Condominium Act
Condominium Act
Condominium Act
AN ACT TO DEFINE CONDOMINIUM, ESTABLISH REQUIREMENTS FOR ITS CREATION, AND GOVERN ITS
INCIDENTS.
Section 1. The short title of this Act shall be "The Condominium Act".
The real right in condominium may be ownership or any other interest in real property recognized by
law, on property in the Civil Code and other pertinent laws.
(b) "Unit" means a part of the condominium project intended for any type of independent use or
ownership, including one or more rooms or spaces located in one or more floors (or part or parts of
floors) in a building or buildings and such accessories as may be appended thereto.
(c) "Project" means the entire parcel of real property divided or to be divided in condominiums,
including all structures thereon,
(d) "Common areas" means the entire project excepting all units separately granted or held or reserved.
(e) "To divide" real property means to divide the ownership thereof or other interest therein by
conveying one or more condominiums therein but less than the whole thereof.
Sec. 4. The provisions of this Act shall apply to property divided or to be divided into condominiums only
if there shall be recorded in the Register of Deeds of the province or city in which the property lies and
duly annotated in the corresponding certificate of title of the land, if the latter had been patented or
registered under either the Land Registration or Cadastral Acts, an enabling or master deed which shall
contain, among others, the following:
(a) Description of the land on which the building or buildings and improvements are or are to be
located;cralaw
(b) Description of the building or buildings, stating the number of stories and basements, the number of
units and their accessories, if any;cralaw
(e) Statement of the purposes for which the building or buildings and each of the units are intended or
restricted as to use;cralaw
(f) A certificate of the registered owner of the property, if he is other than those executing the master
deed, as well as of all registered holders of any lien or encumbrance on the property, that they consent
to the registration of the deed;cralaw
(g) The following plans shall be appended to the deed as integral parts thereof:
(1) A survey plan of the land included in the project, unless a survey plan of the same property had
previously bee filed in said office;cralaw
(2) A diagrammatic floor plan of the building or buildings in the project, in sufficient detail to identify
each unit, its relative location and approximate dimensions;cralaw
(h) Any reasonable restriction not contrary to law, morals or public policy regarding the right of any
condominium owner to alienate or dispose of his condominium.
The enabling or master deed may be amended or revoked upon registration of an instrument executed
by the registered owner or owners of the property and consented to by all registered holders of any lien
or encumbrance on the land or building or portion thereof. The term "registered owner" shall include
the registered owners of condominiums in the project. Until registration of a revocation, the provisions
of this Act shall continue to apply to such property.
Sec. 5. Any transfer or conveyance of a unit or an apartment, office or store or other space therein, shall
include the transfer or conveyance of the undivided interests in the common areas or, in a proper case,
the membership or shareholdings in the condominium corporation: Provided, however, That where the
common areas in the condominium project are owned by the owners of separate units as co-owners
thereof, no condominium unit therein shall be conveyed or transferred to persons other than Filipino
citizens, or corporations at least sixty percent of the capital stock of which belong to Filipino citizens,
except in cases of hereditary succession. Where the common areas in a condominium project are held
by a corporation, no transfer or conveyance of a unit shall be valid if the concomitant transfer of the
appurtenant membership or stockholding in the corporation will cause the alien interest in such
corporation to exceed the limits imposed by existing laws.
Sec. 6. Unless otherwise expressly provided in the enabling or master deed or the declaration of
restrictions, the incidents of a condominium grant are as follows:
(a) The boundary of the unit granted are the interior surfaces of the perimeter walls, floors, ceilings,
windows and doors thereof. The following are not part of the unit bearing walls, columns, floors, roofs,
foundations and other common structural elements of the building; lobbies, stairways, hallways, and
other areas of common use, elevator equipment and shafts, central heating, central refrigeration and
central air-conditioning equipment, reservoirs, tanks, pumps and other central services and facilities,
pipes, ducts, flues, chutes, conduits, wires and other utility installations, wherever located, except the
outlets thereof when located within the unit.
