REAL CASES
Almost every year, new cases come up of families who pay for houses they never receive, or receive badly built. Here we bring together real cases that came to light - in news reports and in official records - and show what those records reveal. In most of them, the signals were verifiable before signing.
Appearing on this page does not mean that the company or the people involved committed a crime - only a court can declare that. We bring together reported cases and what public records show, with each fact attributed to its source. The companies and people mentioned have a right of reply.
Light-steel (LSF) houses · Ovar
Do Not ProceedDozens of families say they paid for light-steel houses that were never finished. The company, behind the 5D Home brand, was declared insolvent by court ruling; the same managers ran a second company, since dissolved, and one of them had a personal insolvency declared in 2010.
SÁBADO investigation (CMTV), 2023
Construction and renovation · Coimbra
Do Not ProceedThe company currently taking on work, run by a family whose earlier construction companies went into insolvency and liquidation. The licence is valid, but one of its shareholders was the manager of Interconcept and Polyconcept, both liquidated after insolvency, with enforcement actions closed for lack of assets.
Investigative report (NOW), 2026
Light-steel (LSF) houses · Barcelos
Do Not ProceedDozens of families say they paid for houses that were left unfinished. The licence is valid, but the records show several court cases, an enforcement of judgment, and the manager's history at another insolvent construction company.
Repórter Sábado report (NOW), 2026
Modular houses · Vila Real
Do Not ProceedCustomers who paid instalments and were left without a house. The same manager appears linked to an earlier insolvent company, at the same address, and civil cases are piling up against the current company.
Grande Jornal Investigação report (CMTV), 2026
Property development and construction · Palmela
Do Not ProceedThe Palmela case: an alleged double-selling scheme in a property development, with 114 families affected and around 27 million euros claimed.
Widely reported case, 2026
More cases will be added as they come to light.
Look up any Portuguese construction company in seconds. Court proceedings, IMPIC licence, insolvencies and the history of the people who run it, all from official sources, in a single report.
Check a construction companyDon't stop at the licence. Confirm the alvará with IMPIC, search for proceedings and insolvencies on CITIUS and in the commercial registry publications, and cross-reference the managers' corporate history (what other companies they ran, and what happened to them). A valid licence confirms licensing, not the track record of compliance. ObraXRAY brings these sources together in a single report.
No. We bring together cases that came to light, in news reports and in official records, and show what those records reveal. Appearing on this page does not mean that the company or the people involved committed any crime - only a court can declare that. Each fact is attributed to its source and the parties mentioned have a right of reply.
Check the public risk signals before signing or paying a deposit: the licence, court cases, insolvencies, debts and the shareholders' past. Most of these signals are public, but they are spread across several sources. Checking the construction company (and the people who run it) before handing over money is the cheapest way to avoid an expensive problem.