Deaths in a Property

Once upon a time, a buyer found an attractively priced condo online. He had been searching for a property for some time and was sure this condo was a good deal. He immediately scheduled an ocular of the property.

The buyer arrived at the condo's lobby and was greeted by the owner. The buyer asked some usual questions about the property while they went up to the unit. When they were just about to enter the unit, however, the owner stopped right before the entrance and just stood there.

The buyer brushed it off and went inside. He threw some questions to the owner, who was still stationed by the door. He didn't think the owner would budge, so he went around the unit alone. They concluded the showing, and each went their separate ways.

The buyer quickly made an offer at 10% below asking, which the owner promptly approved.

"I'm so lucky!" the buyer thought. But one thing bothered him: the owner didn't enter the premises. So he did some digging.

He tried asking the building's personnel about the unit, to which most answered "they didn't know" or "bago lang po ako dito." After asking around, he eventually found a friend-of-a-friend who lived in the condo and revealed the whole story.

As it turned out, the previous tenant had committed suicide in the unit.

End of story.

Depending on where you are in the world, deaths that transpired in a property may or may not be required by law to be declared. In some states in the US, brokers are required to disclose deaths that happened on the premises within the past 3 years or if they're due to murder or suicide. In the Philippines, there is no such law.

So what if you discover this after you've paid earnest money? Is the seller obliged to refund it? Worse, what if you find out AFTER you've purchased the property?

Lesson: Add a clause in your offer letter requiring the seller to disclose deaths inside the premises.