Step-By-Step Procedure
How close are you to buying your own home? Most Overseas Filipino Workers' dream of going back home to the Philippines. The distance that they have travelled to give a better future to their family is something that shouldn’t be joked about. The money that they have cultivated must go to an investment that will surely become worthwhile.
A worthwhile investment is owning a house. A lot of times the process or the lack of understanding of the process involved in buying property is the only hindrance from fulfilling this dream. It’s not money, it’s time. Do you really have to dedicate your entire precious vacation handling the process? Can you do it while abroad? How can you make sure that the person you entrust to represent you is not getting a runaround by the different agencies you need to secure forms for?The first answer of course is to go back to the Philippines. But will you spend your precious vacation leave collecting documents and all that stressful application process? Of course not!
Fortunately there are ways in which the Filipino living overseas can still buy a property, even though they are living miles and miles away.
Find the Perfect House
The first thing that to do is to find the perfect house. You can use real estate portals online and find the dream home that will definitely fit your desires.
Choose the best developer who has your interest at heart. Some developers out there are only in it to get your hard-earned cash. What you need to do is to research. Ask your friends for referrals. Tell your attorney-in-fact to talk with the developers’ representative on your behalf. Remember, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Choose a Representative
Find someone who can become your attorney-in-fact. The attorney-in-fact is the one who will represent you in all the legal process of owning a house. To make your attorney-in-fact official, sign and consularize the Special Power of Attorney (SPA). After that, your attorney-in-fact can now sign forms and attend meetings on your behalf.A principal can give an agent broad legal authority, or very limited authority. The power of attorney is frequently used to help in the event of a principal’s illness or disability, or in legal transactions where the principal cannot be present to sign necessary legal documents
The wordattorney here means anyone authorized to act on another’s behalf. Its not restricted to lawyers.
.Is it possible for an Agent to steal my money and property?Yes. A power of attorney can be abused, and dishonest agents have used powers of attorney to transfer the principal’s assets to themselves and others. That is why it is so important to appoint an agent who is completely trustworthy.
The property agent will then send you the Special Power of Attorney (SPA) for you to sign and consularize. This is the legal document authorizing your attorney-in-fact to act on your behalf. Consularize/consularization- is a required process that authenticate the documents by the Philippine consulate. It usually costs 25 USD per document and varies from which country you’re working from. The documents will have a seal and a red ribbon over it. It’s non-refundable.
Once reserved, here are the requirements that you need to submit within 30 days:
The SPA (Consularized) – this must be authenticated by the Philippine consulate
Income Proof (3 months)
Proof of Billing (here in the Philippines)
TIN (for verification. If you don’t have a TIN # in the Philippines, the property specialist may do this for you)
CEC (Certificate of Employment and Compensation) – needs to be consularized as well
Employment Contract (should be in English) – must be with the seal of the employer as well as a signature of the authorized personnel (HR manager, etc…). Can be photocopied as long as it is certified as true and correct.
Post dated checks (PDCs) for the down payment. Requirement may change to some developers. If you don’t have a checking account yet, your attorney-in-fact may open one in his name. If you have a local savings account, you can request for a checking account thru your representative.
Photocopy or scanned copy of your passport and IDs
Your attorney-in-fact will apply for a housing loan with the bank (if bank financing), developer (if in-house financing), or Pag-IBIG (if Pag-IBIG financing).
Send back all the requirements on step 2 via courier to your agent/ property specialist.
The property specialist will then submit all the documents together with the PDC’s to the developer and that is all there is to it. All you need to do is fund the checking account and continue to pay the monthly amortization.
The steps above will vary depending on the terms of the developer and the bank.
When Buying Condominiums
A down payment of 10%-30% is usually required. Ownership of condominium units is evidenced by the Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT) but the transfer of title is usually not executed until the property is fully paid. Foreigners can only own up to 40% of a condominium project.
The Other Costs
Get your calculators ready for computing these on top of the actual price:
Real Estate Transaction Costs in the Philippines
Purchases from Individuals:
Philippines Capital Gains Tax – 6% of actual sale price. This is paid by the seller but in some cases it might be expected that the buyer pays. This percentage could differ if the property assessed is being used by a business or is a title- owned by a corporation, in this case the percentage is 7.5%
Philippines Documentary Stamp Tax – 1.5% of the actual sale price. This is paid by wither the buyer or the seller upon agreement. Normally however, it is the buyer who shoulders the cost.
Philippines Transfer Tax – 0.5% of the actual sale price
Philippines Registration Fee – 0.25% of the actual sale price
Purchases from Developers:
Philippines Capital Gains Tax – 10% of actual sale price. This value might be expressed as part of the sale price
Philippines Documentary Stamp Tax – 1.5% of the actual sale price
Philippines Transfer Tax – 0.5% of the actual sale price
Philippines Registration Fee – 0.25% of the actual sale price
It is always a good practice to inspect the land/property you’re going to buy. Inspect not only the physical location but also thru the Register of Deeds to ensure that everything about the property is in the right place and legally documented. Register of Deeds will help you verify the authenticity of the title and the legitimacy of the owners selling you the property.
Turnover Process
The turnover process is the most important to a new homeowner, because this is when the property finally changes hands. Because we know how important this is to you, we’d like to share some guidelines to make the transition smooth and satisfactory for both parties.
Completion of unit will commence upon issuance of Authority-To-Turnover (CLEARANCE) by Documentation
Completion date:
Thirty (30) days for single condominium unit
Forty-five (45) days for tandem condominium units
Approximately Nine (9) months for unit construction
Punch listing/inspection by the client will be scheduled after the completion date
Rectification of punch listed items will be done immediately but completion date may vary depending on the nature of the punch listed items
Client is responsible in settling all required fees & deposits prior to unit turnover
Homeowner Orientation of community house rules, policies & regulations is done during handover of unit
Handover kit and welcome gift is given to client upon acceptance of unit
Upgrade/improvements of the client’s unit will be allowed only after the acceptance of unit
Note that certain warranties may be voided by any unit material alteration
I hope that this helps broaden your perspective and make it easier for you to set expectations as you invest into buying your dream place. This is something we should all be aware of and we thought as brokers, sharing this knowledge is important for prospective buyers for it helps them truly understand where their investment is going.
i am Nancy Tayamin , Marketing Executive, +639054790163
Sources:
faqs from Philippineembassy-usa.org
Comments
Post a Comment