The ownership of a land or property does change through time.

A lot can be sold many times or transferred to

heirs as time goes buy. Hence, when purchasing a property, it is not only important to know the details about
the previous land owner but also about all the previous owners of the land who can be traced. Any suspicious
transfers or invalid transfers between two parties involved in the ownership of a property could lead to a
potential problem to the current buyer.

There’s this situation I witnessed in Iligan City, where one of the heirs sold their lot to a business man. The two
initiated the sale. The buyer paid the seller in cash. The moment the new owner started to register the
purchase for transfer, it found out that the title was still on its original owner which means still in its MOTHER
TITLE. No extra judicial settlement was signed and was not event transferred to the heirs of the original owner.
It was then they found out that the seller has eight siblings and they don’t know anything about the sale. 7 out
of 8 filed claims over the property and since the transaction invalidated due to the claims of the heirs; the new
owner lost the case. What went wrong? The buyer herself did not do her assignment for due diligence.

Buying properties is not that easy as buying cellphones in a gadget store. More than checking its physical
appearance, documents needs to be reviewed properly to protect your hard earned investments, most
especially if the property is still on its MOTHER TITLE.

WHAT IS MOTHER TITLE?

Mother Title is the original title of ownership of a land or property. It’s the very first registered title of the
property. It is the document that traces the origin of the property. Sometimes called the ancestral lot.

As the property changes hands from one owner to another through various transactions like gift deed,
inheritance, etc., these needs to follow through the transfer document. The sequence of transfers should
chronologically order. Any missing transaction in the mother deed needs to be fixed or understood by obtaining
relevant documents from the registration authorities or through further discussions with the seller. The flow of
transactions should be ascertained to the current seller. The right of each intermediary in the transfer of
property should be checked especially when it includes PoA, etc. One should check whether the PoA
assignment was registered or not before the sale or purchase of property through PoA.

Mother document is executed between the original owner of the property and the new buyer. Hence, the study
of the mother property helps us realize the actual owner who has the title of the property. Gift deed, will, etc.
should not be misunderstood as mother deed. [Source: India Real Estate Forums]

As a Buyer of a property with mother title, it is best to seek assistance with a real estate lawyer to help
facilitate in checking the authenticity and legality of the title of the property.

WHY IS IT NOT ADVISED TO PURCHASE A PROPERTY WITH MOTHER TITLE?

Titles which are not transferred on time, incur a lot of penalties that may be higher or bigger than it’s selling
price and market value. Other than that if other heirs do not cooperate with the transaction, as the buyer, you
need to facilitate a settlement with them as well, which will somehow blow up the total purchase.

WHAT IF I ALREADY PURCHASED A PORTION OF A LOT IN A MOTHER TITLE?

If somehow you have purchased a portion of the a property in a mother title, as long as the heirs have initiated
partition of the lot or they have subdivided the lot already and have changed the name in the tax declaration
records at the city assessors, bring a copy of your Deed of Absolute Sale (DOAS) and submit it to the
Registration of Deeds for annotation of the mother title. In the annotation, the ROD will attach in the title that
this portion of the lot is sold to you and you are the new owner of that portion of land. [Source: UNTV]
THE PROPER AND COMPLETE PROCESS

I. Preparation

1. Prepare the necessary documents for execution of Deed of Sale:

o Deed of Absolute Sale (or other variants, as appropriate in

your case)
o Acknowledgment of Payment (from buyer to seller)
o Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case (as
appropriate)
o Affidavit of land holdings by the buyer (as applicable)
2. Signing of documents.