(b) There shall pass with the unit, as an appurtenance thereof, an exclusive easement for the use of the
air space encompassed by the boundaries of the unit as it exists at any particular time and as the unit
may lawfully be altered or reconstructed from time to time. Such easement shall be automatically
terminated in any air space upon destruction of the unit as to render it untenantable.
(c) Unless otherwise, provided, the common areas are held in common by the holders of units, in equal
shares, one for each unit.
(d) A non-exclusive easement for ingress, egress and support through the common areas is appurtenant
to each unit and the common areas are subject to such easements.
(e) Each condominium owner shall have the exclusive right to paint, repaint, tile, wax, paper or
otherwise refinish and decorate the inner surfaces of the walls, ceilings, floors, windows and doors
bounding his own unit.
(f) Each condominium owner shall have the exclusive right to mortgage, pledge or encumber his
condominium and to have the same appraised independently of the other condominiums but any
obligation incurred by such condominium owner is personal to him.
(g) Each condominium owner has also the absolute right to sell or dispose of his condominium unless
the master deed contains a requirement that the property be first offered to the condominium owners
within a reasonable period of time before the same is offered to outside parties;cralaw
Sec. 7. Except as provided in the following section, the common areas shall remain undivided, and there
shall be no judicial partition thereof.
Sec. 8. Where several persons own condominiums in a condominium project, an action may be brought
by one or more such persons for partition thereof by sale of the entire project, as if the owners of all of
the condominiums in such project were co-owners of the entire project in the same proportion as their
interests in the common areas: Provided, however, That a partition shall be made only upon a showing:
(a) That three years after damage or destruction to the project which renders material part thereof unit
for its use prior thereto, the project has not been rebuilt or repaired substantially to its state prior to its
damage or destruction, or
(b) That damage or destruction to the project has rendered one-half or more of the units therein
untenantable and that condominium owners holding in aggregate more than thirty percent interest in
the common areas are opposed to repair or restoration of the project; or
(c) That the project has been in existence in excess of fifty years, that it is obsolete and uneconomic, and
that condominium owners holding in aggregate more than fifty percent interest in the common areas
are opposed to repair or restoration or remodeling or modernizing of the project; or
(d) That the project or a material part thereof has been condemned or expropriated and that the project
is no longer viable, or that the condominium owners holding in aggregate more than seventy percent
interest in the common areas are opposed to continuation of the condominium regime after
expropriation or condemnation of a material portion thereof; or
(e) That the conditions for such partition by sale set forth in the declaration of restrictions, duly
registered in accordance with the terms of this Act, have been met.
Sec. 9. The owner of a project shall, prior to the conveyance of any condominium therein, register a
declaration of restrictions relating to such project, which restrictions shall constitute a lien upon each
condominium in the project, and shall insure to and bind all condominium owners in the project. Such
liens, unless otherwise provided, may be enforced by any condominium owner in the project or by the
management body of such project. The Register of Deeds shall enter and annotate the declaration of
restrictions upon the certificate of title covering the land included within the project, if the land is
patented or registered under the Land Registration or Cadastral Acts.
The declaration of restrictions shall provide for the management of the project by anyone of the
following management bodies: a condominium corporation, an association of the condominium owners,
a board of governors elected by condominium owners, or a management agent elected by the owners
or by the board named in the declaration. It shall also provide for voting majorities quorums, notices,
meeting date, and other rules governing such body or bodies.
