A Contract to Sell (CTS) is a legal document in which the property developer or owner promises to transfer to the buyer the ownership of a real property upon the buyer’s fulfillment of the terms of the sale, and the buyer obliges himself to pay the purchase price and comply with the other terms and conditions of the sale. In essence, a CTS stipulates the obligations of the seller and the buyer to fulfill their obligations to each other. However, it is also important to note that there is, at this stage, no transfer of ownership of the property.
A Contract of Sale, on the other hand, is the document that transfers ownership from the seller to the buyer. Hence, only the seller signs the deed at closing and receives a copy of it. The closing agent will then record the deed with the buyer listed as the new property owner. Unlike a CTS, the DOS obligates the property developer or owner to transfer ownership of the property to the buyer.