Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction in the Real Estate Sector of Bangladesh: A Systematic and Bibliometric Review of Customer Expectations, Service Delivery, and SERVQUAL Applications

Although the Real Estate sector can be a key contributor to Bangladesh's economy, poor quality of service has been a major issue, leading to aggrieved customers. However, no systematic mapping of service quality and customer satisfaction literature has been conducted in this context. This study provides a systematic and bibliometric review of customer expectations, service delivery, and SERVQUAL (Service Quality) applications in the context of the real estate service sector for Bangladesh. Using the PRISMA protocol, we searched Scopus and Web of Science and identified the set of 19 peer-reviewed studies from 2005 to January–December 2024 that passed relevance screening with methods screening. Identification of publication trends and the most impactful authors was performed through bibliometric analyses, while thematic clusters were mapped. Hence, the review establishes that customer expectations together with trust, responsiveness, and service arise at multi-dimensional levels – prioritizing structural integrity, timely completion of projects, and legal compliance. The literature also consistently indicates negative gaps in all five dimensions of SERVQUAL; reliability and assurance are the most significant contributors to overall satisfaction. The generic model, on the other hand, does not account for critical contextual elements such as regulatory compliance, post-handover maintenance, and transparency in communications. Studies have linked service failures to agency problems, information asymmetry, and grievance handling, which increase negative word of mouth. We found three clusters of literature: determinants of perceived service quality, behavioral consequences of dissatisfaction, and the moderating effects of corporate reputation and trust. It is ill-structured, dominated by cross-sectional, developer-centered surveys, but highly active in terms of publication activity since 2019, mostly in regional outlets. Synthesizing the findings, we construct an integrative framework that connects service quality dimensions to satisfaction and loyalty. We offer practical implications for developers who redesign service blueprints, regulators to promote and enforce standards, and marketers to establish trust through transparency in their communication. This future research agenda pushes for a greater focus on digital service interfaces, cultural moderators, and multi-stakeholder perspectives to broaden scholarship in the context of emerging-economy real estate markets.