Arkland & Horsefield Realty Co

11/02/2026

Why I Favor Constitutional Amendment (Not Cha-Cha) — A Broker’s Perspective

As a real estate broker, I regularly deal with investors, developers, and buyers who compare the Philippines with other countries in the region. One thing becomes very clear very quickly:

👉 The problem is not lack of interest in the Philippines.
👉 The problem is restrictive economic rules written into the Constitution.

I believe the 1987 Constitution is flawed, particularly in its economic provisions. That is why I support constitutional amendment, not a full constitutional change or the politically loaded “Cha-Cha.”

⸻

Where the Problem Starts

▪️ The Constitution locks in foreign ownership limits, especially in land, real estate, and public utilities
✔️ These limits are constitutional, not legislative — making them very hard to adjust
👉 Investors see this as rigid, outdated, and high-risk

In today’s world, capital flows where rules are clear, predictable, and flexible.

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How This Affects Real Estate (On the Ground)

👉 Foreigners cannot own land, only condominium units (up to 40%)
▪️ Large foreign funds interested in industrial parks, logistics hubs, or mixed-use townships often walk away
✔️ Ownership structures become overly complex and legally risky
▸ Capital gets redirected to Vietnam, Thailand, or Indonesia instead

⸻

The Rise of Dummy Partners — A Symptom of Bad Policy

👉 Because ownership rules are overly restrictive, some people try to circumvent the law instead of reforming it

▪️ Unscrupulous operators create dummy Filipino partners to get around foreign ownership limits
✔️ Legal on paper, questionable in substance
▸ Common in land acquisitions, long-term leases, and development projects

This does not protect Filipinos.
It damages everyone involved.

⸻

Why Dummy Arrangements Hurt the Buyer

👉 Foreign buyers lose real control over the property
▪️ Deals rely on side agreements that are weak or unenforceable
✔️ One dispute can wipe out an entire investment
▸ Many buyers realize the risk only when it’s already too late

⸻

Why Dummy Arrangements Hurt the Seller

▪️ Sellers face future legal exposure
👉 Transactions can be questioned or nullified
✔️ Reputational risk for brokers and developers
▸ Payment and completion issues when deals collapse

⸻

Why This Is Bad for the Entire Market

✔️ Encourages grey-area transactions
▪️ Rewards rule-bending instead of compliance
👉 Discourages serious, long-term institutional investors
▸ Weakens trust in the Philippine real estate market

Ironically, rules meant to protect Filipinos end up doing the opposite.

⸻

Why Our Neighbors Move Faster

▸ Investment rules can be adjusted through ordinary legislation
✔️ Investors don’t need constitutional changes to enter
▪️ Projects move faster
👉 Jobs are created sooner
● Infrastructure follows investment

⸻

Why Constitutional Amendment Makes Sense

✔️ Fixes specific outdated economic restrictions
▪️ Keeps democratic safeguards intact
👉 Allows Congress to regulate foreign participation through laws that can evolve
▸ Sends a signal of stability and seriousness to investors

⸻

Why Total Constitutional Change Is Risky

▪️ Opens the door to political power struggles
👉 Revives fears of term extensions and power consolidation
✔️ Creates uncertainty — the number-one enemy of investment
▸ Investors pause, delay, or leave

⸻

Opening Up Does NOT Mean Losing Control

✔️ Zoning laws remain
▪️ Taxes remain
👉 Labor protections remain
▸ Environmental rules remain
● National-interest safeguards remain

What changes is flexibility, not sovereignty.

⸻

What This Means for Real Estate and Filipinos

👉 More capital for infrastructure
✔️ Better construction standards and technology
▪️ Healthier competition among developers
▸ More jobs — not just construction, but retail, logistics, and property management

Ironically, excessive protection often results in:

▪️ Higher property prices
👉 Fewer choices for buyers
✔️ Slower development outside Metro Manila
▸ Missed opportunities in the provinces

⸻

Bottom Line

✔️ The Constitution needs fixing
❌ It does not need to be torn down

👉 Amend, don’t overhaul
▪️ Modernize, don’t destabilize
✔️ Invite investment, don’t scare it away

Reform the rules. Protect the Republic. Let the economy breathe.

