The City of DAVAO (also known as The Premier City of The South or The City in Bloom) is the largest city in the Philippines. It is the world's largest city in terms of land area, occupying 2,444 square kilometers. The city is the regional center of Davao Region (Region XI) and has a population of 1,725,355 people (2005 estimate) in 240,057 households (2000 census).

Metro Davao has been dubbed "The City of Royalties" (Dakbayan sa Dabaw) or "The Royal City." Davaoweños live by the King and Grandfather of the Philippine mountains (MT. APO) among the king of the Philippines skies and the largest eagle in the world (the PHILIPPINE EAGLE) the queen of the Philippine orchids (the WALING-WALING, Euanthe sanderiana) and feasting on the king of the exotic fruits (the DURIAN, Durio zibethinus L.)

Some must-visit areas of the city include HOLIDAY GYM AND SPA (the most modern and complete spa, massage and fitness center), HOLIDAY OCEANVIEW RESORT AND MARINA (the first and foremost marina being built in Mindanao) and CAMP HOLIDAY BEACH RESORT SAMAL (an exciting new outdoor camping concept).

In recent years, the sprawling urban METROPOLIS of Davao has emerged as the business, investment and tourism hub for the entire southern Philippines. Its international AIRPORT and SEAPORT are among the busiest cargo hubs in the southern Philippines. The city boasts of some of the finest beaches and most captivating diving spots situated just a 15 minutes "Roll-on Roll-off ferry" ride to the ISLAND GARDEN CITY SAMAL and some of the most fun-filled colorful festivals held every year in Davao City: KADAYAWAN, ARAW NG DABAW and MUTYA NG DABAW PAGEANTRY. The CITY TOURISM OPERATIONS OFFICE of DAVAO is by far the most committed in facilitating and encouraging the tourism industry in the region.

ASIAWEEK ranked Metro Davao among the 20 most livable cities in Asia, above Manila and Cebu and the number one as the most livable city in the country. FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENTS MAGAZINE conducted a study which named Davao City as the 10th "Asian City of the Future".

The following are general overview of the: Information on buying a house, condo, lot or any real estate property in the Philippines. It includes relevant information on Philippine laws and regulations, specially for former Filipinos who are now naturalized citizens of other countries and for foreigners who wish to purchase a property in the Philippines.

Disclaimer: We try our best to give accurate information on this site. However, we could not be held legally liable for its contents. This serves only as a guide for general reference.

General Real Estate Information

As a rule, only Filipino citizens and corporations or partnerships with at least 60% of the shares owned by Filipinos are entitled to acquire land in the Philippines.

Real Estate Buying Guide for Balikbayans

Former natural-born Filipinos who are now naturalized citizens of another country can buy and register, under their own name, land in the Philippines but limited in land area (see below). However, those who avail of the Dual Citizenship Law can buy as much land as any other Filipino citizen.

Under Republic Act 9225 (Dual Citizenship Law of 2003), former Filipinos who became naturalized citizens of foreign countries are deemed not to have lost their Philippine citizenship, thus enabling them to enjoy all the rights and privileges of a Filipino.

If a former Filipino who is now a naturalized citizen of a foreign country does not want to avail of the Dual Citizen Law, he or she can still acquire land based on BP (Batas Pambansa) 185 & RA (Republic Act) 8179 but limited to the following:

For Residential Use (BP 185 - enacted in March 1982):

• Up to 1,000 square meters of residential land.
• Up to one (1) hectare of agricultural farm land.

For Business / Commercial Use (RA 8179 - amended the Foreign Investment act of 1991):

• Up to 5,000 square meters of urban land.
• Up to three (3) hectares of rural land.

Real Estate Buying Guide for Foreigners

By law, foreigners don't have the right to acquire land in the Philippines. The simplest way for a foreigner to acquire real estate properties is to have a Filipino spouse purchase a property. Another alternative is having a Filipino partner when acquiring a property. The partner owns 51% or more and the remainder is owned by the foreigner.

Owning houses or buildings is legal as long as the foreigner does not own the land on which the house is build. The land can be leased by the foreigner or a foreign corporation on a long term contract for an initial 50 year period and renewable every 25 years. A foreigner can rent a lot and at the same time legally own the house on the rented land.

