G.R. No. 97332 October 10, 1991
FACTS:
Macaria sold 300 square meters from her 600 square meter lot to the spouses Villamor which is located at Baesa, Caloocan City, for the total amount of P21,000.00.
Earlier, Macaria borrowed P2,000.00 from the spouses which amount was deducted from the total purchase price of the 300 square meter lot sold.
Macaria executed a "Deed of Option" in favor of Villamor in which the remaining 300 square meter portion (TCT No. 39934) of the lot would be sold to Villamor under the conditions stated therein.
Included in the Deed of Option is:
That the only reason why the Spouses-vendees Julio Villamor and Marina V. Villamor, agreed to buy the said one-half portion at the above-stated price of about P70.00 per square meter, is because I, and my husband Roberto Reyes, have agreed to sell and convey to them the remaining one-half portion still owned by me and now covered by TCT No. 39935 of the Register of Deeds for the City of Caloocan, whenever the need of such sale arises, either on our part or on the part of the spouses (Julio) Villamor and Marina V. Villamor, at the same price of P70.00 per square meter, excluding whatever improvement may be found the thereon;
In 1984, when the husband of Macaria retired, wanted to repurchased the said 300 square meter of lot from the petitioners. However, petitioners rejected the said offer and expresses their desire to purchase the remaining half of the lot.
Trial Court rendered judgment in favor of Villamor.
Court of Appeals reversed the decision premised on the finding of respondent court that the Deed of Option is void for lack of consideration.
ISSUE:
Whether or not the Deed of Option is valid?
HELD:
NO.
As expressed in Gonzales v. Trinidad, 67 Phil. 682, consideration is "the why of the contracts, the essential reason which moves the contracting parties to enter into the contract." The cause or the impelling reason on the part of private respondent executing the deed of option as appearing in the deed itself is the petitioner's having agreed to buy the 300 square meter portion of private respondents' land at P70.00 per square meter "which was greatly higher than the actual reasonable prevailing price."
The respondent appellate court failed to give due consideration to petitioners' evidence which shows that in 1969 the Villamor spouses bough an adjacent lot from the brother of Macaria Labing-isa for only P18.00 per square meter which the private respondents did not rebut. Thus, expressed in terms of money, the consideration for the deed of option is the difference between the purchase price of the 300 square meter portion of the lot in 1971 (P70.00 per sq.m.) and the prevailing reasonable price of the same lot in 1971. Whatever it is, (P25.00 or P18.00) though not specifically stated in the deed of option, was ascertainable. Petitioner's allegedly paying P52.00 per square meter for the option may, as opined by the appellate court, be improbable but improbabilities does not invalidate a contract freely entered into by the parties
The "deed of option" entered into by the parties in this case had unique features. Ordinarily, an optional contract is a privilege existing in one person, for which he had paid a consideration and which gives him the right to buy, for example, certain merchandise or certain specified property, from another person, if he chooses, at any time within the agreed period at a fixed price (Enriquez de la Cavada v. Diaz, 37 Phil. 982). If We look closely at the "deed of option" signed by the parties, We will notice that the first part covered the statement on the sale of the 300 square meter portion of the lot to Spouses Villamor at the price of P70.00 per square meter "which was higher than the actual reasonable prevailing value of the lands in that place at that time (of sale)." The second part stated that the only reason why the Villamor spouses agreed to buy the said lot at a much higher price is because the vendor (Reyeses) also agreed to sell to the Villamors the other half-portion of 300 square meters of the land. Had the deed stopped there, there would be no dispute that the deed is really an ordinary deed of option granting the Villamors the option to buy the remaining 300 square meter-half portion of the lot in consideration for their having agreed to buy the other half of the land for a much higher price. But, the "deed of option" went on and stated that the sale of the other half would be made "whenever the need of such sale arises, either on our (Reyeses) part or on the part of the Spouses Julio Villamor and Marina V. Villamor. It appears that while the option to buy was granted to the Villamors, the Reyeses were likewise granted an option to sell. In other words, it was not only the Villamors who were granted an option to buy for which they paid a consideration. The Reyeses as well were granted an option to sell should the need for such sale on their part arise.
A contract of sale is, under Article 1475 of the Civil Code, "perfected at the moment there is a meeting of minds upon the thing which is the object of the contract and upon the price. From that moment, the parties may reciprocally demand perform of contracts." Since there was, between the parties, a meeting of minds upon the object and the price, there was already a perfected contract of sale. What was, however, left to be done was for either party to demand from the other their respective undertakings under the contract. It may be demanded at any time either by the private respondents, who may compel the petitioners to pay for the property or the petitioners, who may compel the private respondents to deliver the property.
However, the Deed of Option did not provide for the period within which the parties may demand the performance of their respective undertakings in the instrument. The parties could not have contemplated that the delivery of the property and the payment thereof could be made indefinitely and render uncertain the status of the land. The failure of either parties to demand performance of the obligation of the other for an unreasonable length of time renders the contract ineffective.
Under Article 1144 (1) of the Civil Code, actions upon written contract must be brought within ten (10) years. The Deed of Option was executed on November 11, 1971. The acceptance, as already mentioned, was also accepted in the same instrument. The complaint in this case was filed by the petitioners on July 13, 1987, seventeen (17) years from the time of the execution of the contract. Hence, the right of action had prescribed. There were allegations by the petitioners that they demanded from the private respondents as early as 1984 the enforcement of their rights under the contract. Still, it was beyond the ten (10) years period prescribed by the Civil Code.
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