(1) For the powers thereof, including power to enforce the provisions of the declarations of
restrictions;cralaw
(2) For maintenance of insurance policies, insuring condominium owners against loss by fire, casualty,
liability, workmen's compensation and other insurable risks, and for bonding of the members of any
management body;cralaw
(3) Provisions for maintenance, utility, gardening and other services benefiting the common areas, for
the employment of personnel necessary for the operation of the building, and legal, accounting and
other professional and technical services;cralaw
(4) For purchase of materials, supplies and the like needed by the common areas;cralaw
(5) For payment of taxes and special assessments which would be a lien upon the entire project or
common areas, and for discharge of any lien or encumbrance levied against the entire project or the
common areas;cralaw
(6) For reconstruction of any portion or portions of any damage to or destruction of the project;cralaw
(8) For entry by its officers and agents into any unit when necessary in connection with the maintenance
or construction for which such body is responsible;cralaw
(9) For a power of attorney to the management body to sell the entire project for the benefit of all of
the owners thereof when partition of the project may be authorized under Sec. 8 of this Act, which said
power shall be binding upon all of the condominium owners regardless of whether they assume the
obligations of the restrictions or not.
(b) The manner and procedure for amending such restrictions: Provided, That the vote of not less than a
majority in interest of the owners is obtained.
(d) For reasonable assessments to meet authorized expenditures, each condominium unit to be
assessed separately for its share of such expenses in proportion (unless otherwise provided) to its
owners fractional interest in any common areas;cralaw
(e) For the subordination of the liens securing such assessments to other liens either generally or
specifically described;cralaw
(f) For conditions, other than those provided for in Sections eight and thirteen of this Act, upon which
partition of the project and dissolution of the condominium corporation may be made. Such right to
partition or dissolution may be conditioned upon failure of the condominium owners to rebuild within a
certain period or upon specified inadequacy of insurance proceeds, or upon specified percentage of
damage to the building, or upon a decision of an arbitrator, or upon any other reasonable condition.
Sec. 10. Whenever the common areas in a condominium project are held by a condominium
corporation, such corporation shall constitute the management body of the project. The corporate
purposes of such a corporation shall be limited to the holding of the common areas, either in ownership
or any other interest in real property recognized by law, to the management of the project, and to such
other purposes as may be necessary, incidental or convenient to the accomplishment of said purposes.
The articles of incorporation or by-laws of the corporation shall not contain any provision contrary to or
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, the enabling or master deed, or the declaration of
restrictions of the project. Membership in a condominium corporation, regardless of whether it is a
stock or non-stock corporation, shall not be transferable separately from the condominium unit of which
it is an appurtenance. When a member or stockholder ceases to own a unit in the project in which the
condominium corporation owns or holds the common areas, he shall automatically cease to be a
member or stockholder of the condominium corporation.
Sec. 11. The term of a condominium corporation shall be co-terminus with the duration of the
condominium project, the provisions of the Corporation Law to the contrary notwithstanding.
Sec. 12. In case of involuntary dissolution of a condominium corporation for any of the causes provided
by law, the common areas owned or held by the corporation shall, by way of liquidation, be transferred
pro-indiviso and in proportion to their interest in the corporation to the members or stockholders
thereof, subject to the superior rights of the corporation creditors. Such transfer or conveyance shall be
deemed to be a full liquidation of the interest of such members or stockholders in the corporation. After
such transfer or conveyance, the provisions of this Act governing undivided co-ownership of, or
undivided interest in, the common areas in condominium projects shall fully apply.
Sec. 13. Until the enabling or the master deed of the project in which the condominium corporation
owns or holds the common area is revoked, the corporation shall not be voluntarily dissolved through
an action for dissolution under Rule 104 of the Rules of Court except upon a showing:
(a) That three years after damage or destruction to the project in which the corporation owns or holds
the common areas, which damage or destruction renders a material part thereof unfit for its use prior
thereto, the project has not been rebuilt or repaired substantially to its state prior to its damage or
destruction; or
(b) That damage or destruction to the project has rendered one-half or more of the units therein
untenantable and that more than thirty percent of the members of the corporation, if non-stock, or the
shareholders representing more than thirty percent of the capital stock entitled to vote, if a stock
corporation, are opposed to the repair or reconstruction of the project, or
(c) That the project has been in existence in excess of fifty years, that it is obsolete and uneconomical,
and that more than fifty percent of the members of the corporation, if non-stock, or the stockholders
representing more than fifty percent of the capital stock entitled to vote, if a stock corporation, are
opposed to the repair or restoration or remodeling or modernizing of the project; or
(d) That the project or a material part thereof has been condemned or expropriated and that the project
is no longer viable, or that the members holding in aggregate more than seventy percent interest in the
corporation, if non-stock, or the stockholders representing more than seventy percent of the capital
stock entitled to vote, if a stock corporation, are opposed to the continuation of the condominium
regime after expropriation or condemnation of a material portion thereof; or
(e) That the conditions for such a dissolution set forth in the declaration of restrictions of the project in
which the corporation owns of holds the common areas, have been met.
