It's January, Time To Pay Your Real Property Tax!

It's a new year, and every new year comes with it the responsibility to pay your real estate property taxes, otherwise known as "amilyar."  It's a necessary evil of owning land and property, so don't worry about it and just grin and bear it.  After all, it's all worth it, right? (sound of silence and crickets)

Anyway, just for your information, and as sort of a guide, this here's a short post (really! I promise!) on the topic of real estate property tax.

Collection of Real Property Tax
The real property tax for any year shall be due on January 1 and from that date on, it shall constitute a lien (statutory lien) on the property, to be extinguished only upon payment of the tax and/or any late fees associated with it.  The tax may be paid in four (4) quarterly installments, which shall be paid on or before the last day of the quarter.

Installment Due Dates:

• 1st installment - on or before March 31
• 2nd installment - on or before June 30
• 3rd installment - on or before September 30
• 4th installment - on or before December 30

Tax Discount on Advanced and Prompt Payment
If the tax is paid on time or in advance, in accordance with the prescribed schedule of payment as provided in Article 341 of Republic Act 7160, you may get a discount not exceeding twenty percent (20%) of the annual tax due.  Prompt payments may be given a discount of ten percent (10%) while advanced payments may be entitled to the maximum discount of twenty percent (20%).

Penalty For Late Payments
Unpaid real property tax is subject to a penalty of two percent (2%) per month interest accruing up to a maximum of 36 months or 3 years.

In other words, the penalty only starts accruing after March 31.  So if you want to save some money, I suggest you pay your real property taxes well in advance, if you can afford to do so.  Might also be a good idea to start putting that into your annual budget so you can plan for it in advance.

Till next time, Happy New Year!!!

Jon

*Image above from discoverspringtexas.com, used without permission.

What's The Plan?

A couple of months ago, prior to when I stumbled onto the works of Mike Brooks, Brian Tracy and Tom Hopkins, I had a vague image in my mind of what I wanted: a house of my own, a new vehicle, and to get married to my fiancee Me-an.  As far as I know, those were my goals. 

The problem was, I didn't know how to make them come true.  I was trying to hit those targets in the dark.  Sure I passed the licensing exam for real estate brokers, but that didn't really get me any closer to making my goals come true.  My only thought was: if I sell enough, I'll have enough money to hit those goals.  So a couple of weeks ago, a thought hit me back: how am I going to sell enough to make enough money to hit those goals???  Yeah, I know, sometimes my mind is slow to the point of stupidity, but I'm glad I finally came around to the question.  Result: I started looking around online for instructional materials on sales, motivation, and goal-setting.  Hence, the 3 aforementioned gentlemen. 

Listening to their works was like magic!  My mind started to open up to the reality of selling, and how difficult it really is.  I always had this impression that selling was straightforward: if there was a need, just offer the product that answers the need and voila!  Boy was I surprised!  There were steps necessary like prospecting, qualifying, presenting, then finally closing the sale.  There is etiquette involved, tactics and strategies, and mind-altering mental instructions and affirmations!  There's bits and pieces about family, health, friendship, teamwork, and so much more.  More than that, the goal-setting instruction that I got specifically from Brian Tracy has got me moving.  Now, I have real goals, and action plans and steps that I must take to make them happen.

So, what's the plan?

Find out what you want to do, make plans and steps to achieve that, and pay the price willingly.  In other words, keep studying to arm your mind with new ideas and ways, and keep keeping on and never give up.

So, what's changed?

Good question.  At the very least, I've started to learn Tai Chi.  I've started an abs workout to trim my waistline.  And I've set a 200 meters target for my weekly swimming activity.  For my financial health, I have made plans to learn investing in mutual funds and stocks, as well as joint ventures, and buying and selling properties.  I have to fine-tune the action steps, but I now have a light leading to my goals, and that's the best gift I'll ever get this Christmas, maybe for the rest of my life even. 

My goals:
"I earn at least Php100,000 a month by March 2012."
"I own a 3-bedroom townhouse in San Juan by January 2013."
"I own and drive a Mitsubishi ASX by April 2012."
"I marry Me-an by December 2012."
"I enjoy traveling abroad and going to beaches with Me-an by January 2013."
"I own and use a Motorola Xoom by March 2012."
"I am strong and healthy by February 2012."
"I secure an educational plan for Kyle by April 2012."

