Salazar v. Meneses
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: Antonio Dizon, registered owner of a parcel of land, mortgaged it to Flor de Lis Meneses to secure a P6,000.00 loan, later increased to P7,000.00. The mortgage included an irrevocable special power of attorney authorizing the mortgagee to sell the property in case of foreclosure. The mortgagor failed to pay the obligation upon maturity. The mortgagee foreclosed the mortgage extrajudicially, and the property was sold at public auction to Flor de Lis Meneses as the highest bidder on October 29, 1954. The certificate of sale fixed the redemption period from October 29, 1954, to October 30, 1955. However, the certificate of sale was registered on May 26, 1956, and the sheriff's return on May 30, 1956. Antonio Dizon died intestate on August 23, 1955. On October 31, 1955, Ernesto Salazar and Soledad G. de Salazar, claiming to be creditors, commenced settlement proceedings for Dizon's estate and filed their claim, which was approved on August 3, 1956. On May 24, 1956, with no redemption made, the mortgagee-purchaser executed an absolute deed of sale in favor of herself and her husband, Avelino Sebastian, as attorneys-in-fact of the deceased mortgagor. This deed was registered on May 26, 1956, leading to the cancellation of the original title and the issuance of a new one in the names of the purchasers. Procedural History: On October 1, 1956, the Salazar spouses filed a civil case seeking to annul the deed of sale and compel the purchasers to allow them to redeem the property. The trial court dismissed their complaint. The Petition: The plaintiffs-appellants appealed the dismissal of their complaint, arguing that the lower court erred in not holding that the redemption period, as far as they were concerned, started only on May 26, 1956, the date of registration of the certificate of sale.
Issue(s)
Whether the period of redemption for registered land sold in an extrajudicial foreclosure sale begins from the date of the sale or from the date of its registration. Whether the appellants, as judgment creditors of the deceased mortgagor, were entitled to redeem the property.
Ruling
The decision of the lower court is reversed. The final Deed of Sale executed by Flor de Lis Meneses in favor of herself and her husband is annulled. The purchasers are ordered to permit the appellants to redeem the property within thirty (30) days from the time the decision becomes final and executory.
Ratio Decidendi
On the commencement of the redemption period: The Court held that for registered land sold in an extrajudicial foreclosure sale, the one-year period of redemption begins to run not from the date of the sale, but from the time of the registration of the sale in the office of the Register of Deeds. This is in consonance with the well-settled rule that for property registered under the Land Registration Act, the operative act of conveyance is the registration of the deed. Section 50 of Act No. 496 explicitly states that a deed of sale does not take effect as a conveyance or bind the land until it is registered. Consequently, Section 24, Rule 39 of the Rules of Court mandates the filing (registration) of a duplicate of the certificate of sale in the office of the Register of Deeds. The Court cited Agbulos vs. Alberto and Garcia v. Ocampo in support of this principle, emphasizing that the sale becomes effective as a conveyance only upon registration. Therefore, the period of redemption, which is provided for by law, must necessarily commence from this operative act of registration. On the right of redemption for judgment creditors: Although not explicitly detailed as a separate issue in the ratio, the ruling implies that the appellants, as judgment creditors of the deceased mortgagor whose claim was approved by the probate court, had a right to redeem the property. Their ability to exercise this right was contingent on the redemption period not having expired. Since the Court determined that the redemption period had not yet expired at the time they attempted to redeem and filed their action, their right was upheld. The annulment of the final deed of sale and the order to permit redemption directly address their claim as creditors seeking to enforce their rights against the estate's property.
Main Doctrine
For registered land sold in an extrajudicial foreclosure sale, the one-year period of redemption begins to run from the date of registration of the certificate of sale in the office of the Register of Deeds, not from the date of the sale itself.