Singapore Expats

Can I still get back my security deposit?

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Kasyx
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Can I still get back my security deposit?

Post by Kasyx » Tue, 13 Oct 2015 7:14 pm

Hello,

I really need some advice on my current situation. The rental contract that I sign is a basic contract with the master tenant and it requires me to pay a penalty should I terminate the contract before the lease term ends. The duration of the contract is only 4 months as I would only want to rent a longer period if the environment is conducive with friendly tenants.

The problem arises that due to the nature of my work that I work late from morning till night and as I am renting out a very small room temporarily, I had been washing my clothes and drying my clothes within my room on a daily basis due to limited space to hang and dry. The reason is because on weekdays, it is being occupied by my master tenant or other co-tenants. On weekends, it is occupied as well and it may also be due to them hanging their bed sheets and they will hang the entire day. Although they said they will try to accommodate some space, but they had not make an effort and the space available for me to dry are at varying times during the day.

The current place is a hdb flat where there are 3 rooms with mine being the utility room with only 1 bathroom. With that being said, I had been tolerant towards my co-tenants by implementing my own solutions for the issues I faced. Several examples such as below:
1) The utility room is beside the toilet and every morning it has the foul urine stench wafting in my room, I made no complain about it and in fact I purchased an air freshener to solve it
2) As a new tenant joining existing tenants, the master tenant had change the rules from paying through online to paying by cash before the start of the new month. The existing tenants (couple) were surprised of such changes especially so when I just joined and it would seem that the master tenant is misdirecting that I am not a good paymaster when I am. I am suspecting that the couple wasn't a good paymaster but because the couple is the master tenant's sister friends. She made no attempts to talk directly but to use me as the basis to change such rules.

I did not voice it up as all these issues that I am encountering is what I would expect if I were to live with other expats and the least we could all do is to be tolerant to each other. However, lately, the master tenant had vented her anger that I am disrupting her sleep by washing late at night because when the washing machine is done, it will emit a sound which she said had caused her sleepless nights. If I have been tolerant towards my co-tenants, I would expect my tenants to do the same.

I had proposed that we can agree to early termination after voicing the issues I faced yet she disallow me to do so and informed me that I can burn the deposit and leave. Living in such environment is something that I do not want to continue as I have enough on my plate due to my work.

As such, I am in a dilemma that I do not want to pay the penalty of the security deposit when the reason was because of such inconsiderate tenants and non-conducive environment to live in. Are there no way out that I do not incur the penalty although I seem to be breaching the written contract?

It seems both of us are unhappy with each other yet she do not want to allow early termination because I am actually to my discovery, paying an above market value price of that particular room by 150%. I know this is my mistake but I would have thought that living with expats, we would be able to understand each other more in comparison to staying with owners.

Am I suppose to incur the costs of moving out or paying the penalty? Are there no way out for me due to such condition/environment?

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x9200
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Re: Can I still get back my security deposit?

Post by x9200 » Tue, 13 Oct 2015 7:32 pm

It is illegal to rent anything out in Singapore for the duration shorter than 6 months. You may want to use this argument in your negotiations.

Kasyx
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Re: Can I still get back my security deposit?

Post by Kasyx » Tue, 13 Oct 2015 7:44 pm

Ohhh, that is such a relief. I do hope I don't have to go down that road with those girls.

I really appreciate your help a lot!

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