LEGAL PROCEDURES BEFORE OWNING A PROPERTY IN THE PHILIPPINES

Please read full article on the Costs of buying properties in the Philippines by Global Property Group.

​Legal Procedures in transfer of title (land and apartments)

1. Owner and Buyer agree on sale of a piece of land. Through a lawyer, a Deed of Absolute Sale (DOAS) is created and notarized.

2. A Land Tax Declaration is secured from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and submitted to the city or municipal Assessor´s office.

​3. Buyer pays real estate tax to the City Treasurer´s Office.

4. The Assessor´s office assesses the market value of the property.

5. Transfer taxes are paid by the buyer to the Assessor´s Office.

6. Capital Gains Tax and Documentary Stamp tax are paid to BIR.

7. The Registry of Deeds (RD) cancels old title and issues a new one in the name of the buyer.

8. The buyer, now the new owner, obtains a photocopy of the new title and requests tax declaration from the Assessor´s office.

Ownership is evidenced by the Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) in the case of single houses and raw land, and The Land Registration Act requires the owners of property to register titles with the Registry of Deeds. The titles must be registered in the same province as the property. However, the records are inaccurate in such that overlapping might exist. There is a proliferation of fake and double titles. The completion of survey of all the lands in the country, mandated by the 1903 Public Land Law, is nowhere in sight.
The whole process of registering property may take around 39 days to complete eight procedures.