ni Atty. Persida Rueda-Acosta @Magtanong Kay Attorney | November 18, 2023
Dear Chief Acosta,
Ako ay nagkautang noong taong 2021, na kung saan ako ay nakasuhan sapagkat hindi ko nabayaran ang nasabing utang. Nagdesisyon ang hukuman, at ako ay inutusang magbayad ng halagang P800,000.00. Ang aming tinitirhan na family home mula pa noong taong 1998 ay nakasama sa mga ari-arian na na-levy. Maaari ba na ma-levy at ibenta ang aming family home upang ipambayad sa aking utang? - Axis
Dear Axis,
Ang batas na sasaklaw patungkol sa iyong katanungan ay ang Executive Order No. 209, s. 1987 o mas kilala bilang “The Family Code of the Philippines”. Nakasaad sa Article 155 na:
“ARTICLE 155. The family home shall be exempt from execution, forced sale or attachment except:
(1) For nonpayment of taxes;
(2) For debts incurred prior to the constitution of the family home;
(3) For debts secured by mortgages on the premises before or after such constitution; and
(4) For debts due to laborers, mechanics, architects, builders, materialmen and others who have rendered service or furnished material for the construction of the building.”
Kaugnay nito, inilahad ng Korte Suprema sa kasong Juanita Trinidad Ramos, et al. v. Danilo Pangilinan, et al. (G.R. No. 185920, 20 July 2010, Ponente: Honorable Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales), na:
“For the family home to be exempt from execution, distinction must be made as to what law applies based on when it was constituted and what requirements must be complied with by the judgment debtor or his successors claiming such privilege. Hence, two sets of rules are applicable.
If the family home was constructed before the effectivity of the Family Code or before August 3, 1988, then it must have been constituted either judicially or extra-judicially as provided under Articles 225, 229-231 and 233 of the Civil Code. Judicial constitution of the family home requires the filing of a verified petition before the courts and the registration of the court’s order with the Registry of Deeds of the area where the property is located. Meanwhile, extrajudicial constitution is governed by Articles 240 to 242 of the Civil Code and involves the execution of a public instrument which must also be registered with the Registry of Property.
Failure to comply with either one of these two modes of constitution will bar a judgment debtor from availing of the privilege.
On the other hand, for family homes constructed after the effectivity of the Family Code on August 3, 1988, there is no need to constitute extrajudicially or judicially, and the exemption is effective from the time it was constituted and lasts as long as any of its beneficiaries under Art. 154 actually resides therein. Moreover, the family home should belong to the absolute community or conjugal partnership, or if exclusively by one spouse, its constitution must have been with consent of the other, and its value must not exceed certain amounts depending upon the area where it is located. Further, the debts incurred for which the exemption does not apply as provided under Art. 155 for which the family home is made answerable must have been incurred after August 3, 1988.”
Alinsunod sa nabanggit na probisyon ng batas, at desisyon ng Korte Suprema, ang isang family home ay hindi maaaring isailalim sa levy, execution o forced sale, maliban na lamang sa mga pagkakataong nakasaad sa batas. Sa kadahilanang ang iyong sitwasyon ay hindi isa sa mga sitwasyong nabanggit sa batas na kung saan ang family home ay maaaring isailalim sa execution proceedings, at sa kadahilanang ito ay naitalaga bilang family home matapos ipatupad ang Family Code, malinaw na ang inyong bahay ay hindi maaaring isailalim sa levy at kalaunan ay ipagbili upang mabayaran ang iyong utang.
Sana ay nabigyan namin ng linaw ang iyong katanungan. Ang payong aming ibinigay ay base lamang sa mga impormasyon na iyong inilahad at maaaring magbago kung mababawasan o madaragdagan ang mga detalye ng iyong salaysay.
Maraming salamat sa iyong patuloy na pagtitiwala.
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