Tenant – Landlord disputes are best avoided and the first thing we would tell you in the event that you have one is to really try and settle your differences amicably. What comes after might be a whole lot of hassle! No? – have all the forces in the universe conspired against you and is the dispute absolutely unsurmountable? There are a couple of ways to go about this:
1. Try to get in touch with the agent that helped broker the deal. The agent will probably have some experience in these matters and may be of help in advising you how to move forward.
2. You can reach out to a mediator. Groups such as the Singapore Mediation Center (SMC), or the Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) can provide you with a third-party perspective on the disputed matters. The majority of tenancy disputes in Singapore are solved through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), such as mediation.
3. If ADR is to no avail, the logical next step is to approach the Small Claims Tribunal (SCT). This will in all likelihood be more time-consuming and costlier than settling through mediation, yet if absolutely no settlement can be reached this is your go-to option.
The procedure of the SCT is detailed on the website in the link above. The bottom line is that the SCT has limited jurisdiction, and while most tenancy disputes will fall within it, not all do. We therefore advise you first to check whether your case is eligible to be pursued in the SCT, here.
Procedurally, after you have lodged your claim with the SCT, the tribunal will arrange for a registrar to hold a mediation session with the landlord and you. This is mandatory, and if to no avail a hearing will generally be scheduled between 7 and 10 days.
Note*: When lodging your claim with the SCT, a lodgement fee will have to be paid, the amount of which will depend upon the monetary value of the claim as detailed in the graph below:
4. If your dispute does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Small Claims tribunal, you still have the option to take the dispute to the Singapore Civil Court (just not the SCT). If it comes to this, you will probably have to hire a lawyer and eventually perhaps even engage the landlord in a litigation trial.
Singapore does not have a comprehensive law or set of laws governing landlord-tenant relations. This makes the terms on which the Tenancy Agreement was settled the more important, and the strength of your case in the events of a dispute will depend largely on the these terms.
~ when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object ~ 🙂
Do you have your own rental experience to share? Let us know in the comments section below or on our Facebook post.
If you found this article helpful, check out Living with roommates of different nationalities: what to expect and 5 renters in Singapore share their tips on screening roommates.
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Dear 99.co, May I seek your opinion on early termination of contract? A Tenant is leaving without 1 month notice, without evidence that he is leaving the country. The tenant only stayed for 2 months, the contract states 12 months. Min 10months and 2 months notice after min occupation period. Please advise what should I do besides forfeiting his deposit?
Hi Lim,
Apart from forfeiting the deposit, you can attempt to claim from the tenant for the additional months of rent for not giving notice and tell the tenant that you will file for damages via litigation. It is usually not worth the effort and money to go to the smalls claims court, but you do have the option to get legal assistance to pursue for damages for breach of contract (provided that you can prove that what the tenant is doing is against the terms in contract).
Another suggestion is to suggest to them to get a replacement tenant by their move out date. Unfortunately in most cases, once the landlord gets word that a tenant has terminated their contract early, they would quickly market their unit into the rental market again.
Regards,
Adam R.
Hi Mr Adam,
I have signed a eight months contract with my landlord. Minimum occupying period is 6 months. Unfortunately, I was not able to stay there for 6 months.I vacated the room after three months with 1 month notice.Landlord has accepted that but he is refusing to pay me the deposit back. Am I able to file a case against landlord?
Thanks
Ram
This is to share our very bad experience with our former landlords. They have not refunded us our 2 months deposit despite the fact that the flat was perfectly maintained and have never responded to any of our emails regarding the claim. We feel that they have been dishonest and have no intention whatsoever of refunding the deposit. Also their agent has not been helpful at all. Feel free to contact us for more information.
Dear 99.co,
I took up a 1 year “fixed term” lease of an HDB apartment at Singapore last year. 6 months into my lease, I gave my landlord a 3 month notice to leave the apartment due to a valid personal situation. So a total of 9 months later, I left the apartment.
The landlord has forfeited the security deposit (1 month’s rent) and is now, more than a month after I have handed over and left the apartment, asking me to pay up the balance rent (equivalent to remaining 2 months’ rent). Upon handing over the apartment and the keys of the house, the landlord’s agent also never mentioned any such clauses. So I assumed that the tenancy had effectively been terminated at that stage itself.
I have no diplomatic clause or any clause protecting my rights in the tenancy agreement when it was in force. But I had been a good tenant throughout (maintained premises well without any damages).
My question is:
– Can the landlord demand for the balance rent just like that, so much time after a tenant has moved out and handed over the apartment?
– What sort of legal action can the landlord take against the tenant in the above scenario, way after the apartment has been handed over?
Thanks,
Rahul
Hi Rahul,
Was your ex-landlord made aware and agreeable to your early termination of the contract? In such cases like yours, it is often stipulated in the Tenancy Agreement (TA) the penalties for early termination, the terms of which varies and should be decided between the landlord and the tenant before both parties endorse it.
Perhaps it would be good for you to re-visit the terms and conditions laid out in your TA. Normally, the security deposit would be forfeited, however there might be binding clauses in the TA stating that the tenant is responsible for the remaining rent of the property if he chooses to vacate before the stipulated end lease date. For example, if a tenant terminates a twelve month lease after six months, the tenant can still be held responsible for the six months rent remaining under the lease (if explicitly stated in the contract). If there is any dispute, all negotiations should be done within 30 days before you hand back the keys to the landlord.