10/02/2026

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO THAILAND IN THE LATE 1990s
— AND HOW IT COMPARES TO THE PHILIPPINES TODAY

Many people compare today’s Philippine condo market to Thailand before the Asian Financial Crisis.
That comparison is partly valid, but often misunderstood.

Here’s what actually happened — and what’s different now.

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🇹🇭 THAILAND BEFORE 1997

Property became a speculative asset
👉 Condos and office buildings were built rapidly
👉 Heavy reliance on pre-selling
👉 Units bought mainly by investors, not end-users
👉 Many buyers planned to flip, not occupy
👉 Vacancy rates were already rising, but ignored

⸻

Easy money fueled overbuilding
👉 Thai banks borrowed heavily in USD and JPY
👉 Loans were extended cheaply to developers in baht
👉 As long as foreign capital flowed in, the system looked strong
👉 Hidden risk: foreign currency debt + local currency income

⸻

The fatal flaw: the currency peg
👉 The baht was pegged to the US dollar
👉 When confidence weakened:
– capital rushed out
– reserves were burned defending the peg
👉 July 1997: the peg broke
👉 The baht collapsed

⸻

💥 AFTERMATH IN THAILAND

👉 Developers collapsed almost overnight
👉 Banks failed or were taken over
👉 Property prices crashed sharply
👉 Thousands of projects were abandoned mid-construction
👉 Bangkok was left with “ghost buildings” for years

Key lesson:
Prices were not supported by real use — only belief.

⸻

🇵🇭 THE PHILIPPINES TODAY

Similarities worth watching
👉 Heavy use of pre-selling
👉 Condos marketed primarily as investments
👉 Very small unit cuts optimized for price points
👉 High vacancy rates in some Metro Manila areas
👉 Many units bought but never occupied

⸻

Critical differences (this matters)
👉 The peso is NOT pegged
👉 Banks are better regulated and capitalized
👉 Much lower foreign-currency debt exposure
👉 No massive currency mismatch
👉 No single trigger like a peg collapse

✔ Because of this, a sudden Thailand-style crash is unlikely.

⸻

⚠️ THE REAL RISK IN THE PHILIPPINES

Not a dramatic collapse — but slow stagnation:

👉 Oversupply in certain segments
👉 Long absorption periods
👉 Flat or weak resale prices
👉 Low rental yields
👉 “Dead money” condos that are hard to exit

Markets don’t always crash.
Sometimes they just stop rewarding bad assumptions.

⸻

🧠 THE CORE LESSON FROM THAILAND

👉 Property built for speculation is fragile
👉 Property built for real living holds value better
👉 End-users remain when investors disappear
👉 Livability matters more as markets mature

⸻

🏡 QUESTIONS BUYERS SHOULD ASK TODAY

👉 Who will actually live here?
👉 Does the layout still work in 10–15 years?
👉 Would this rent well without hype?
👉 Can I hold this comfortably if prices stagnate?

These questions protect buyers in any cycle.

⸻

FINAL THOUGHT

👉 Thailand’s crisis happened when speculation replaced use
👉 The Philippines is structured differently — but incentives matter
👉 Property is shelter first, investment second
👉 Livability outlasts hype

Smart real estate decisions aren’t about predicting crashes.
They’re about choosing assets that still make sense when the cycle turns.

15/05/2025

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11/08/2022

‼️KNOWLEDGE 102‼️

🏡How to Transfer Real Estate Titles in the Philippines (From a Sale) 🏡

Too often, when there’s a problem with the documents of a piece of land, it can be traced back to an improper transfer of ownership. And this simple mistake is the root cause of very long court proceedings in a lot of cases.

When the Title to a property is not properly transferred to the the new owner, it likely becomes a cause of conflicting claims in the future. It costs a lot of resources — not only money, but also time and energy — to resolve this when a long period of time has already passed.

