A Quick Guide to Buying Property

I recently made my purchased on a property (this is how I conceived my blogsite), although a realtor agent took care mostly of the processing, as I went along with it, every now and then I learned something new. As everyone is aware of, buying property is not easy as we thought would be. You may think of a simple piece of property that look idle and abandoned for years with clean documents, but still we need to be careful and do our research since we don’t want to have that hard earned money blow up in the air.

Here are some tips that I would like to share with you:

1. Ensure that the title, also known as TCT “Transfer of Title Certificate” is real. One way to find out if it is authentic is by getting a “Certified True Copy” from the Register of Deeds. This office is usually located at the city or municipal hall where the property is located. In my town of Bacoor, I have to go to the provincial capital of Trece Martires City. Request from the seller of the property for a photocopy of the title. You will need the title number and the name of the owner to get a certified true copy of the title from the Register of Deeds.

2. Verify that the title is clean, that the property is not mortgaged, no liens and encumbrances of whatsoever on the said property. Read each pages of the Title and watch out for additional typewritten documents. Read the back page title with the heading “Encumbrances”. Sometimes the space is for the technical description of the property on the front page of the Title is not enough and the description of the property is continued on “Encumbrances” page, which is of course fine.

3. You want to make sure that the land described on the Title is really the land that you are buying. You can validate this at the Register of Deeds or by hiring a private surveyor or geodetic engineer. Land Titles don’t have any street name and number to pinpoint such property. You must confirm that the actual property you are buying matches the technical description on the Transfer Certificate of Title.

4. Make sure that the sellers are the real owners. If you are buying from an individual property owner, ask for identification papers like passport or driver’s license. It is also a good idea to talk to the neighbors to confirm the identity of the sellers as well as some history of the property. When I paid the seller, I made an unannounced visit to their residence, but then I changed my mind that I made the payment to their bank account instead.

5. Verify that the yearly real estate taxes are paid. Ask for a copy of the Tax Declaration to confirm that real state tax payments are up to date.

Good luck on your buying.

You may want to check these other sources:
http://real-estate-guide.philsite.net
www.islandsproperties.com
www.philippine-real.info