If your ex-landlord wishes to take legal action, he can do so via the small claims tribunal. However, again, it depends on the terms of the TA which the courts will rely on to arrive at a verdict.
Regards,
Adam R.
Hi adam,
Thanks for responding. what’s mentioned in the agreement is – “This lease agreement is for a fixed term. In the event any party decides to terminate the agreement before its expiry for any other reason than as provided for in this agreement, then the innocent party will be entitled to enforce the terms of this agreement for Specific Performance, Damages to recover any losses suffered or otherwise as the case may be, in accordance with the prevailing laws of Singapore.” Does this amount to the outstanding rental for the remainder of the term?
Thanks
Hi Adam,
Am a subtenant in the condo, i have never met actual condo owner or have visited the original agreement.
The only agreement between the tenant of condo(my owner) and me is a paper with our both signatures. Just by mouth, we planned to extend one more month(initial 6 months contract just ending this month), but just after getting the rent, he is asking electricity bills for past 3 months, when i told will vacate next month, he is not willing to give back advance also. In the actual contract the rent is including electricity also.
What are the available options for me, i called him whether we can have mediation legally, he is not agreeing. As deposit money is with him, either way i will be the loser. Kindly guide me for available options.
The deposit amount is 1000sgd.
Hi Prasanna,
This is a tricky matter. It seems like the tenant might be cashing in on collecting rent from you at the expense of the real owner. It is best to do a little research of your own in order to ascertain the authenticity of the landlord’s (in this case the tenant’s) possession of the unit. A simple verification can be done by checking the IRAS property tax website (at $2.50, https://mytax.iras.gov.sg/ESVWEB/default.aspx?target=PTEVLListIntro) or through SLA INLIS (at a slightly pricier cost of $5.25, https://www.sla.gov.sg/inlis/#/POI).
With regards to the extension of the contract, afraid that a verbal agreement is not sufficient to prove that there is a legitimate contract that exist between both of you. The best recourse you can do is to approach the rightful owner of the property and find out whether any legal measures can be taken against him.
Regards,
Adam R.
Hello 99.co,
I have a TA that stipulated 14 days deposit return, after 12 day, landlord send email stating minor damages not caused by my occupation of premises and requesting repair; and also gas meter cost that wasn’t stipulated in the TA. Some damaged are impossible to fix without creating more damage that good, according with contractor, or some other are normal wear off of stove painting due to cleaning and his now requesting a new stove instead. What can i do?
Hi,
Our contract from an hdb flat is going to end in a month. Now we have issues with our deposit fee which should be refunded to us. Now the landlord is making issues with his flat saying there is a tv when infact theres none, complained the painting is already dirty, (we moved in the same condition) and that the aircon is faulty (very old model). What advise can u give to us? We are already expecting the deposit will be forfeited but is worried he will charge us more than the deposit. Appreciate your advise.
Hi Dannah,
The best option is to submit your case to the Small Claims Tribunal (https://www.statecourts.gov.sg/SmallClaims/Pages/GeneralInformation.aspx) as your landlord sounds like he is not acting in good faith.
Did you happen to take photos of the property before you moved in? They can provide evidence against the claims of the landlord. Moreover,the security deposit is a sufficient means for the landlord to use in the event that there is a need to refurnish/repair the property if it is faulty or spoilt by the tenant. If the landlord charges you more, you may contest these charges if the damages were preexisting or were not caused by you or your guests at the Small Claims Tribunal.
Regards,
Adam R.
Dear 99.co,
I would like to seek your advice on my rental issue. on the day of handover, the landlord was not happy and requied us to get her marble floor polished. She refused to take the keys back, and said will do it after the flat being reinstate. and during that time, we still have to pay for the rental (we r not saying there). Is that correct?
Thanks,
John
Hi John,
I would assume that your tenancy has already expired according to the tenancy agreement, given that you are no longer staying there? If that is the case, you should not be liable to foot the additional month of rental the landlord is requesting.
However, she could deduct a portion of your security deposit to complete the polishing of the marble floors as stated.
Regards,
Adam R.
Hello there,
I rent an HDB flat. The lease contract expires soon. The owner must return the flat back to HDB in 2 months due to en bloc. I offered the owner a price and new terms of payment for staying after my contract expires until they hand it over to HDB. The owner now wants a new security deposit to be included in our agreement. I refuse to give the deposit on the terms that there will be no way for me to claim it back later, because it is not a normal contract but a verbal agreement.
Now I have 2 options. Either we sign a “makeshift” contract (with no stamping obviously) and I pay the deposit on its terms; OR I just simply call off the agreement and vacate the flat at the actual expiration date.
The question is if that makeshift agreement gives me any guarantees to return my money back in case of a dispute with the landlord should they refuse to pay it?
Hi Tony,
It is better to call off the agreement and vacate the flat at the actual expiration date. A makeshift agreement, as the name suggests, will not be legally binding. Hence, there would not be sufficient grounds to prove that such a contract exist (and reclaim your deposit) should there be any future disagreements between you and the landlord.
Also, the owner should have highlighted that HDB will be putting the property for en-bloc earlier. Usually, HDB will give a grace period of 9 months – one year for tenants/owners to vacate their premises/find alternative arrangements.
Regards,
Adam R.
