Home Rental industry The S’pore couple thought they could rent accommodation at The Sail for S $ 2,000 / month for 2 years, but the owner-agent brings in another tenant – Mothership.SG

The S’pore couple thought they could rent accommodation at The Sail for S $ 2,000 / month for 2 years, but the owner-agent brings in another tenant – Mothership.SG

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In May 2021, a Singapore couple paid a lump sum of S $ 48,000 to rent a room in a two-bedroom apartment at The Sail @ Marina Bay for two years.

The good business quickly turned sour.

This was after they realized they would have to deal with regular visits from the real estate agent, who is the owner, and potential tenants to see the other vacant room in the unit.

Foreigners brought in without informing tenants

Talk to Lianhe Wanbao, a 27-year-old woman named Wang, who works in the tech industry, said the real estate agent quoted her and her boyfriend as more than S $ 3,000 a month in rent. , which can be reduced to S $ 2,000 if they could pay for two years. rent in advance.

She adds that the landlord also told her that the other vacant room would not be rented.

Instead, the room will be vacant for the owner when he returns to Singapore from overseas.

Believing that she would have the whole apartment for herself and her partner, the couple agreed to pay two years’ rent, which amounted to S $ 48,000, and moved into the unit in early July.

The owner wants to rent another room

In October, the owner started getting people to look at the other bedroom, leaving the couple stunned.

Wang revealed that sometimes she and her partner weren’t informed about the date in advance, and the real estate agent would walk into the unit with people to view the room, which made the couple feel like their lives were gone. privacy had been violated.

The couple had repeatedly approached the agent to discuss the matter, causing a rift between the two parties, Wanbao reported.

Renters told to put kitchen items in the room

In addition to getting people to see the room, the “user rights” of the kitchen have become a matter of contention.

Wang said that before moving in, the agent told him that the kitchen area would be theirs.

However, during the occupation, the couple discovered that the kitchen cabinets were cluttered.

They were reprimanded when they tried to clean them because they had only rented “half the kitchen” and can only clean half of the clutter.

Photo by Lianhe Wanbao.

The couple also shared that the agent even asked them to clean their cutlery and ingredients in the kitchen before taking people to visit the room, claiming this was to make the kitchen look clean and tidy. .

He even threatened to throw the items away if they didn’t do as they were told, Wang said.

This left the couple with no choice but to put the items away in their bedroom kitchen and only take them out when needed.

The real estate agent is also the owner

The couple also said Wanbao the agent only revealed he was the landlord after signing the lease, but the agent claimed the ad indicated he was a vested party.

Wang said that when he met the agent to sign the lease, he told the couple to transfer the rent payment directly to him, as the landlord is his relative.

She found it bizarre and questioned the officer about it, which is when he admitted he was the owner of the property and showed the title deed as proof.

Wang filed a complaint with the Council of Real Estate Agencies (CEA) and the real estate agent’s company.

The CEA confirmed receipt of the complaint, Wanbao reported.

Responding to Wang’s allegations, the agent, who wishes to remain anonymous, said he declared the conflict of interest in the rental advertisement and also declared his identity as the owner before signing. of the lease.

He said the S $ 2 million condominium unit had a monthly mortgage of nearly S $ 6,000 and was already renting it at a loss, so he had to look for another tenant.

He added that he never said he wouldn’t rent the other room.

According to the CEA, owner real estate agents must declare any conflict of interest in advance to potential buyers or tenants.

It is not a common practice to collect two years’ rent in advance

In response to WanbaoSaid Lim Yong Hock, key general manager of PropNex, said accepting two years ‘rent up front is not a common practice and Lim does not recommend tenants pay years’ rent up front. .

Lim added that paying two years’ rent would not benefit the tenant at all, as the landlord has the final say on everything.

According to Lim, if the tenant wants to break the lease prematurely, the landlord may not pay the rent.

He added that if the landlord goes bankrupt or the unit is repossessed, it can be very difficult for the tenant to recover their rent amount without legal intervention.

He found that landlords who are willing to rent for a lower price and collect years of rent tend to have a motive.

Tenants need to be mentally prepared as the deal usually comes with hidden terms and higher risks, he warned.

He also advised tenants to fully understand the content of the rental agreement before signing, especially when they encounter “good deals”.

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The best images from The Sail at Marina Bay Facebook page and Wikipedia.

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