Registry of Deeds blocks sale of 20 fake titles

THE Registry of Deeds (ROD) in Baguio recently called on prospective land buyers in the city not to be fooled into acquiring fake titles being peddled by unscrupulous people.

Lawyer Noel Aperocho, the newly appointed director of the ROD, said some 20 fake titles have been attempted to be sold to hapless victims. These titles were immediately referred to the police for investigation.

Aperocho said these sellers of fake titles also claim to be victims of enterprising individuals. But he said this is a common alibi of most middlemen and real estate brokers to fool people into buying lots with fake titles.

Upon entering the ROD-Baguio as assistant registry of deeds, he claimed to have been able to block these sales, confiscate the fake titles and refer these to their Central Office.

He said he is advocating against the further sale of fake titles in the city, with some 100 patents released this year and last year.

The ROD, according to Aperocho, is an ally of government in the collection of real estate and transfer taxes, as well as in the collection of documentary taxes and other revenues for the sale of land in the city.

He said the agency is doing its best to hasten the release of titles, which usually take a year to process through computerization. He said the process takes long because they want to ensure that no overlapping of titles takes place.

Meanwhile, Mayor Mauricio Domogan advised land buyers to carefully choose and verify the authenticity of land tittles being offered for sale.

He said many individuals have been duped into buying lands with fake titles including land rights.

He advised would be buyers of lands in the city to scrutinize the technical descriptions of these titles and refer the titles for verification with the ROD to avoid being victims of these fake land titles.