Dear 99.co
We have rented a 3 rooms apartment with 2 years TA and stayed together with my family members for a month ago.. The landlord suddenly went unreasonable and asked us to find a place to move and leave the premises in month times claiming that tenant have violated the “no authorised occupants” rule.
Firstly, we don’t sublet the premise to other. We don’t quite understand why the landlord blowout as we have communicated to the realty agent by verbal that friends and relatives (occupant) may stay in the premises occasionally as we are renting a 3 rooms apartment. If the landlord don’t allow this tenant reasonable right in the beginning then we would not rent this apartment for 2 years TA.
To resolve this issue effectively, we have called upon all parties (landlord, realty agent and tenant) to resolve the misunderstanding amicably. Unfortunately, the discussion has not gone well after the realty agent admitted he has forgotten to inform landlord about the “verbal agreement” for the occupant arrangement. The landlord didn’t want to listen the fact from the realty agent and he didn’t agree other occupants stays at the premise apart of the listed occupant state in the TA. The landlord asked the realty agent answerable to his attorney. Meanwhile, the landlord requesting us to leave the premise in months with full refund of the safety deposit.
Once we have made an agreement to inform the landlord upfront for the occupant detail in the future and put up our stand not to leave the premises due to the unfinished 2 years TA. The landlord start agitated and mentioned will take attorney action towards the tenant. The landlord also threaten the tenant that the will sell the premises to chase the tenant out from the premises.
We have the following questions:
1. The landlord is infringing the tenant’s privacy by closed monitoring us using the apartment management and neighbourhood to see who and when the visitor comes to the premises. How should the tenant deal with this situation?
2. The landlord is threatening us to take attorney action towards us. Should we wait until the attorney action takes place for us to react through SCT or how?
3. What if the landlord exercise his “sales of tenancy” or sell the premise intentionally and can the tenant get compensated through SCT if landlord did this intentionally?
4. When should the tenant vacant the premises and how long notice should the landlord gives to the tenant?
5. How to proof the “sales of tenancy” is fully in force and not a ‘acting show’ from the landlord?
Thank you.
Hi 99.co,
I have rented HDB flat for last 1.5 year and vacated the house on 16th October 2016.When the agent verified the house before handover he found there is crack on a rock solid surface in kitchen and the discussion on this is going on in between me and My ex-owner, and they said because of that damage they have asked us to pay the total amount for it which we have not agreed to it and they have deducted half of the amount in security deposit without my confirmation or my acknowledgment.
when we asked for fair settlement on this he is telling that house is not cleaned well and have some black marks on switch boards and other stories. but we got them cleaned and agent has also cross verified before handover the house keys to him and he acknowledged that house condition is very clean and good in emails looping the owner too.
I have proofs that house is cleaned nicely , We need your advise on this concern on how to address such situation and is it legitimate to deduct our amount or not for such damages which is not caused by human intervention.
please help to advise on this.
Appreciate your help.
Thanks
kalyan
Hi there,
I rent a room with a single lady owner. I have been staying here for almost 2 months, and last month, I found out that landlord actually secretly enters my room and looked through my stuff. I had video footages of whatever she did in my stuff, and her behaviour can sometimes be disturbing to me. After watching the video footage, I believe she may have some kind of mental issue (i.e. She does stuff that normal people wouldn’t do, like purposely enter my room to wipe the dust off her hand). I tried locking the door but she still enters nonetheless. She has her siblings around to help her settle stuff, even when I sign the contract, her siblings were there to help Ensure everything goes well. So, until recently I am getting more and more disturbed by her action and decided to raise this issue to my agent. I was not asked to pay agent fee, so i heard that agent only side with the party who pays them. Now the thing is, we had a meeting with all her siblings plus the presence of agent, and I requested to move out ASAP and requested for my full deposit to be refunded. However, my landlord’s Sister refused to pay me in full, but rather she only willing to return half of them. Under the contract, it’s being said that if tenant decided to move out before 6 months of staying, the deposit won’t be refunded. So I would like to ask, if I have any rights at all to get my deposit back for moving out before 6th months of staying due to violation of privacy and not feeling safe and comfortable staying here.
Thank you in advance for the help. Really appreciate it.
Regards, May
Same like my landlords. 1 likes coming in when I’m sleeping, another one comes in to switch off all the power points. I keep my room doors locked at all times unless I go to the bathroom. Do they have rights to enter?
Hi Anmc,
No, it is not. Landlords should not encroach on the privacy of their tenants without prior consent.
Regards,
Adam R.
Hi there:
What happen if my tenant own me the rentals for months and dragging to make payment. The tenancy agreement has also expired. What can I do?
Dear 99.co,
May I seek your advise if the landlord/property agent has the duty to inform the tenants in the case of reported structural issues? From the reply of a property agent from Knight Frank, who is the liaison to our landlord, she replied that as long as it is not within the unit, and therefore not within the landlord’s control, be it noise nuisance or structural issues or any issues outside the tenanted unit. Below was her response to our email to her to get details to structural issues from the MCST,
”
Hello, got send wrongly message or not?
This is the sales person / property agent here.
The structural safety is outside landlord control. Got qualified people at MCST to attend to it.
Got Condo MCST to see to these things. They are the people to go to.
ALL INFOs can be obtained from MCST office which is located right next to Blk 3.