Corporations or partnerships that is at least 60% Filipino owned are entitled to acquire land in the Philippines. Setting up a corporation with 40% of the stocks in the foreigner's name and 60% to Filipinos is a good alternative. There must be a minimum of 5 stockholders, and foreigner can have the Filipino stockholders sign blank transfer of the stocks for security.

Foreign acquisition of a Philippine real estate is allowed in the following cases:

• Acquisition before the 1935 constitution.
• Acquisition thru hereditary succession if the foreigner is a legal or natural heir. This means that when you are married to a Filipino citizen and your husband/wife dies, you as the natural heir will become the legal owner of his/her property. The same is true for the children. Every natural child (legitimate or illegitimate) can inherit the property of his/her Filipino father/mother even if he/she is not a Filipino citizen.
• Purchase of not more than 40% interest in a condominium project.
• The Condominium Act of the Philippines, R.A. 4726, expressly allows foreigners to acquire condominium units and shares in condominium corporations up to and not more than 40% of the total and outstanding capital stock of a Filipino owned or controlled condominium corporation.
• Purchase by a former natural-born Filipino citizen subject to the limitations prescribed by law. (natural born Filipinos who acquired foreign citizenship is entitled to own up to 1,000 square meter of residential land, and 1 hectare of agricultural or farm land)
• Filipinos who are married to aliens who retain their Filipino citizenship, unless by their act or omission they have renounced their Filipino citizenship.

The standard sharing of expenses between the buyer and the seller when transferring the real estate property title (TCT - Transfer Certificate of Title or CCT - Condominium Certificate of Title) to a new owner are:

The SELLER pays for the:

• Capital Gains Tax equivalent to 6% of the selling price of the property. (Withholding Tax if the seller is a corporation)
• All unpaid taxes due (if any).
• Agent / Broker's commission.

The BUYER pays for the:

• Extended Value-added Tax (EVAT) - For units with gross selling price of over P2.5 million, there shall be imposed a value-added-tax of 12% payable on each sale to the BIR. Any units with a gross selling price of under P2.5 million are exempted.
• Documentary Stamp Tax - An instrument, document or paper on the sale, transfer or exchange of real property is required by law to be stamped. The Documentary Stamp Tax at the rate of 1.5% of the purchase price, zonal values, or the market values under the Tax Declaration of the property, whichever is higher, is payable to the BIR within ten (10) days after the close of the month when the DOAS is signed and notarized.
• Local Transfer Tax - Local transfer tax is imposed by the City Treasurer’s office generally at the rate of 0.8% of the purchase price, zonal value, or TD value of the property, whichever is higher.
• Registration Fees - are payable to the Register of Deeds at the rate of P8,796.00 for the first P1.7million plus P90.00 for every P20, 000.00 or fraction thereof in excess of P1.7 million.
• The "Deed of Sale" or "Deed of Absolute Sale" is the document showing legal transfer of real estate property ownership. The deed of sale is then taken to the Registry of Deeds to be officially recorded after paying the documentary stamp, transfer tax and registration fees. Always verify from the Registry of Deeds the authenticity of a Transfer Certificate of Title before buying a property. If the seller only has a tax declaration, be extra cautious and check with neighbours, the Barangay captain or anyone in the know in the community to verify the seller/owner's true identity and the property's history.

Your Agent/Broker will usually do the registration process.

Documents needed when transferring the title (TCT or CCT) to the new owner:

• Certified true copy of the title
• Copies of the Deed of Absolute Sale
• Latest tax declaration of the property
• Certificate from the Bureau of Internal Revenue that the capital gains tax and documentary stamps have been paid
• Receipt of payment of the transfer tax and registration fees
• An adapted form of the "Torrens" system of land registration is used in the Philippines. The system was adapted to assure a buyer that if he buys a land covered by an Original Certificate of Title (OCT) or the Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) issued by the Registry of Deeds, the same will be absolute, indefeasible and imprescriptible.

An excellent flowchart that follow through all of the procedures Real Estate Buying in the Philippines can be found here.