When The Torii Residences starts selling, you better believe my life's gonna start moving very quickly towards those goals!  I can't wait!!!  Everyday, I'm gonna look at my goals and visualize my house, my car, my wedding, my tablet, my strong and lean body, and my kid's educational plan.  Those things will happen, as sure as the sun rises everyday!  I'm gonna keep keeping on until I can write new goals towards bigger and better things!  Hmmm... Maybe I should upgrade to a 4-bedroom townhouse?

Upgrade your life!!!
Jon

Bank Financing: Understand the Appraisal

I'll make this a short post, just to clarify some things about the bank financing appraisal process.  Mostly for my benefit really, so I don't forget haha!

So, let's say you want to buy a townhouse unit from a seller.  The seller agrees to 20% downpayment and bank financing, because really, it's the same banana, and the seller will get paid anyway.  The question is, what do you do to get bank financing?  Well, first of all, go to a bank and ask them for their requirements for the appraisal.  That would usually be a certified copy of the TCT (or CCT if condominiums), etc.  You will also have to pay for the appraisal fee (typically 3 - 3.5K within Metro Manila).  After a week or two, the bank will then let you know how much the property is worth according to their appraisal (fair market value) and up to what percentage they're willing to finance it.  Typically, banks will finance up to a maximum of 70% of the appraised value.

Now here's the tricky part:  the appraised value vs. the selling price.

Don't expect the appraisal value to match the selling price.  In most cases, the appraisal value will be less than the selling price.  So going back to our example, if the seller was selling the property at 5M, and he agrees to a 20% downpayment, but the bank only appraised the property at 4M and will only finance 70%, that means you have to shoulder the difference and that will be your downpayment amount.  To illustrate:

20% of 5M = 1M -> this was supposed to be your downpayment (equity)
70% of 4M = 2.8M -> this is what the bank will finance (loan)
5M - 2.8M = 2.2M -> this is what you will actually have to pay as downpayment (equity)

The reason why developers are able to offer bank financing that is equal in appraised value and selling price is because their properties were pre-appraised by their partner banks already.  That's why they will let you know what banks are affiliated with them.  So unless you can get a better (or same) bank appraisal elsewhere, you should seriously consider the affiliated banks of the developer.  But if you're buying a resale unit such as our example, your best bet would be to ask the seller for a discount or price cut, to lessen your equity contribution aka downpayment. 

Oh, and yeah, the most important factor to get bank financing:  your financial status.

How do banks determine how much you can afford?  They'll look at how much you're making in a month, and will lend you an amount that you can pay off with 30% of your net income, subject to how long the loan will be.  If the property you're loaning for is not within that margin, then you don't get the loan.  Simple eh? Hehe.

Did I say this was going to be a short post?  Ooops.

Don't put your eggs in one basket,
Jon

The Secret to Increasing Sales Productivity

You might be wondering why I'm writing about Sales per se.  Well, so am I.  That may not instill a lot of confidence in my article but actually, I've been listening to some sales materials  on CD as well as watching youtube videos about the grand art of selling, all to widen my understanding of one of the most basic and oldest of transactions: Sales.  So I find myself wanting to share the lessons I've learned so far.

It's important to note that all of us are sellers as well as buyers at one time or another.  So when selling, it's important not to lose sight of that fact.  In Sales, the real secret to increasing productivity is asking the right questions (probing) and listening for the real answer.  

And overcoming objections.

And improving your closing technique.

And having a great team. 


The truth is, all of those are true.  However, if you absolutely suck at asking questions, and you don't care enough to listen for the answers, you'll just be going around in circles trying to overcome objections, aside from wasting time and effort trying to close people who won't buy from you anyway.  That's why I believe that asking the right questions and listening for the real answers is the precursor.  When you ask the right questions and you listen to answers, you will find out what your client's reason(s) is/are.  You will find out the why's and why not's, as well as a lot of other things.

The not-so-secret secret: QUALIFYING YOUR CLIENTS.