The Ridgewood MCST ppl there are very polite and helpful. They will try their best to help the residents there and address their concerns.
”
Thank you for your advise in advance.
Hi Agnes,
Unfortunately, what the agent has communicated is right. Any issues outside of the sale/purchase of the unit is under the purview of the condo MCST.
Regards,
Adam R.
hi,
My landlord has failed to fix a dangerous fixture in the flat for several months, some rusty nails sticking out from cupbaords. He has in fact breached the tenancy agreement by leaving a dangerous fixture in the flat and leaving the premises a dangerous place to live in for its tenants. After asking him to fix it for many months he didn’t respond and left it as it stands. In these cases, if I sued the landlord what would be the maximum payout?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Dear 99.co
We are a group of exchange students and we’ve rented an apartment in Singapore from August until December. The contract ended on the 3rd of December, we visited the apartment with the landlord, everything was okay and he signed the hand-over contract, promising to transfer the deposit within max. 14 days.
Up until now we haven’t received the deposit.
He claims that we destroyed one bed in the apartment (apparently one leg was missing, which wasn’t our fault) and already bought a new bed for 900$ he wants us to pay for.
He doesn’t want to settle and wants us to pay the full amount of the bed, although he signed the hand-over contract and everything was okay when we last saw the condo.
One of my roommates is still in Singapore and we are considering to make use of the small claims court. Unfortunately, we don’t really know anything about the Singaporean legal system.
Do you think small claims court is a good idea? Because he signed the contract and there is really no justification for him to withhold the money..
Thank you so much for your help!
I would appreciate receiving your advice on a matter that is quite vexing. 2 months after moving into a “luxury” apartment, our washing machine flooded twice. We contacted the brand maker and the agent to explain the issue. The brand maker came to fix the problem and informed us the washing machine had been installed incorrectly and that an internal part had broken. 3 months later we endured another flood. We contacted the brand maker again straight away and the agent. On all three occasions my husband and I were present and furiously mopped up the excess water to minimize any damage. The base legs of the 3 kitchen cabinets have been damaged because they absorbed water. The cabinets are made out of particle board and soak up water like a sponge. This time, the issue is 2 machine parts that are broken and need replacing. Their advice was we can keep repairing the washing machine or request a new one. I put this to the agent, and very kindly the landlord has decided to buy a new washing machine, for which we are very grateful. However, there are 2 issues which are very uncomfortable with. 1) we are being asked to pay $150 from our maintenance fee, to repair the kitchen cabinets. 2) we have been without a functioning washing machine for 4 weeks now. We do not feel that we should bare the cost of repairing the cabinets as the floods have been caused by a faulty appliance. Our understanding when we moved into this condo was that all appliances would be functioning and would be functional during our tenancy. Of course if one breaks down, it would get replaced. The second matter is that we have incurred considerable time and expense going to a laundromat to do our laundry. We have requested compensation for the cost of being without a washing machine for 4 weeks. I am only asking for my laundromat costs to be covered. It is not exorbitant by any means. The landlord has refused both of our requests. We don’t believe we should be held responsible for the damage which was caused by a faulty appliance. accounts. Plus, they have refused to consider the inconvenience and cost of not having a functioning washing machine for 4 weeks. I would like to add we are a couple. The previous tenants were a family of 6. Our use of the washing machine by comparison is light. What
is your advice. Thanks in advance for your help.
Hi Julie,
With regards to the case of compensation for the kitchen cabinets, damage caused by the flooding should be covered by the landlord unless it can be shown the tenant was negligent or acted in an untenant-like manner (eg by knowing of, but ignoring, the flood, thus aggravating the damage). However, given that this is a recurring problem that you’ve made known to the agent, landlord and washing machine manufacturer on several occasions, there is sufficient evidence to show that you shouldn’t be liable for the resulting damages caused.
On the other hand, compensation for the laundromat charges will be difficult to claim. This is because the tenancy agreement usually just includes causes stating the cost of damage/repair of fixtures within the property, and that it is the due responsibility of the landlord to rectify them (when applicable). This however, does not extend to the cost of inconvenience caused during said period of repair.
Regards,
Adam R.
Dear 99.co
After 2 months of my lease my landlord demanded 60 dollar for additional electricity as he claim my use of iron and starhub tv box doesn’t fall in agreement and we negotiated 20 dollars for that. hence every month i was paying 900+20 (with comment on receipt that rent +additional electricity ).
i gave proper one month notice and at time of leaving he refused to pay me deposit saying 20 dollars were for ironing only and starhub box cost me additional electricity too. I demanded to see bills if it really cost him such amount but he refused and than i asked him to sign that security deposit was not paid but he refused that too saying i will not sign anything or i will not pay you anything at all. You can go for small claim and let judge decide
Unkown to situation what should i do , i just took the pictures of room and left . please advise what can i do to recover my money as i think owner is planning on idea that he will not give me something back and i might not take headache of taking any furhter steps to recover my money.
Is there anything you can suggest plus if you think my case is strong than can i do something to get that ……… punished so that he wont be able to do that with someone else next time
Hi Nasr,
Did the terms in the original Tenancy Agreement mention explicitly anything about who is to foot the bills for electricity? In your case, if it is not stated in the contract, it would be difficult for the landlord to prove that you are liable for them.
Also, it is advisable to check the contract again to see if there is any terms regarding payment of security deposit. It should state that the security deposit should only be paid for monthly rent that is overdue or to offset any damages to the property.
