Short answer. Not automatically, but often yes to a partial one. Article 1542 of the Civil Code does not adjust a lump-sum sale for area differences by default, but if your contract also states boundaries and a designated area, the seller owes you a price reduction for the shortfall — or you may rescind if you will not accept it.
What the law says
there shall be no increase or decrease of the price, although there be a greater or less area or number than that stated in the contract
Civil Code, Article 1542 — Sale of Realty for a Lump Sum (Cuerpo Cierto). Read the full provision →
What the law says
should he not be able to do so, he shall suffer a reduction in the price, in proportion to what is lacking in the area or number, unless the contract is rescinded because the vendee does not accede to the failure to deliver what has been stipulated
Civil Code, Article 1542 — Sale of Realty for a Lump Sum (Cuerpo Cierto). Read the full provision →
The starting rule for a lump-sum sale
When land is sold for a single agreed price rather than by rate per square meter, Article 1542 says there shall be no increase or decrease of the price, although there be a greater or less area or number than that stated in the contract. This is the cuerpo cierto rule: you and the seller fixed a price for the property as a whole, not per unit of measurement, so a stated area figure that turns out to be off is not, by itself, grounds to reopen the price. That is the default a lump-sum buyer starts from.
Why boundaries and a designated area change that
The article does not stop there. Every conveyance of real estate must state boundaries, and where the contract, besides the boundaries, also designates an area or number, the seller is bound to deliver everything within those boundaries — even if it turns out to be more than the stated area. That obligation runs both ways: if what falls within the boundaries is actually less than the designated area, the same clause is what lets you hold the seller to the shortfall rather than simply losing it.
What you are entitled to when the seller falls short
Where the seller cannot deliver the full area within the stated boundaries, Article 1542 gives two outcomes, and you choose between them: he shall suffer a reduction in the price, in proportion to what is lacking in the area or number, unless the contract is rescinded because the vendee does not accede to the failure to deliver what has been stipulated. In other words, you can accept the smaller parcel and have the price cut down in proportion to the missing area, or, if that shortfall is not acceptable to you, you can have the sale rescinded and your payment returned instead.
What decides which rule applies to your purchase
Everything turns on what your contract actually says. If it states boundaries and also puts a figure on the area, you are in the reduction-or-rescission scenario described above. If it only fixes a lump sum for land described by boundaries with no area figure attached, the general no-adjustment rule is harder to overcome. Pull your deed of sale and any survey or title referenced in it, compare the area it designates against what a proper resurvey shows, and take both documents to a lawyer before assuming either outcome.
Cases citing this provision
These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.
- Spouses Lucia A. Orozco and Cresente R. Orozco (deceased), substituted by his heirs, namely:, G.R. No. 222616, April 3, 2019 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Joseph Harry Poole-Blunden vs. Union Bank of the Philippines, G.R. No. 205838, November 29, 2017 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Dasmariñas T. Arcaina and Magnani T. Banta vs. Noemi L. Ingram, represented by Ma. Nenette L. Archinue, G.R. No. 196444, February 15, 2017 — read the decision on LawPhil →
- Cebu Windland Development Corporation vs. Ong Siao Hua, G.R. No. 173215, May 21, 2009 — read the decision on LawPhil →