Legal Advice
Pactum commissorium

Dear PAO,

I obtained a loan amounting to P440,000 from my friend to purchase a second-hand car and used my real property as a collateral. We agreed that the amount would be payable in 30 equal installments. It was also stated in our contract that the ownership of my real property shall be automatically transferred to him in case of default in any of the monthly payments. Unfortunately, I failed to pay last month because my work hours were reduced and our sales declined. My friend insisted that the title to my property should now be transferred to his name. Is the stipulation valid?