‼️Situations you don’t want to get into ‼️
Below are some problematic situations we’ve seen from previous and existing clients. And I’m sure you don’t want to get into any one of them, so I recommend reading the rest of this post.

🔴 A sale of a property between two strangers. They only executed a Deed of Absolute Sale but the buyer did not proceed to transfer the Title to his name. The sale was not even registered with the Registry of Deeds.
Many years later, the buyer died and his children assumed ownership of the property, also without completely processing the transfer of Title.
When the seller also died, his children settled his estate. Included in there was the property already sold to the above mentioned buyer. A new Title was released for the property, in the name of one of the seller’s children.
There are now conflicting claims between the children of the seller and the children of the buyer.

🔴 A Transfer Certificate of Title issued to a person without complete supporting documentations. It turned out that this new Title was issued with the help of an insider “contact” or “connection” from the concerned government agency. But the supporting documents are lacking.
A buyer bought the property relying on the authenticity of the said Title. Now, when he tried to transfer it to his name, the supporting documents for the previous transfer were required. They are nowhere to be found, so… big problem.
(Side note: This is why an independent Title Verification is very important before buying a property from an individual seller.)

🔴 A sale of a property by a corporation to an individual buyer. After completing his payment, the buyer did not proceed to complete the transfer of the Title to his name. The Deed of Sale was not registered and not even notarized.
Years later, the corporation dissolved. Now the buyer wants to process the transfer of Title to his name. But in getting the Deed of Sale notarized, nobody can sign the documents in behalf of the corporate seller because the corporation is not existing anymore. Again, a big problem.
We have some more examples of these troubled situations involving real property Titles. But the above should be enough to give you an idea of how important it is to transfer Titles properly.
So, below is a practical and step by step guide on how to properly process a transfer of Title subsequent to a sale.
Important note: There are several different modes of transferring ownership of a real property. It can be through a sale, donation, exchange, inheritance, and others that are more complicated. Each of these modes has different sets of documentary requirements. The one I’ll be describing here is for a sale.

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THE PROPER AND COMPLETE PROCESS
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🟢 I. Preparation
🔸1. Prepare the necessary documents for ex*****on of Deed of Sale:
🔹 Deed of Absolute Sale (or other variants, as appropriate in your case)
🔹 Acknowledgment of Payment (from buyer to seller)
🔹 Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case (as appropriate)
🔹 Affidavit of land holdings by the buyer (as applicable)

🔸2. Signing of documents.
Both parties should sign the following:
🔹 Deed of Absolute Sale
🔹 Acknowledgment Receipt of Payment by the buyer to seller
The seller should sign the:
🔹 Affidavit of non-tenancy and/or no pending case
The buyer should sign the:
🔹 Affidavit of land holdings

🔸3. Secure the following documents to be needed later:
🔹 2 government-issued ID’s of both the seller and the buyer
🔹 Tax Identification Number (TIN) of each party
🔹 Original Owner’s duplicate of Title
🔹 Marriage contract, if applicable
🔹 Previous Certificate Authorizing Registration (CAR)
🔹 Tax declaration
🔹 Receipt(s) of Real Property Tax (RPT) payments
🔹 Special Power of Attorney (SPA), if dealing with an attorney-in-fact (an authorized representative)

🔸4. Notarization of documents – all documents signed by the parties should be notarized.

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🟢 II. Secure payment computations and certified copies of the following documents.
🔸1. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR):
🔹 Secure computation of fees for Documentary Stamp Tax (DST) and for
🔹 Capital Gains Tax (CGT)
Notes: Go to ONETT for DST and CGT computation; ask for the specific payee to be named in the manager’s check (if paying in check); and take note of their accredited banks, so you’ll know where to submit the payments.

🔸2. City (or Municipal) Treasurer’s Office:
🔹 Secure computation of Transfer Tax
🔹 Secure Tax Clearance
Notes: Ask for computation of the Transfer Tax; ask for the specific payee to be named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

🔸3. City (or Municipal) Assessor’s Office:
🔹 Secure Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration

🔸4. Registry of Deeds:
🔹 Secure computation of Registration Fee
🔹Secure Certified True Copy of the existing Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) or Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT), as appropriate

Notes: Ask for computation of the Registration Fee; ask for the specific payee to be named in the manager’s check for payment (if paying in check).