Regards,
Adam R.
Dear 99.co,
I have rented a room in hdb for about 3 years now and lately i was bitten by bed bugs inside the house (suspect they came from mattress). I went to see the doctor to certify and it was confirmed i was bitten by bed bugs. I told my landlord regarding this and she is unwilling to bear the cost to clean / change to a new mattress for me. She even insisted that i paid for the cost of the new bed and the pest control for the whole house. Since my landlord does not stay in the house, she assumed that all costs incurred for the house will be borne by me because she had the feeling that I caused the damage to my own room and also the house. I am very frustrated now and what is your advice? Thanks
Dear Adam,
My existing tenant is not renewing the tenancy lease and it will be terminating soon.
I would like to know if I am able to claim damages from my tenant for the repairs to the wooden cabinet underneath the wash basin in the bathroom.
Due to wear and tear of the grouting on the vanity, water seeps beneath to the underside of the vanity top as well as the wooden cabinet beneath thus causing the laminate to peel off from the wood.
And also, can I claim the cost of cleaning the carpet since the carpet was returned to me in a dusty condition.
Hi Adam, I signed a two-year lease on a condo, which I extended for two more months through a Whatsapp agreement with the agent (I’ve never met the owner. All contact has been through the agent).
When I moved out, I did a joint inspection of the unit with the agent, who didn’t identify any issues. A week later, I asked him about returning my deposit and he said it would be returned after he checked the oven and washing machine but that it should be fine. Later that day, he sent me pictures of a small sofa that the owner had left that I hadn’t used saying it needed to be dry cleaned. I replied saying the TA absolved me of any liability for any issues that weren’t identified during the joint inspection. No answer. I messaged again today to ask about my deposit and he sent me a list of issues, including mold in the walls, bugs, possible repainting etc, and also that the apartment wasn’t cleaned professionally (it was) and asking for a receipt (which I threw away because he didn’t ask for it during the inspection and was satisfied with the state of it). When I protested he told me to take it to the SCT but won’t give me the landlord’s address, which I need to file a claim with the SCT. I spoke with a lawyer about a civil case but he hasn’t been in touch since the initial chat (presumably because it’s too small?) even though he said he would send me an email. I don’t know what to do. The deposit is more than $5000 and I can’t afford to lose it. It seems like the odds are stacked against me even though I’ve done everything by the book. According to the TA, the owner is also supposed to return my deposit within 14 days, which it will be tomorrow. What options do I have? Thanks.
Dear 99.co,
My landlord has been dragging and refusing to return my deposit because the house started to have internal pipe leakage about a month before my 2yrs tenancy ends.
I have tried many ways to rectify the leakage but to no avail.
It’s an old condo and often, there are leakages occurring within other neighbours’ house too and we all (including landlord) know about it.
I hired 2 batches of air con professionals, landlord sent a batch down himself too, plus his plumber and even building management staff to come down and check, but all concluded that it’s not my issue (definitely not air con), but more like a concealed pipe leakage.
I highlighted a lot of times to the landlord that this is not within my control (as per stated in our tenancy agreement too), but he got pissed off and even argued with me that I, as a tenant, shouldn’t be saying such things that is so irresponsible. And, he even threatened me further that he can deduct my deposit due to the floor and door swelling up which I did preventive measures on (wiping it dry and putting new cloth on the floor everyday).
During the handover, everything was fine – I even hired painters to have the whole house painted and cleaned up. Gave him several good condition wardrobes and furnitures even. He checked everything and even told me that he’ll return my deposit back on 15/7.
Currently, I’ve handed the house over since 1/7.
Till yesterday (17/7), as I didn’t receive any updates from him, I demanded a deadline to get my full deposit back. However, he refused to adhere and even said that I never seem to stop bothering him.
He even said he needs time to order supplies to fix the leakage and he is losing money everyday too as this leakage landed him with no new tenants. – Which is obviously not my issue to begin with.
Hence, I would really wish to have a 2nd opinion on this and I appreciate your kind replies.
Thanks in advance.
Hi Gum,
The purpose of a security deposit is to have a sum of money for the landlord to deduct against if there is damage caused by the tenant. A leak from an internal pipe, if not caused by you (for example, you knocked a nail through and hit the pipe), is not something which the landlord can put at your doorstep. He cannot deduct the cost of repair from the security deposit. Following from that, if the pipe leak is not caused by you, then all damage as a result, to the floor and door cannot be claimed from you.
If the landlord does not return the deposit or deducts money from the deposit even though it is not your fault, you can file a claim with The Small Claims Tribunal (https://www.statecourts.gov.sg/SmallClaims/Pages/GeneralInformation.aspx) if the value does not exceed $10,000. Otherwise, you will need to appoint a lawyer to get your money back.
Regards,
Krristy
Thanks Krristy,
I really appreciate your kind advise.
And nope, the leakage was definitely not caused by me.
It’s located on the wall, right above a room’s door. Nothing’s there, not even air con.
I’ll proceed with the SCT then, should landlord still refuse to return me my full deposit.