Both parties should sign the following:

o Deed of Absolute Sale

o Acknowledgment Receipt of Payment by the buyer to seller

The seller should sign the:

o Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case

The buyer should sign the:

o Affidavit of land holdings

3. Secure the following documents to be needed later:

o 2 government-issued ID’s of both the seller and the buyer

o Tax Identification Number (TIN) of each party
o Original Owner’s duplicate of Title
o Marriage contract, if applicable
o Previous Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR)
o Tax declaration
o Receipt(s) of Real Property Tax (RPT) payments
 o Special Power of Attorney (SPA), if dealing with an attorney-in-
fact (an authorized representative)
4. Notarization of documents – all documents signed by the parties should be

notarized.

II. Secure payment computations and certified

copies of the following documents.

1. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR):

o Secure computation of fees for Documentary Stamp Tax (DST)

and for
o Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

Notes: Go to ONETT for DST and CGT computation; ask for the specific payee to

be named in the manager’s check (if paying in check); and take note of their

accredited banks, so you’ll know where to submit the payments.

2. City (or Municipal) Treasurer’s Office:

o Secure computation of Transfer Tax

o Secure Tax Clearance

Notes: Ask for computation of the Transfer Tax; ask for the specific payee to be

named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

3. City (or Municipal) Assessor’s Office:

o Secure Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration

4. Registry of Deeds:

o Secure computation of Registration Fee

o Secure Certified True Copy of the existing Transfer Certificate
of Title (TCT) or Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT), as
appropriate

Notes: Ask for computation of the Registration Fee; ask for the specific payee to

be named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

III. Preparation of payments.

Now that you know the exact fees that you will have
to pay, you should prepare these amounts. These
fees are preferrably paid using manager’s checks.
But you can also pay them in cash.

Take note of the following deadlines for the

settlement of these fees.

1. BIR:

o CGT – 30 days after the date of notarization of the Deed of

Sale
o DST – 5th day of the following month from notarization of the
Deed of Sale
2. City Treasurer’s Office:

o Transfer Tax – 60 days from date of execution of Deed of Sale

or the Acknowledgment of Payment
3. Registry of Deeds:

o Registration Fee – 1 year from the date of release of CAR from

BIR + 6 months extension if approved by BIR upon due
submission of request

IV. Process payments to BIR.

1. Present the following requirements to ONETT to obtain the official Computation

Sheet:

o Certified True Copy of the Title (TCT or CCT)

o Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration
o IDs of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)
o TIN of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)
o Filled-out online DST & CGT BIR Forms
o Deed of Sale
o Acknowledgment of Payment
2. Pay the DST & CGT at the Accredited Agent Bank (AAB) of the BIR-RDO (Revenue

District Office)

o Fill out the bank form for the BIR payments

o Present the verified DST & CGT BIR returns together with the
MCs (or cash payment) and the bank form
o Don’t forget the transaction slip!
 3. Then go back to BIR to file the above listed documents together with the

transaction slip for the processing of the new CAR

V. Process payment to the City Treasurer.

1. Present the following requirements to the Officer in Charge (OIC):

o Deed of Sale
o IDs of the buyer(s) and the Seller(s)
2. Submit manager’s check or cash payment to the designated cashier.

3. Bring the receipt to the OIC together with the above mentioned documents to

process the Transfer Tax Clearance.

VI. Process payment to the Registry of Deeds.

1. Fill out an application form for transfer of Title and present the following

requirements to the Examiner of the Day:

o CAR from the BIR

o Deed of Sale
o Transfer Tax Clearance
2. Submit the manager’s check or cash payment to the cashier for the registration.

Then attach the receipt to the application form together with the documents

stated above.

VII. Follow up with the Registry of Deeds.

1. Contact the assigned examiner for the progress of your application for new Title.

2. Once the new title has been released, file a copy with the City Assessors’ Office.

VIII. New Tax Declaration.

1. Finally, when the new Title under the buyer’s name is already released, present it

to the Assessors’ Office for the issuance of the new Tax Declaration.

2. Congratulations! You’ve now completed the proper transfer of Title.

PARTING REMINDERS

Great care and attention to small details are

required in this process. You are also going to need
a lot of patience as this will involve a lot of waiting
and sometimes long queues.