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🟢 III. Preparation of payments.
Now that you know the exact fees that you will have to pay, you should prepare these amounts. These fees are preferrably paid using manager’s checks. But you can also pay them in cash.
Take note of the following deadlines for the settlement of these fees.
🔸1. BIR:
🔹CGT – 30 days after the date of notarization of the Deed of Sale
🔹DST – 5th day of the following month from notarization of the Deed of Sale

🔸2. City Treasurer’s Office:
🔹Transfer Tax – 60 days from date of ex*****on of Deed of Sale or the Acknowledgment of Payment

🔸3. Registry of Deeds:
🔹Registration Fee – 1 year from the date of release of CAR from BIR + 6 months extension if approved by BIR upon due submission of request

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🟢 IV. Process payments to BIR.
🔸1. Present the following requirements to ONETT to obtain the official Computation Sheet:
🔹Certified True Copy of the Title (TCT or CCT)
🔹Certified True Copy of the Tax Declaration
🔹IDs of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)
🔹TIN of the buyer(s) and the seller(s)
🔹Filled-out online DST & CGT BIR Forms
🔹Deed of Sale
🔹Acknowledgment of Payment

🔸2. Pay the DST & CGT at the Accredited Agent Bank (AAB) of the BIR-RDO (Revenue District Office)
🔹Fill out the bank form for the BIR payments
🔹Present the verified DST & CGT BIR returns together with the MCs (or cash payment) and the bank form
🔹Don’t forget the transaction slip!

🔸3. Then go back to BIR to file the above listed documents together with the transaction slip for the processing of the new CAR

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🟢 V. Process payment to the City Treasurer.
🔸1. Present the following requirements to the Officer in Charge (OIC):
o Deed of Sale
o IDs of the buyer(s) and the Seller(s)
🔸2. Submit manager’s check or cash payment to the designated cashier.
🔸3. Bring the receipt to the OIC together with the above mentioned documents to process the Transfer Tax Clearance.

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🟢 VI. Process payment to the Registry of Deeds.
🔸1. Fill out an application form for transfer of Title and present the following requirements to the Examiner of the Day:
🔹CAR from the BIR
🔹Deed of Sale
🔹Transfer Tax Clearance
🔸2. Submit the manager’s check or cash payment to the cashier for the registration. Then attach the receipt to the application form together with the documents stated above.

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🟢 VII. Follow up with the Registry of Deeds.
🔸1. Contact the assigned examiner for the progress of your application for new Title.
🔸2. Once the new title has been released, file a copy with the City Assessors’ Office.

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🟢 VIII. New Tax Declaration.
🔸1. Finally, when the new Title under the buyer’s name is already released, present it to the Assessors’ Office for the issuance of the new Tax Declaration.
🔸2. Congratulations! You’ve now completed the proper transfer of Title.
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PARTING REMINDERS
Great care and attention to small details are required in this process. You are also going to need a lot of patience as this will involve a lot of waiting and sometimes long queues.
Little mistakes along the way may cause major delays and possible serious issues in the future. So please be careful to save yourself a lot of trouble. If there’s anything you are not sure about, ask questions to relevant persons, not just to anyone.
Also, if you’re in doubt as to whether an original or only a copy of a document is required, just bring the original. You can just make copies there if only copies are needed.

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‼️KNOWLEDGE 101‼️
🏡 LAND TITLE VS TAX DECLARATION 🏡
https://www.facebook.com/pinoybahayideas/photos/a.173016633235387/1285591578644548/
🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻
‼️KNOWLEDGE 103‼️
🏡How to Transfer a Land Title from a Deceased Parent 🏡
https://www.facebook.com/pinoybahayideas/photos/a.173016633235387/1290387381498301/

10/02/2021

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05/06/2018

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24/12/2017

Merry Christmas everybody!!!

14/07/2017