promised. At the time of publication, no further update had yet been received.
"When we bought in Luxembourg, we accepted everything that came with it: high prices, the cost of living. But in return, we expected a certain level of quality and, above all, some semblance of security."
"It turns out that isn’t the case, and the authorities don’t seem willing to help us. It’s as if we have no rights", says Damien.
For him and his family, the best-case scenario would appear to be for Capelli to complete lot 16; any other outcome would likely add up to tens of thousands of euros in additional financial loss.
This article is the third in a series about bankruptcies affecting off-plan property purchases. The next report will be published at the end of next week on RTL Infos, RTL Today, and RTL.lu. If you are in a similar situation and would like to be contacted by our journalist, please email rtlinfos@rtl.lu.