Qualifying.  First time I heard that, I knew what it meant, but I didn't know how and what to do in the context of Sales.  In other words, qualifying your clients means finding out if they actually have the intention to buy whatever it is you're selling.  To qualify a lead you need to do a couple of things:

1. Find out their motivation.  Ask them why they're inquiring about your product or service, find out if they have a definite and specific timetable.  Anything other than a straight answer might mean that person is just curious and not really looking to buy.  They might even be asking for a friend or family member, so make sure you ask to be referred instead.  This is important to avoid the "I'm not interested" and "I'm not ready to buy yet" as well as other price objections.
   
2. Ask who are the decision-makers, who else is/are involved in the decision-making process.  Try your best to involve all of them when discussing or presenting your product or service to minimize the "I have to ask (whomever)" scenarios.  If in case you do get the "I have to ask (whomever)" scenario, try to see if you can speak with whomever it is they have to consult.  If they refuse or won't let you speak with that person, it's possible this is not the real objection and you may have to probe deeper.
   
3. Competition.  Find out who they've spoken with, what other product(s) they like or are considering.  Let's face it, we can't always win against the competition.  That's why you need to know if it's a battle you can win.  Find out what's important to your clients, and see if it's something you have or can offer, then play it up for maximum effect.  Please, don't resort to mudslinging to destroy your competition, that's just wrong.
   
4. Price, price, price.  Here's the reality of Sales: Price is King.  Check if your client has a realistic budget, find out what payment options or terms you can offer.  See how much leeway you have in terms of pegging a price on a product or service, how much of a discount or rebate you can bargain with to close the deal.  Dare I say it?  Be blunt if you have to.  Better find out if your client can afford it or not, and if he knows what he's getting himself into.  If you find out that your client can afford your product or service yet a price objection comes up later on when you ask for the deal, it's not the money that's the problem; it's a VALUE issue, you'll need to prove your and your product's value.
   

As you can see, qualifying properly will save you a lot of time, effort and money.  You won't be wasting your time trying to follow-up with unqualified non-buyers.  In the short term, you'll have less clients, but in the long term, you'll gain the few real clients who are ready and willing to buy.

I won't go into overcoming objections, closing techniques and teamwork, but suffice it to say that asking the right questions and listening for answers is the fundamental skill one needs to learn to be effective in Sales.  Don't be afraid to ask the questions that need to be asked, there's no other way unless you're psychic.




Ask and you shall receive,
Jon

The Torii Residences is a TOWNHOUSE - CONDO. What does that mean?

Ok, so I'm writing this to make sure people know that The Torii Residences is a townhouse - condominium project.  Sure, it looks like a townhouse, designed as a townhouse, and for all intents and purposes, it IS a townhouse.  At least as far as the type of housing, it is.  But as to type of ownership, it's a condominium.  THAT'S NOT A BAD THING!  I'll explain at the end of this post.  I just need to make sure that it is understood that a condominium is both a type of housing AND a type of ownership.

In other words, The Torii Residences is a "townhouse" type of housing, but it's a "condo" type of ownership.

Huh?  What does that mean, exactly?

It should be made clear that the type of ownership in a townhouse is the same as owning a house, in that if you own a townhouse, you own both the structure as well as the land it's built on.  The condo type of ownership means that the condo owner owns the unit itself (not including the land the unit is built on), which is taxed as an individual entity, as well as a percentage of the common areas of the whole project.

As an owner of a unit in The Torii Residences, your percent of ownership is calculated as your unit's total floor area over the total floor area of all the units combined.  You will see the percentage for each unit in The Torii Residences when you request for the price list.

Again, what does that mean???

It means that, among other things, being a Torii Residences owner means that you will pay annually for your unit's real estate property tax, plus you will also pay a portion of the common areas' real estate property tax based on that percentage.  Additionally, your condo dues will also be computed based on that percentage.

Hmm... Maybe an example would be easier to understand?

Here's an example to make it easier to digest.  Please bear in mind that peso amounts are just examples:

You bought a unit at The Torii Residences, with a floor area of 281.06 sq.m.  The overall floor area of the whole project is 10,648.98 sq.m.  Therefore, your percentage of ownership of The Torii Residences is 281.06 over 10,648.98 which is roughly equal to 2.64%.

So, let's say for example that annually, your unit's real estate tax is P10,000.  Of course, the common areas will also be charged a real estate tax.  Let's say for example that the common areas' tax is P50,000.  Therefore, 2.64% x 50,000 is P1,320.  In other words, you will pay a total of P11,320 annually for real estate tax.

