Previous owner will not hand over Deed Of Sale

Hi everyone,

I am hoping that someone here will be able to help me or give me some advice on what to do. I will try and explain the whole story here so you can better advise me.

We brought some land from a friend back in 2010. This friend was a family friend who we have known for some years, we went to each others weddings, baptism of our child etc. So we thought we could trust them as you do when you have known someone for a certain amount of time. When we first started asking about the deed of sale once we had paid the money, which was paid via checks so we have proof that they were paid, they told us that they did not have enough money to pay the capital gains on the property and that if we could wait for it, which as we known them for sometime and were close friends we said OK we can wait. Then a few years later we had personal problems and needed to sell the property ourselves which by this time we had built a house on. We again asked for the deed of sale, but this time were given a variety of reason to why they could not do so, from the mother being in hospital, they being in hospital and having to go to Russia for 6 months. None of this transpired to be true, it was just a way of delaying meeting us at the attorney office to sign the deed.

Yes i know we were naive in trusting this person, but we honestly thought they were genuine and true friends of ours. When we asked again why they would not meet us there excuse was they had still not paid the capital gains on the property, so we offered to pay 50% of it with them just so we could get the sale of the deed from them. Again they refused, we were in the process of taking them to court, very early stages at the moment as we know things move very slowly here in the court system, but we were hopeful of a positive outcome as we can prove that they did receive payment for the land via the checks we gave them which were cashed.

Yesterday though we had some shocking news. This person had gone to their bank and used our property as collateral to secure a loan, which they have never paid off. So we have learnt that the bank has put a repossession order on the land and house that we built, for the unpaid loan that they took out against it. It seems there is nothing we can do about this, according to our attorney but i don't believe it and would like to get someone else's advice on here too see if there is anything we can do about it. I am coming to the conclusion that our attorney could be working with this seller, as they have been very reluctant to do anything for us about getting the deeds of sale from this person. I need a fresh set of eyes to look at this situation and too see if really we have nothing to gain and everything to lose now.

If you need further information please PM and I will supply you with it. Finally i would like to thank you for taking your time out to read this post, and hope that you can give me some guidance or advice. Thank you.

Don't you have ANY signed contract since before you paid the land?
If not you will have problem proving the checks are for the land and/or proving it's a full pay...

Have YOU paid the property tax diring these years?
If so, that can be some assistant proof it's your. If you haven't paud the property tax, that can be a big MINUS for your case.

Do you mean the loan was given AFTER you bought it? After you build the house too, so the house was INCLUDED when the bank valued the collateral?
If after you bought it, then that obvious fraud, and if he sold it with a loan from before you bought it, that's still illegal but some less fraudalant.

I asume the land is titled, because otherwice it can't be used (legaly) as collateral in a loan.

Because of the old owner's name is still on the title, the BANK have acted in good faith, so you can't expect they will lose anything because you didn't got the title in your name.
But I suppouse the bank DIDN'T gave loan for the WHOLE value, so you have some chance to get SOME back by that =The value minus the loan.

Have you talked with the bank, explaing the situation?
Banks aren't allowed to own properties long time. (Max 5 years if I remember corect.)
And Banks realy dislike propertues with QUESTIONED OWNERSHIPS, because such make the value of the property drop much.
So you need to hurry to file a case question this, TELL the bank it's started, if they don't agree to a solution where trying to sell the property close to FULL value, and give YOU the part above the loan. If you get such deal, get it SIGNED including what minimum price to sell it for if you don't agree to less later.
IF the bank don't agree, then you need to HURRY filing a case, questioning the ownership. Inform the bank about it in writing, Then the bank have to inform interested buyers, so they get less or not interested, because if it's a not questioned ownership it's surely theirs after a year, while if it's question that can take many years...

Solition ideas to get SOME of the value:
1a/ With the bank: You can ask if they let YOU take over the loan. (Some hard if the title isn't in your name, but can't you force the owner to sign the Deed of sale, because of the fraud he has made? If he don't, you will demand more from him, and he had made a biger fraud = risk longer jail time.) But you don't want him in jail, because you want him to earn money, so he can pay you back what you lose...

1b/ Can be BETTER, because then you will get the TITLE WITHOUT the old owner agree
The bank agree to let you buy the reposseded propertyCHEAP, not leting it go to auction - or they do, but don't get any offers, because the ownership is questioned When you DISCUS with them, you can talk about this scenatio. Perhaps that will make them agree easier They - or other - give you loan with the property as collateral.

2/ If the bank don't agree to above and if you can solve the finansing. You can get loan from OTHER than this bank, if they don't agree, or you can make deal with them who you want to SELL it to.
When the value have went down by you questioning the ownership, it's possible YOU can buy the property CHEAP. It can even be LESS than the loan, specialy if the bank understand they will get trouble selling it at all within the max 5 years.
One year after the bank has sold it to you, it's OFFICIALY yours, the old owner have no chance anymore to buy it back.

You will lose some buy this, but you have a claim at the old owner still.

--
You can tell the house is yours, BUT that's NOT much worth concerning geting anything by LAW*, because house on LEASED land belong to the LAND owner when the lease ends, and you don't have a lease...
IF you claim you have a LEASE, that DON'T SUIT to what you claim about you own the land...

( *But perhaps the bank can be more willing to give you a lower price by you can prove you build the house.)

Thank you Lunkan for your lengthy reply I have PM you to personally thank you.

Why don't you just file a civil case against your friend for the payment of your money because in the very first place your contract of sale is valid yet it is unforceable because it violated the statutes of frauds requiring SALE OF REAL PROPERTY TO BE IN A PUBLIC INSTRUMENT. That means, you can only insist your claim against the land if your agreement was in writing.

You could always present all your claims including the value of your house in that civil case. Moreover, your friend was in bad faith, thus you are entitled also for damages. You could avail the remedy of preliminary attachment of the property (that land), so that in case your friend could not pay you, that will be sold in a public auction which you may participate.

Hello my sister got the same problem when it comes to deeds of sale that the owner of the land refuse to come and signed it..Nowhere to find him..

6 years ago this guy's wife lending money to my sister. Given my sister as her collateral a orig copy of transfer certificate of title. Years after hindi pa rin siya nakakabayad hanggan sa namatay ang asawang babae 2013. Mayroon silang pinagpirmahan na kasulatan noon May 31 2011 sa kanilang collateral na pirma ng lalaki. Nakapangalan ang lupa sa magasawa.

Hanggan di na nabayaran at nagkaroon sila ng kasulatan, formal letter, after mamatay ang asawa na formal na niyang pinapayagan na matransfer sa pangalan ng kaptid ko o anak niya ang lupa.


Years passed by again nilapitan ng kapatid ko na tubusin na lamang niya ang lupa kung hindi ay magkaroon sila ng DOAS pero tumanggi ito at nagpapadagdag ng pera sa lupa, this is after na bingyan na niya ng authorization ang sister ko na matransfer ang lupa.  Ayaw pumirma. Hanggan sa di na niya ito nakita pa..this year nagpunta ang pamngkin ko sa municipal para makakuha ng history tungkol sa lupa kung may pending lien..malinis namn.

Pls. advice me kung ano ang dapat gawin para matransfer ang lupa sa name ng kapatid ko. o kung ano ang dapat gawin?..Pls. advice us..