Thanks! 🙂
Dear 99.co,
I have a difficulty situation may need to seek your advice. I have leased my two rooms ( master and big common room) of whole Flat to a Chinese group of two different families. ( a couple with a kid and a young college girl last year till this June). They came as a group renters, one contract only.After they moved in. They touched my another pending rent bedroom without my notice. Readjusted my furniture without my permission including my other pending rent room.Caused so much mess and eventually delayed my other room rental, After much later , my viewer took pictures of my pending rent room, I just realized. She stole out my pending rent room closet, threw out my master room closet with my blanket dragging the heavy three door closets to my other bigger bedroom, which for her roommate, and damp the bigger room three door closet in my pending room in a weird position leave dust between wall and closet area ,After three months, the other room single lady who came together with the other Chinese family left without giving me the house keys,notice, mess my bedroom and bathroom floor( her father came from China and stayed on my house without my notice for whole month before she moved, they wore same pair of dirty sandals in/ out house my house and wet bathroom, stole my table light, dustbin from her room.( she got some issues with the other common guest room tenant)( the other common room tenant left too), so only only Chinese couple and a child stayed in my master bedroom till contract over( but sneaky couple still pay me one room rent as a group rate which I did not know until I printed out my bank statement recently I realised, they also stated in my other unlocked bed room, so basically they used my two rooms and whole common area but pay me one master room rent. My friend also noticed that from MRT sometimes. She thought I rented out my other room as she saw sometimes my room got lights, sometimes the windows are open, etc, of course the couple denied when I asked them, at the end of contract, this couple left my house and kept the mess behind. Bathroom area was not cleaned , lights damages3/5 ceiling lights gone, both cooker hood lights gone, kitchen sink leaking , tab leaking , vacuum cleaner broken, did not maintain my A.c throughout tenancy period even though it was one of the clause, btw, my AC dying, I need to spent 3.2k for new one, I have not done it yet, no time). When I came back from overseas, I spent my whole two weeks vacation just to fix and clean their shit, (sink leaking not repaired before I returned to Canada couple of days ago), I was planing to return some of the deposit to them on my good will after showing them the receipts. But they are so greedy and disputed all my receipts . They only allow meo 50 dollars deduction for my hard work to cleanmy house fees , 50 dollars to deduct for the broken vacuum cleaner, lights etc common area fixing must be divided by 3 shares, so they only will allow me to deduct one third of the fixing fees or else threaten to sue me in small court , taking advantage I am not in town right now. The couple also harass my POA friend, so now I have no more holiday till next year, what can I do? I don’t have any family there who can help me to attend court on behalf. Except my two kids are still in Asia for holiday and They are young teens.
Please advise.
Ty
Troubled landlord
Dear Ty,
If you have kept clear and detailed evidence and receipts of the damage done to your premises, there are sufficient grounds for you to forfeit the tenant’s security deposit within good reason. You may wish to provide a copy of all documentation to your former renters. If this matter is escalated to the Small Claims Tribunal, the person whom you have granted Power of Attorney to will be able to make appearances for you. You may wish to contact the Small Claims Tribunal first to find out what the procedures are like for persons currently residing overseas.
For future purposes, do ensure you have all the clauses set out in a Tenancy Agreement. You may wish to consider using an agent to rent out your home who can assist in making sure tenants are not disruptive and destructive.
Wishing you all the best in finding a speedy resolution to this issue.
Best,
Krristy
Hi!
Good day!
My Main Tenant (not the Landlord) refused to return our security deposit and the reimbursement of our key card. Unfortunately we didn’t have a formal contract agreement but a verbal agreement that we need to stay for a minimum of 12months considering that our room rental is S$1200 ALL IN. We moved in to their place end of January 2017. Then all of a sudden in the month of May, she advised us that she will be collecting additional charges for the pUB aside from our ALL IN rate. I contested her and did not agree on that additional charges. From there, we decided to look for another place to rent in. As soon as we got the new place by mid June, we immediately informed them that we will move out by 1 August (1.5 months notice). The following day, our main tenant talked to us and informed us that we don’t need to move out by 1 August instead, we need to move out by end of June. They threatened us that they will write a letter to our company and also they will not return our security deposit because we did not finished the 12months VERBAL agreement. Can you advise us on this matter?
Thank you very much for those who will answer our concern.
BJW
We handed over our rented apartment to the landlord’s agent and after that, the landlord wanted a repaint of the house because of some marks left on the wall, which are due to normal use (marks behind the sofa and chairs). She also found the house to be uncleaned. Now, she wants to deduct from our deposit to engage her own contractors for cleaning and painting. Do we have a right not to approve her quoted prices and offer our appointed contractors?
Hi Ric,
Please refer to the terms in your Tenancy Agreement. If there is clause stating the use of specific contractors appointed by the Landlord, you may obtain quotes from other contractors.
Perhaps you could get a quote from three different contractors stating the same scope of work and present these to your former landlord. In the best case scenario, both of you can agree on appointing the most reasonably priced contractor.
Please refer to the FAQs we have laid out in this recent article:
https://www.99.co/blog/singapore/landlord-tenant-disputes-faqs/
We hope you will be able to reach an amicable settlement with your landlord soon.
Thank you!
Cheers,
Krristy
Dear 99.co,
Need advise badly. My roommate and I entered into a 1-year written agreement with a divorced lady landlord without the services of an agent. We were in a rush so we did not think that her over-friendliness before we signed contract was anything suspicious. Kindly note that when we visited her place 3 times (different timing of the day) prior to signing the contract, we never saw those current occupying the room.