I see...  What about the monthly homeowner's fee or condo dues?

Let's use another example for the homeowners' fees or condo dues in this case.

If the total condo dues assessed is P100,000, since your percent of ownership is 2.64%, your monthly dues will be 100,000 x 2.64%, which is P2,640.  Condo dues are for the maintenance of the common areas*, as well as funds for the condo corporation, and other expenses as the condo corporation may deem necessary.

The Torii Residences has a jogging path, clubhouse, and a swimming pool.  These are just some of the common areas that have to be maintained for your exclusive use and enjoyment.

Lastly, it needs to be emphasized that the percentage of ownership does not affect the weight of your vote in the condo corporation.  Except in cases where Republic Act 4726 (condominium act), as amended, requires the vote of owners owning a specific interest in the common areas as a condition precedent for the approval of certain corporate acts, each owner of a residential unit in The Torii Residences automatically becomes a member of the condo corporation and shall have only one (1) vote. 

*All condo owners share title to common areas. Common areas include land, the exterior of buildings, hallways, roofs, swimming pools -- any area used by multiple owners.

What about ownership itself?

Now we go into the main difference between types of ownership: house/townhouse vs. condo.

As I mentioned, the house/townhouse type of ownership means that you own the structure as well as the land it's built on.  For this type of ownership, you have a TCT, or a Torrens Certificate of Title.  The TCT is proof that you own the land and everything else on that piece of land.  The land is the one titled by the TCT, not the house or structure.

In a condo type of ownership, since you own the unit and a certain portion of the common areas, you get a CCT, or a Condominium Certificate of Title.  This title is for the unit and/or common areas, not the land that the condominium is built on.

Another advantage to the condominium-type of ownership is that foreigners are allowed to purchase a unit, as long as the total percentage of foreign-ownership in the whole project does not exceed 40%, since a condominium project is treated as a corporation.

So, who owns the land?  Where is the TCT for the land in a condominium type of ownership?

Well, as far as The Torii Residences is concerned, the land will be turned over to the condominium corporation upon turn-over of the project.  In other words, the TCT of the land will be in the name of the condo corporation.  So as an owner of a unit in The Torii Residences, you will be a part of the condo corporation that owns the land.  It will NOT reflect in the TCT that you're a co-owner, but as a holder of a CCT, your percent of ownership guarantees your co-ownership.

I co-own The Torii Residences???

Yes, exactly!  Let's say you buy a 78 sq.m. unit.  Since The Torii Residences is a condo type of ownership, you don't get a TCT for the 78 sq.m.  However, since this project is ultra low density, there will only be 37 co-owners of the whole 4,560 sq.m.  In other words, if your percent of ownership is 2.64% according to our earlier example, your share is actually worth 120.38 sq.m. (4,560 x 2.64%) of the whole land!  Of course, you can't sell it separately from the whole, but your share is actually worth more than just 78 sq.m.!  This is the secret of the true value of The Torii Residences: SPACE.

In other condo projects where there are literally hundreds of unit owners for a certain size of land, each unit owner actually co-owns a smaller percent of the actual property, aside from literally owning a small unit!  Here's another example: 200 unit owners in a condo building on a 4,560 sq.m. property.  Each unit is 50 sq.m..  That means every unit owner's percent of ownership is just 0.5%.  Then that also means that each unit owner actually co-owns just 22.8 sq.m. of the land, even less than the actual floor area!  This brings us to another advantage of The Torii Residences - it's a townhouse type of housing, not a condo type of housing.  That's why you have more floor area, because it's designed as a townhouse.

Consider what you get: You get a prestigious address in San Juan, with amenities like a swimming pool, a clubhouse and a jogging path; 4 or 5 bedrooms with its own closet, and toilet & bath; the best materials, workmanship and design; an exclusive enclave for you and your family; more value for the size of land your unit is built on, and the space and convenience of townhouse living!

So, no need to worry.  Just because you don't get a TCT it doesn't mean that you are not an owner of the property.  You are a co-owner of the whole project, you co-own The Torii Residences!

That's definitely a VERY good thing.

