TUBA, Benguet March 09 – Legitimate claimants of a huge track of land in sitio Topinao, barangay Poblacion here warned prospective housing developers against investing their hard earned money into supposed housing projects of concerned government agencies and the Baguio City government as the cases they filed to take back the portions of the property that had been taken from them will surely be dragged through time.
Further, the claimants also warned the Department of Human Settlements, Housing and Urban Development (DHSUD) against providing taxpayer’s money for the proposed housing project proposed to be established in the area as this might result to the derailed implementation of the project because of the expected prolonged legal battle that is expected from the controversy arising from the alleged questionable encroachment done over their properties.
Earlier, the claimants, through their counsel wrote the Register of Deeds of Benguet, requesting the said office to register the notice of Lis Pendens and to annotate that the parcels of land covered by TCT No. 016-2022000727 and TCT No. 016-2021003778 in the name of William Tan, Jr. and/or Hazel Dominique Tan, which were allegedly sold to the Baguio City government, are the subject of a pending legitimate lispendens with the Original copy of TCT No. 016-2022000727 and TCT No. 016-2021003778 on file with the said office.
Under the law, lis pendens means a written notice informing the public that a law suit has been filed concerning real estate, involving either the title to the property or a claimed ownership interest in it.
Recording a lis pendens against a piece of property alerts a potential purchaser or lender that the property’s title is in question, which makes the property less attractive to a buyer or lender. Once the notice is filed, the legal title of anyone who purchases the land or property described in the notice is subject to the outcome of the lawsuit.
The said notice was also registered with the Registry of Deeds of Benguet for the referred titles and the assailed tax declarations with the Provincial Assessor’s Office.
Those who requested the annotation of the notice of lispendens of some of the parcels of land in the name of the Tans were Virginia Lamsie, Macwid Lamsie and Anthony Lamsie in their capacities as heirs of Florendo Lamsie, Rodolfo Willy and Evangeline Willy and their capacities as heirs of Elly Willy, Jerry Fernandez and Silverio Bustarde.
The claimants are the said owners of lands located at Topinao, barangay Poblacion and that they were also the ones that filed a civil suit for quitting of title, reconveyance and damages against the Tans which is now pending before the Municipal Circuit Trial Court of Tuba-Sablan.
The claimants filed the aforesaid case because without any court order approving the change in the technical description of the title of the Tans, TCT No. 67494 and TCT No. 67495, new titles were issued covering the same parcels of land.
The assailed titles were identified as TCT No. 016-2022000727, TCT No. 016-2022000727, TCT No. 016-2021003777, TCT No. 016-2021003778 and TCT No. 016-20210003779.
The claimants alleged that TCT No. 016-2022000727 issued in the name of William Tan, Jr. and/or Hazel Dominque Tan encroached on the land of Jerry Fernandez and SliverioBustarde while TCT No. 016-2021-003778 encroached on the lot owned by the heirs of Florendo Lamsis.
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