Less than 2 weeks after we moved in, she started verbally abusing us. It started mildly with her calling us “crazy” whenever we got home from work. Fast forward and it’s 5 months now. She became more verbally abusive by shouting at us to just stay in our room when she saw us eating in the kitchen. Things escalated so badly to the extent that her daughter even asked her to go into their own room if she dislikes seeing us so much. We tried to stay away from her so much we are basically only home to sleep on weekday nights and we shut ourselves up in the room most of the time, weekends we don’t even go home now because it is mentally stressful for us both.
And because I am someone who needs a very clean environment, we have her promise that she cleans the bathroom every week and sweeps the floor 3 times a week (we paid more on top of the agreed monthly rent for this). But, since we moved in, she has only washed the toilet twice. It was so filthy and disgusting. Due to monetary issues, we did not moved out as we will need to forfeit our deposit.
Really need some advice here please. Thank you.
A court official just showed up at my house at 22:30 on a Friday with a summons for the landlord. He wouldn’t show me the summons but said that the landlord owes a lot of money to casinos. I contacted both my agent and the landlord’s agent. The landlord’s agent said he has been unable to reach the landlord, who apparently lives in Malaysia. My agent advised me to stop paying rent in order to protect my security deposit. I’m reluctant to do that because I haven’t seen any actual evidence that the landlord is likely unable to return my deposit, and the tenancy agreement states that the landlord may charge 10% interest on unpaid rent and also terminate the agreement if rent remains unpaid. We still have 18 months on our lease and don’t want to move. I’m inclined to wait it out, and if at the end of our term the landlord does not return the deposit then I can file a claim with the small claims tribunal, although it sounds like that would be ineffective. Any advice?
Hi Darryl,
At this point, it is best to remain in close contact with both your agent and landlord’s agent. Keep a record of what has been discussed by emailing them to recap the main points of the conversation. Your agent would also be the best person to advise you on steps to take.
It is also better to prepare yourself for the worst case scenario that you may not be able to stay till the end of the term. No one can foresee at this point what further legal action might be taken against your landlord.
We wish you the best of luck and hope it all works out for you!
Regards,
Krristy
Dear 99.co,
I am a tenant and I rented a brand new condo property for a year and have moved out recently. My landlord/their representative agents wanted me to pay to fix the wardrobe door as it had an defect and was not rectified by the developer.
I was not aware of this defect as the wardrobe door slides open and close fine, however they claimed that the wardrobe door was bent so that there’s this clicking sound when you slide the wardrobe door. Now they are withholding my security deposit because I did not inform them on this defect and the property is no longer under the guarantee period with the developer.
As a tenant, do I have to bear this cost and pay for the wardrobe door just because the developer will no longer exchange it and it’s no longer in the guaranteed period? And because it was an developer defect and it was not caused by me（I was not aware of this defect until now ). Can my landlord force me to pay for developer defects?
I am an foreigner so I’m not sure how it works in Singapore but it’s not fair for me to pay for developer defects? In Australia, and most countries, the landlord will have to go back to the developer and it’s the landlord’s responsibility to ensure there were no defects during the initial handover right?
I would appreciate any advice, thank you.
We had a fire in the flat and a full flood within 6 months, both resulting from the same water heater. Lots of our personal belongings have been damaged or destroyed (Value around SGD 5,000 in total).
Landlord refuses to pay us any money for the damages. What do you recommend as a next step?
Agents (Knight Frank) are not caring at all.
What is the recourse or action can be taken if the foreign landlord who does not stay in Singapore fails to refund the secuity deposit?
Hi,
My landlord has always been treating me badly. I recently got a repair done under the 30 days defects period. Landlord asked me to incur the initial cost and to reimburse me after that. Now she has refused to reimburse me and claims invoice issued by company is fake. This is direct accusation on my integrity and dignity. I have always paid my rent before time. This accusation is too much and land lord has no grounds to not reimburse me as the repairs were carried out after her consent and agreement. I have the invoice on email from the company and also confirmation that is is invoice cum receipt, but she refuses to accept this.
hi,
land lord is trying to charge us for following
1) paint, we rented the unit with existing painting flaws, granted some paint degradation was due to our use, most of it are pre existing.
landlord want to charge us 600 for half of painting the whole apartment or 600 for spot painting but she claims that the paint used for the apartment was no where to be found as it is not sold anymore
2) shower door hinge, she claims that the clicking sound when the shower door is openned means it is broken and is a saftey issue, we just always thought that it was designed to click upon some angle and was always like that.
3) induction plate hub is moving, she claims it is glued to the hole but it has always moved and there is no trace of any kind of glue.
the also list down some more various defects she wants to have inspected and looked at such as water marks on stairs and stains on marble
may i ask for your opinion if these are fair charges?
hi,
I rented a condo which is 15year old and stayed for two years..i handed over the unit by july1st..the agent of the landlord come up with huge claim even for the damages not made by me..below are the list.
1. Kitchen cabinet was damaged and it was damaged while handed over to me before two and it became more worse after the usage of two years.