Wait...  In a condo-type of ownership, every unit owner owns the land the whole project is built on.  That means I can't do whatever I want to do with my portion of the land?

Since every unit owner is a co-owner of the whole land, decisions about the common areas and the land itself are made corporation style, by majority vote.  If you think about it, in townhouse compounds as well as subdivisions nowadays, there exists a master deed that every owner has to follow.  In other words, even if you own the lot your house or townhouse is built on, it still doesn't mean you can do whatever you want.  Let's say you don't want The Torii Residences because it's a townhouse-condo, and you want a regular townhouse where you get a TCT and the lot is yours, you will find that there is a master deed that mandates what you can and can not do, sometimes even down to the color of your roof!  Do you think your neighbors in the other townhouse units will agree if you suddenly want to tear down your townhouse and build a different one?  Nope.  In other words, it's just the same as what you'll get with The Torii Residences, it's the wave of the future!

But...  What if another unit owner or owners fail to pay their property taxes, won't that mean the whole project might be in danger of being foreclosed by the government?

If that were true, don't you think there would be a lot more of condominiums being foreclosed now?  Since condominium ownership is treated as a separate unit, each unit is taxed individually.  So if a unit owner becomes delinquent, only his unit is in danger of foreclosure (Republic Act 4726, Section 25).  As to the common areas, it is the duty of the condo corporation to pay for the property taxes of those.  Guess who the condo corporation is?  That's right, all of you.  Just like in any good neighborhood, everybody has to help out, it's that simple!

Check out the model unit when it's ready, maybe you'll never want to leave.


Own a unit now at The Torii Residences!
Jon

Moving On With The Torii Residences

Alrighty, flyering activity last October 5 - check!  Time to plan for next activities.  More flyering?  You betcha!  But aside from that, since the model unit is nearing completion (it's part of Cluster D, specifically D-13), I expect to see more activity at the site itself.  Definitely, once people see the model unit, they'll be blown away by how excellent and truly beautiful the project is.  I know, I'm too excited!  In line with that, gotta start looking forward to holding open houses, too.  Yup, I'm starting my online education as I type this blog entry.  I'm reading up on articles, watching videos, looking at other possibilities that I may have overlooked before.  Hopefully, I'll be ready when the time comes, and that time is approaching rapidly!

This is a short entry, just something to announce what I'm up to now.  Once the model unit is ready for viewing, I can start inviting those people who have contacted me before asking about The Torii Residences.  And by that time, I'll have something more concrete to show off hehehe.  I can't wait!!!

By the way, if you have any great ideas about how to hold an open house, and you're willing to share, please be my guest!  Any kind of help is welcome, just like a kind heart and a warm smile :)

See you then,
Jon

Arrghhh! The Rainy Season Is Raining On My Parade!

It's the rainy season, the last quarter of the year, storms & typhoons abound.  I shouldn't even be surprised anymore.  After all, I've been living here forever!  Still, all this rain is driving me up the wall, especially since I have already paid for the day to do my flyering activity for The Torii Residences.  It was supposed to have been last Sept. 28, but since Metro Manila was under Storm Signal #2 on the day prior, it was normal to expect that my activity would be cancelled.  Good thing I was able to have it moved to tomorrow, Oct. 5.  Well, what do you know, there's another forecast: a storm is a-brewing, and is expected to dump more rains tomorrow.  Ugh, I can't stand this.  On top of everything, I'm having respiratory issues, too.  Which means to say, I haven't been able to put in some much needed physical activity (read: swimming), and it's bringing my morale down to dangerously low levels.  Talk about your downer.

Ah well, still, hope springs eternal, and I'm not anything if not an optimist.  Maybe tomorrow we'll see a bright sunny day, enough to do flyering for 2-3 hours, which will be enough, really.  Just 3 hours of sunshine from 2-5pm tomorrow, and I'll be a happy camper.  Everyday, I hope that next person who calls or sends me SMS would be my first buyer for The Torii Residences.  Heck, if I had money, I'd probably be jonesing for one unit myself.

In any case, tomorrow...  We'll see how tomorrow goes!  The opportunity to let people know how great The Torii Residences is will be enough to sustain my goodwill.  I'm sure it'll be alright.  In case it rains though, I'll just move it to next week again hehe.

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love you, tomorrow!
Jon