Mexico City Shuts Down Illegal Construction of Airbnbs at Historic Edificio Isabel

ByDana Estrada

This article by Dana Estrada originally appeared in the February 21, 2026 edition of El Sol de México.

Following protests by residents of number 121 Avenida Revolución, in Tacubaya, known as “Edificio Isabel ,” the Mexico City Institute of Administrative Verification (INVEA) placed two suspension of activities seals on the property for carrying out illegal construction on homes that are listed by the National Institute of Fine Arts (INBAL).

According to residents of the property, after the demonstration held on February 14, Invea personnel went to the property owned by the Mier y Pesado Foundation to check if the works carried out in more than five homes had the required permits, since the building has artistic and heritage value.

The building, which houses at least 60 apartments, is listed with the National Institute of Fine Arts. Photo: Omar Flores, El Sol de México

However, neither the foundation nor those responsible for the works had any required permit, which in this case must be provided directly by the INBAL, the Miguel Hidalgo mayor’s office, and other government authorities.

“We knew that they didn’t have permits to make these modifications, because the most important thing is that the building is part of Mexico City’s heritage and is included in the Tacubaya urban development plan,” the Isabel Building Neighborhood Collective explained to this newspaper.

The Mier y Pesado Foundation was established in 1917 through the will of the Duchess of Mier, Doña Isabel Pesado de la Llave, who was born in Mexico but lived most of her life in Paris.

Thus, Invea placed two seals suspending activities, which means that the foundation responsible for the property has 10 business days to present the permits required for these works, or the Institute will proceed with its closure.

Residents of at least 60 homes in the building protested on February 14th to denounce the silent eviction of tenants who had lived in the building for decades, despite paying their rents on time to the Mier y Pesado Foundation, the owner of the property.

Currently, there are seven apartments that were vacated between August and December of last year and subsequently underwent construction work to reduce the size of each unit and create more. According to neighbors, each apartment is being divided in two, and several of the apartments are already occupied by new tenants who found them through apps like Homie and Airbnb.