Property Questions and Answers

Non registered property

QUESTION

I have a house in Los Barrios. However, I do not figure as the owner in the Property Register. I bought the house from an elderly gentleman who did not have the documentation evidencing ownership and the truth is that I was never very concerned about the matter. I have decided to sell the house and I will have to rectify the situation. How can I do it?

ANSWER

The situation may indeed arise that for different reasons, the registration of a property is interrupted and it is occasionally very difficult to reconstruct it by furnishing all intermediate titles
Nonetheless, there are several ways in which the so-called registration entries of a registered property may be resumed, as is summarised generally below:

a) Through a widely accepted “acta de notoriedad” signed by the notary of the location where the property is situated approved by the court. The purpose of this is to solemnly evidence that a person is, from a notarial viewpoint, regarded as the owner of a property which has already been registered in order to resume the interrupted sequence of entries and thus ensure registration by connecting the latest registered owner to the owner who is now to be registered. This “acta” may be requested by any party interested in the situation to which it is sought to attest. This arrangement may, however, only be used when the contradictory entries are more than thirty years old and have not been changed in that time and the Notary has personally informed the titleholders or their beneficiaries of their processing.

b) Through an “expediente de dominio” (court procedure seeking declaration of title), by providing cadastral and property registry certificates, documents attesting to the applicant’s right, if any, and any other documentation which may be considered appropriate to justify the request. The effect sought through this action is to secure supplementary title for the declaration of legitimate ownership.

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