Sec. 14. The condominium corporation may also be dissolved by the affirmative vote of all the
stockholders or members thereof at a general or special meeting duly called for the purpose: Provided,
That all the requirements of Sec. sixty-two of the Corporation Law are complied with.
Sec. 15. Unless otherwise provided for in the declaration of restrictions upon voluntary dissolution of a
condominium corporation in accordance with the provisions of Sections thirteen and fourteen of this
Act, the corporation shall be deemed to hold a power of attorney from all the members or stockholders
to sell and dispose of their separate interests in the project and liquidation of the corporation shall be
effected by a sale of the entire project as if the corporation owned the whole thereof, subject to the
rights of the corporate and of individual condominium creditors.
Sec. 16. A condominium corporation shall not, during its existence, sell, exchange, lease or otherwise
dispose of the common areas owned or held by it in the condominium project unless authorized by the
affirmative vote of all the stockholders or members.
Sec. 17. Any provision of the Corporation Law to the contrary notwithstanding, the by-laws of a
condominium corporation shall provide that a stockholder or member shall not be entitled to demand
payment of his shares or interest in those cases where such right is granted under the Corporation Law
unless he consents to sell his separate interest in the project to the corporation or to any purchaser of
the corporation's choice who shall also buy from the corporation the dissenting member or
stockholder's interest. In case of disagreement as to price, the procedure set forth in the appropriate
provision of the Corporation Law for valuation of shares shall be followed. The corporation shall have
two years within which to pay for the shares or furnish a purchaser of its choice from the time of award.
All expenses incurred in the liquidation of the interest of the dissenting member or stockholder shall be
borne by him.
Sec. 18. Upon registration of an instrument conveying a condominium, the Register of Deeds shall, upon
payment of the proper fees, enter and annotate the conveyance on the certificate of title covering the
land included within the project and the transferee shall be entitled to the issuance of a "condominium
owner's" copy of the pertinent portion of such certificate of title. Said "condominium owner's" copy
need not reproduce the ownership status or series of transactions in force or annotated with respect to
other condominiums in the project. A copy of the description of the land, a brief description of the
condominium conveyed, name and personal circumstances of the condominium owner would be
sufficient for purposes of the "condominium owner's" copy of the certificate of title. No conveyance of
condominiums or part thereof, subsequent to the original conveyance thereof from the owner of the
project, shall be registered unless accompanied by a certificate of the management body of the project
that such conveyance is in accordance with the provisions of the declaration of restrictions of such
project.
In cases of condominium projects registered under the provisions of the Spanish Mortgage Law or Act
3344, as amended, the registration of the deed of conveyance of a condominium shall be sufficient if the
Register of Deeds shall keep the original or signed copy thereof, together with the certificate of the
management body of the project, and return a copy of the deed of conveyance to the condominium
owner duly acknowledge and stamped by the Register of Deeds in the same manner as in the case of
registration of conveyances of real property under said laws.
Sec. 19. Where the enabling or master deed provides that the land included within a condominium
project are to be owned in common by the condominium owners therein, the Register of Deeds may, at
the request of all the condominium owners and upon surrender of all their "condominium owner's"
copies, cancel the certificates of title of the property and issue a new one in the name of said
condominium owners as pro-indiviso co-owners thereof.