Little mistakes along the way may cause major

delays and possible serious issues in the future. So
please be careful to save yourself a lot of trouble. If
there’s anything you are not sure about, ask
questions to relevant persons, not just to anyone.

Also, if you’re in doubt as to whether an original or

only a copy of a document is required, just bring the
original. You can just make copies there if only
copies are needed.
The Bacoor City Assessor’s Office gives its services to all its constituents by assisting them in application of Transfer of
Ownership to New Ownership; Segregation (Subdivision) of Tax Declaration from Mother Tax Declaration or Consolidation of
Tax Declarations to a One Tax Declaration; Newly Declared Property (Land, Building and Other Improvement and Machinery);
Reclassification of Property as to its actual use; Issuances of True Copy, Certificates such as No Improvement, Aggregate
Land Holdings and No Property for Specific Purposes in the City of Bacoor.

) talaga bang nawala or itinago lang sa inyo ng iyong pinsan?

kasi kung itinago lang at hindi nawala iba yung remedy natin at hindi reconstitution of title.
2) yung mother title, ito ba ay original certificate of title (OCT) or transfer certificate of title (TCT)? kasi yung petition for reconstitution of title
and issuance of second owners copy of OCT and
petition for reconstitution of title and issuance of second owners copy of TCT are separately treated by RA 26 (An Act Providing a Special
Procedure for the Reconstitution of Torrens Certificates of Title Losr or Destroyed)

kung talagang nawala na yung mother title, the thing to do here is file a petition for reconstitution of title
and issuance of second owner's copy with the regional trial court of the place where the property is located.
The petition shall state or contain, among other things, the following: (a) that the owner's duplicate of the
certificate of title had been lost or destroyed; (b) that no co-owner's mortgagee's or lessee's duplicate had
been issued, or, if any had been issued, the same had been lost or destroyed; (c) the location, area and
boundaries of the property; (d) the nature and description of the buildings or improvements, if any, which do
not belong to the owner of the land, and the names and addresses of the owners of such buildings or
improvements; (e) the names and addresses of the occupants or persons in possession of the property, of
the owners of the adjoining properties and all persons who may have any interest in the property; (f) a
detailed description of the encumbrances, if any, affecting the property; and (g) a statement that no deeds
or other instruments affecting the property have been presented for registration, or, if there be any, the
registration thereof has not been accomplished, as yet. All the documents, or authenticated copies thereof,
to be introduced in evidence in support of the petition for reconstitution shall be attached thereto and filed
with the same (Sec.12, RA 26).

kung itinago lang, it is indicative na may ibang gustong mangyari other than the fair and equitable partition
of the property described in the mother title. ang gagawin dyan, you initiate the filing of judicial partition of
the property owned by your grandfather para ang korte na mag decide who shall get what, because all of
you who are heirs of your grandfather are co-owners of that property. the downside with it is the expenses
and time that go along with court proceedings kaysa extra-judicial partition (meaning, you just execute a
deed of extra-judicial partition before a notary public) na very expeditious.

dumulog po kayo sa tanggapan ng isang abogado at sabihin nyo an gusto nyong mag file ng notice of
adverse claim. ipa- annotate ninyo yang adverse claim nyo sa kopya ng certificate of title na andun sa
registry of deeds. the duly annotated adverse claim signifies that another person has a claim or interest in
the registered land.Babala po iyan to third parties na somebody is claiming an interest on the said property.
Under P.D. No. 1529, adverse claim is good only for 30 days from annotation, after which a verified petition
maybe filed to cancel it with the RTC. In the meantime, you file a judicial partition in court. once it is filed,
you file a notice of LIS PENDENS, which is constructive notice to any person that the property is the subject
of a pending case.

You may also file a criminal case for grave coercion against nung
sapilitang kumuha ng titulo (kailan
ba nangyari yan baka nag prescribe na).

Hope this helps.