I had not seen my friend for over a year. But I was shocked to see that she was upset, it looked like she had been crying. Concerned, I asked her what the problem was.
"Remember the beach front property I bought last year ?" She asked.
My heart filled with dread when as I replied, because I had heard this story before.
"The really nice beach front which you bought last year, where the owner was in a hurry to sell ?"
My heart started to sink more and more as she told her story.
Last year she had come back to the Philippines for a vacation after working hard in Italy for the last few years. It was her dream to buy a beach front property to build a vacation house, and perhaps a have a place to retire. A friend of a friend recommended a broker. A few weeks later he located for her a beachfront which was exactly what she wanted. She right away bought the property.
She then went back to Italy to return to her job. While she was in Italy she was planning how she would landscape her property and type of house she would build. She was so excited that the moment she returned back to the Philippines she ordered the materials to build a fence. The truck went to deliever the materials and to her surprise, the driver called her and said that the property was already fenced off. And that he could not unload the materials.
Thinking that maybe the delivery truck had gotten the location of her property wrong, she met up with the driver. They then went to her property. Mysteriously the property was now fenced, and a man appeared. She asked him what was going on, who built this fence on her property. He said that it was foreshore land, that he had a foreshore lease on the land. An argument soon erupted. He then pulled a gun on her, and told her she better leave or he would shoot her for trespassing. What was a dream come true had now turned into a nightmare.
After conduction a land investigation she discover that the land was foreshore land, and that a foreshore lease had been issued on the said property. Yes she had a tax declaration, but on non-alienable and non-disposable land it is not proof of ownership. So the tax declaration which she had purchased was worthless.
She then attempted to find the "broker" who had negotiated the sale of the property. He then said it was not his problem, and there was nothing he could do.
She then sought the advice of a lawyer. The first thing the lawyer asked if she bought the property through a licensed real estate broker. After doing an investigation she found out he was not licensed. With an unlicensed broker there is only limited legal action that can be taken and unfortunately there would be little chance of getting her money back.
When I asked my friend why did she not want to use a licensed broker ? Well she wanted to save the few percent on the brokerage commission. Also she thought that since the "broker" was a friend of a friend, there would be no problems.
The Philippines is a developing country. Progress is being made in computerizing all land documents and to verify the authenticity of all land claims. All licensed real estate brokers must take a brokerage course and pass a extensive examination. On the course they learn about the difference between tax declarations and the different types of land titles and land classifications. How to conduct land investigations. Most importantly a licensed real estate broker is legally liable along with his real estate company. Therefore they will ensure all transactions are legitimate.
Since the these new regulations have just been implemented. There are a few people claiming to be licensed brokers. If in doubt ask to see their broker's ID. Check to ensure that it is still valid. Also it is a good idea to take down the license number and to check it with the Real estate licensing board. You can also ask if this broker or real estate agency has any pending complaints against them.
To prevent fraudulent land from being sold, a good realestate broker will be knowledgeable on land investigation. So before any property is put on the market it will have been thoroughly investigated.
If a sale will be made. The broker will work with a lawyer to ensure that a proper sales contract is drafted to ensure that both the seller and buyer are protected. A good broker should advise both parties to contact an independent lawyer to ensure that they are happy with the contract.
Afterwards, it is important that the transaction is registered with all of the appropriate government agencies. There have been instances where the seller thought he had sold the property, and the buyer thought he owned it. But because it was not processed properly the sale had technically not been completed. In these causes it was incompetence not wrong doing which caused the problems. This sort of problem can be fixed by a knowledgeable broker.
A good real estate broker will be able to answer all possible questions or concerns a client might have. If he can not answer the question he will refer the client to the appropriate expert.
There are some reason why a seller will not want to use a realty broker. They think that the broker's fee is too expensive. What they do not realize that they are protecting both themselves and the buyer. In this case ask the seller could your ask a broker to assist in the transaction. Most of the time they will be happy to comply. Quite often the real reason the seller does not want to list with a legitimate broker is because there is something wrong with the property. And they know that when the broker conducts his land investigation this will be revealed.
When I explained to my friend why she should always use a licensed broker, and how it would have protected her. She agreed that next time she will use a licensed broker.
With the new rules and regulations in place, tragedies like this should not occur.
But I am sure there will be a few who will have to learn the lesson the hard way.
If you are interested, here is the actual republic act for the new regulations.
Republic Act No. 9646
AN ACT REGULATING THE PRACTICE OF REAL ESTATE SERVICE IN THE PHILIPPINES, CREATING FOR THE PURPOSE A PROFESSIONAL REGULATORY BOARD OF REAL ESTATE SERVICE, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
No comments:
Post a Comment