2. Sofa got damaged..but i replaced with new but agent telling me small…
3. Since single cot damaged i changed and gave a replacement.
4. Wall got some marks ..because of sofa and they are asking me to paint the whole house..
5. one of the window blinds got damaged and they are asking me to cahnge the whole blind of the whole unit…
the agent want to go to court and iam ahving mental pressure every day… since they are claiming 14K. Please adivse what can i do…
Hi, I have a question regarding about Rental early termination. I am currently renting a room from 1May 2019 to 30Apr 2020, 1 year. As for the early termination clause, the contract states this exact sentence “Both tenant and landlord can give 1month notice for early termination of tenancy after a minimum occupation period of 12months. In this case, the deposit shall be refundable less deductions for damages caused by the Tenant. From your understanding perspective in the legal side, where is the early break clause. It does not make sense when I am renting for a year and ;to break the lease early,I have to rent for a year. Isn’t that not enforceable as it does not count as early break lease and is considered as ‘Ending Lease’. I hope to get back a reply from you. Thank you.
IRAS appointed me the agent of landlord and asking me to pay them instead on monthly rent.
What to do – Ignore it and let landlord settle? why the headache pass to tenant? Im on my last 2 months with a deposit on my contract.
Dear 99.co,
I am a tenant rented a HDB for a year. Recently just renew contract with my landlord and he added a clause that who ever got the Corona virus in his house may need to bear the Professional Cleaning Cost. My question is, does this clause lawful. Anything that i can do?
I need advice, my tenancy contract expires on 15th September, the contract says that only 2 months before contract expiry i should allow the landlord to have other tenants view the apartment for purpose of letting to them, so earliest other tenants should view is the 15th of July. However around 15 July my landlord agent contacted me that they would like to increase my rent by 300 dollars, I said no and that I am okay with renewing at the same existing rental which I’m paying. Then a week after that the landlord agent told me that the landlord has already found and signed with a new tenant and I have to move out by the time my contract expires on 15th September. The new tenant never even came to view the place so I did not even know they were finalising with someone else, furthermore I still had 3 months left for my contract expiry. Has there legally been anything wrong done by the landlord or landlord’s agent? Thank you!
I need advice, my tenancy contract expires on 15th September, the contract says that only 2 months before contract expiry i should allow the landlord to have other tenants view the apartment for purpose of letting to them, so earliest other tenants should view is the 15th of July. However around 15 June my landlord agent contacted me that they would like to increase my rent by 300 dollars, I said no and that I am okay with renewing at the same existing rental which I’m paying. Then a week after that (in June) the landlord agent told me that the landlord has already found and signed with a new tenant and I have to move out by the time my contract expires on 15th September. The new tenant never even came to view the place so I did not even know they were finalising with someone else, furthermore I still had 3 months left for my contract expiry. Has there legally been anything wrong done by the landlord or landlord’s agent? Thank you!
I rented a room with 1-year with no stamp-dutied contract and without agent. I lived for 1.5 years and plan to leave at mid of month. However, the landlord asks me to pay a full month rental , but not prorated. My deposit is deducted.
And there is no clause mentioned about the prorated rental in our contract.
What should I do?
what if the landlord fails to give tenant the room even after collecting deposit and signing TA? does he simply return the deposit money or have to compensate the tenant?
Hi, i rented a room and the agreement was the landlord would pay 120 for the pub and excess have to be share between the two family of tenants. this month the bill is 150 exceeded by 30+ and the landlord says he expects us to pay the full 30+ without asking the other family as the other family has stay with them for many years and have not exceeded the amount before..reason being because we use multi purpose cooker and a coffee machine..the other family actually also uses slow cooker for hours..
what can i do? isnt the agreement suppose to be effective?
I am a tenant and wish to clarify the tenancy clause of minor repairs. The gas water heater of my unit was not working and the technician said it was beyond repair and had to be replaced. Owner says as per the clause I must pay SGD 150 and remaining will pay by them. Is it correct ? Since this is not minor repair but replacement of full equipment.
I think that’s correct. You always have to pay 150 regardless.
Hi,
I have just renewed my contract recently for 1 year with together worth another housemate for 1 year. But I need to moved to Sydney for work for 3 months and had requested early termination with 2 months notice, looking for replacement and forfeit my deposit but landlord demanded to pay $600 each month until end of my contract when there’s no agreement about early termination in my TA. Will I be charge against any laws if I just moved out and forfeit my deposit.
Thanks
Can my landlord increase the rent while my 2 year T. A. is still in place( (1 more Yr remaining) nothing in T. A. mentioned about rental review/increase while contract is in effect.
His reason, increase in bank I interest rate.
I’m willing to add 20 to 30 increase, but he is asking 56-60% increase.
Can he force me to vacate his unit if I don’t agree to the rate increase.
Where can I seek help for this kind of dispute.
No, your landlord won’t be able to increase your rent since it’s not stated in the contract. He also doesn’t have the right to evict you if you don’t agree to the rate increase, unless it’s stated in the contract.
You may want to reach out to the property agent who handled the rental transaction to mediate the dispute. However, do note that they are not obliged to do so as their duties end after signing the tenancy agreement. Alternatively, consider going for mediation https://cmc.mlaw.gov.sg/
Hi.
I rented an apartment for one year and I have to terminate the contract after 3 months by giving one month notice since I’m migrating to other country. The landlord said that they need to forfeit the security deposit. Apart from that the are asking to pay one month rent even I give one month notice. They are saying it should be two months notice, but such is not mentioned in the TA. Can someone advise me here do they have right to request additional one moth pay while the forfeit the security deposit. Thank you in advance.