Sec. 20. An assessment upon any condominium made in accordance with a duly registered declaration
of restrictions shall be an obligation of the owner thereof at the time the assessment is made. The
amount of any such assessment plus any other charges thereon, such as interest, costs (including
attorney's fees) and penalties, as such may be provided for in the declaration of restrictions, shall be and
become a lien upon the condominium assessed when the management body causes a notice of
assessment to be registered with the Register of Deeds of the city or province where such condominium
project is located. The notice shall state the amount of such assessment and such other charges thereon
a may be authorized by the declaration of restrictions, a description of the condominium, unit against
which same has been assessed, and the name of the registered owner thereof. Such notice shall be
signed by an authorized representative of the management body or as otherwise provided in the
declaration of restrictions. Upon payment of said assessment and charges or other satisfaction thereof,
the management body shall cause to be registered a release of the lien.
Such lien shall be superior to all other liens registered subsequent to the registration of said notice of
assessment except real property tax liens and except that the declaration of restrictions may provide for
the subordination thereof to any other liens and encumbrances.
Such liens may be enforced in the same manner provided for by law for the judicial or extra-judicial
foreclosure of mortgages of real property. Unless otherwise provided for in the declaration of
restrictions, the management body shall have power to bid at foreclosure sale. The condominium owner
shall have the same right of redemption as in cases of judicial or extra-judicial foreclosure of mortgages.
Sec. 21. No labor performed or services or materials furnished with the consent of or at the request of a
condominium owner or his agent or his contractor or subcontractor, shall be the basis of a lien against
the condominium of any other condominium owner, unless such other owners have expressly
consented to or requested the performance of such labor or furnishing of such materials or services.
Such express consent shall be deemed to have been given by the owner of any condominium in the case
of emergency repairs of his condominium unit. Labor performed or services or materials furnished for
the common areas, if duly authorized by the management body provided for in a declaration of
restrictions governing the property, shall be deemed to be performed or furnished with the express
consent of each condominium owner. The owner of any condominium may remove his condominium
from a lien against two or more condominiums or any part thereof by payment to the holder of the lien
of the fraction of the total sum secured by such lien which is attributable to his condominium unit.
Sec. 22. Unless otherwise provided for by the declaration of restrictions, the management body,
provided for herein, may acquire and hold, for the benefit of the condominium owners, tangible and
intangible personal property and may dispose of the same by sale or otherwise; and the beneficial
interest in such personal property shall be owned by the condominium owners in the same proportion
as their respective interests in the common areas. A transfer of a condominium shall transfer to the
transferee ownership of the transferor's beneficial interest in such personal property.
Sec. 23. Where, in an action for partition of a condominium project or for the dissolution of
condominium corporation on the ground that the project or a material part thereof has been
condemned or expropriated, the Court finds that the conditions provided for in this Act or in the
declaration of restrictions have not been met, the Court may decree a reorganization of the project,
declaring which portion or portions of the project shall continue as a condominium project, the owners
thereof, and the respective rights of said remaining owners and the just compensation, if any, that a
condominium owner may be entitled to due to deprivation of his property. Upon receipt of a copy of the
decree, the Register of Deeds shall enter and annotate the same on the pertinent certificate of title.
Sec. 24. Any deed, declaration or plan for a condominium project shall be liberally construed to facilitate
the operation of the project, and its provisions shall be presumed to be independent and severable.
Sec. 25. Whenever real property has been divided into condominiums, each condominium separately
owned shall be separately assessed, for purposes of real property taxation and other tax purposes to the
owners thereof and the tax on each such condominium shall constitute a lien solely thereon.
Sec. 26. All Acts or parts of Acts in conflict or inconsistent with this Act are hereby amended insofar as
condominium and its incidents are concerned.
Sec. 27. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.