ARMANDO S. OLIZON and ILUMINADA C. OLIZON, vs. COURT OF APPEALS and PRUDENTIAL BANK.
- G.R. Number: G.R. No. 107075
- Promulgated: 1994-09-01
- Ponente: Regalado, J.
Doctrine
Personal notice to the mortgagor is not required in extrajudicial foreclosure; Act No. 3135, as amended, requires posting in three public places and publication in a newspaper of general circulation.
The foreclosure proceeding enjoys a presumption of regularity; the mortgagors bear the burden of proving noncompliance with posting or publication requirements by convincing evidence.
Determination of invalidity turns on whether the statutory notice requirements were actually complied with; compliance is the decisive issue in such contests.
Facts
In 1967 the spouses Armando and Iluminada Olizon obtained a P25,000 loan from Prudential Bank and mortgaged a 1,000 sqm parcel in Barrio Calaanan, Kalookan, registered as TCT No. 24604 as security.
The Olizons defaulted; Prudential extrajudicially foreclosed, and at a public auction on 11 March 1975 the property was sold to the bank as highest bidder, with a certificate of sale issued the same date and annotated on TCT on 12 March 1974.
The case involved disputes over compliance with statutory notice requirements for extrajudicial foreclosure and allegations contesting the validity of the foreclosure sale and writs of possession.
After foreclosure the Olizons allegedly abandoned possession, the bank paid taxes and pursued reconstitution of title, where the Olizons did not oppose the bank's petition; contest followed years later.
Issues
Whether the statutory notice requirements for extrajudicial foreclosure under Act No. 3135, as amended, were complied with in this case.
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in reversing the trial court's decision and setting aside the foreclosure and related writs.
Ruling
The petition is denied for lack of merit and the Court of Appeals' judgment is affirmed in toto; the assailed petition was dismissed and the CA decision was upheld.
Consequently, the Court affirmed the validity of the foreclosure sale and the writ of possession as rendered by the lower courts (per the Court's disposition).
Keywords
G.R. No. 107075, real estate mortgage, extrajudicial foreclosure, certificate of sale, period of redemption, reconstitution of title, writ of possession, cancellation of writ of possession, nullification of certificate of sale, nullification of foreclosure proceedings, lack of notice of auction sale, lack of posting of notice of sale, Section 3 of Act No. 3135, Act No. 3135, as amended, personal notice to mortgagor, publication of notice of extrajudicial foreclosure sales, statutory provisions governing publication, notice, title, petitioners