This case has been cited 2 times or more.
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2009-01-30 |
LEONARDO-DE CASTRO, J. |
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| Equally significant is the fact that Delos Reyes was not in possession of the subject property when she sold the same to the Burgos siblings. It was Amado Burgos who bought the property for his children, the Burgos siblings. Amado was not personally acquainted with Delos Reyes prior to the sale because he bought the property through a real estate broker, a certain Jose Anias, and not from Delos Reyes herself. There was no showing that Amado or any of the Burgos siblings exerted any effort to personally verify with the Register of Deeds if Delos Reyes' certificate of title was clean and authentic. They merely relied on the title as shown to them by the real estate broker. An ordinarily prudent man would have inquired into the authenticity of the certificate of title, the property's location and its owners. Although it is a recognized principle that a person dealing with registered land need not go beyond its certificate of title, it is also a firmly established rule that where circumstances exist which would put a purchaser on guard and prompt him to investigate further, such as the presence of occupants/tenants on the property offered for sale, it is expected that the purchaser would inquire first into the nature of possession of the occupants, i.e., whether or not the occupants possess the land in the concept of an owner. Settled is the rule that a buyer of real property that is in the possession of a person other than the seller must be wary and should investigate the rights of those in possession. Otherwise, without such inquiry, the buyer can hardly be regarded as a buyer in good faith.[21] | |||||
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2006-07-17 |
GARCIA, J. |
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| In Republic v. De Guzman,[22] the Court declared that a buyer who fails to investigate or inquire concerning the rights of those in actual possession of the property being mortgaged or sold, can hardly be regarded as a buyer in good faith. | |||||