“Laws relating to family rights and duties,or to the status, condition and legal capacity of persons are binding upon Filipino citizens, even though living abroad.” (Article 15 Civil Code of the Philippines)
Q. Dear Atty. Wong, I’m Filipino Canadian. We bought condo from a well- known Developer through its sales representative here in Toronto. We found out that our Contract To Sell was altered without my consent i.e. Canadian to Filipino and alternate contact information was altered. Do we have the right to request our reservation and instalment refund? We bought it 2 to 3 months ago.
Sir, please reply and help us po. Total about 6 to 7 buyers affected. Maraming salamat po ! WN
ANS: Hello WN. First thing first. In the law on contracts, the duties and obligations of the contracting parties are primarily governed by the terms, conditions and provisions of the contract that the parties have entered into, unless otherwise, the contract is contrary to law, public policy, among others..
So go over the provisions of the Contract to Sell and other related documents that you have signed with the developer. Peruse the said documents and its contents .What does it says, in case of breach of the contracting parties? What are the legal consequences, if any?
You claimed the “contract to sell” was altered or changed without your consent. Such alteration pertaining to your citizenship and in the alternate contact information could be material or substantial breach a ground for revocation of the Contract to Sell.
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However and assuming that you may have legal grounds to revoke the contract, you may need prior court/Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) approval in declaring the contract as void, unless there is a clear provisions in the contract to sell, which allows the contracting parties to unilaterally terminate the contract without going to court/HLURB. And in such particularly situation, you may need only to notify in writing the other party pursuant to the terms of the contact.
The next order of business is to write the developer through its authorized sales representative that you have dealt with and who may be responsible for the an authorized alteration of the contract to sell ; and DEMAND that the original terms or provisions in the contract to sell be restored to the original terms or provisions that were agreed upon. And failing to correct the said alteration within ten(10 or fifteen(15) days from receipt of your letter, to further DEMAND that whatever money you paid in the form of reservation and installments be returned to you for material breach of contract, without prejudice on your part to initiate further legal actions for falsification of documents and for monetary damages.
Should your written DEMAND(with proof of receipt by the authorized Sales representative) will not be addressed or ignored, you may initiate and file complaint with the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board(HLURB) in the Philippines for the cancellation of your contract to sell and for the refund of your money plus monetary damages as provided for by law.
Looking forward you’ll find the above in order and welcome to the Batas Pinoy Global Community.
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