Moving to Singapore? Ask our regular expats in Singapore questions on relocation and their experience here. Ask about banking, employment pass, insurance, visa, work permit, citizenship or immigration issues.
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benjiiiiii
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by benjiiiiii » Sun, 14 Sep 2014 11:26 pm
beppi wrote:benjiiiiii wrote:Hi all
I've just been told that if my rent is under SGD$4k I will be expected to pay the agents fee (a full month of rent). Is there any truth to this as a regular, generally accepted practice?
Many thanks
This, with the threshold at S$2500 or so, used to be common practice until the new Estate Agent Act came into force about three years ago, which made this illegal (but many agents still try their luck - they have a well-deserved reputation for dishonesty!).
Now, by law, the agent fee is paid by the one who engaged the agent - and in most cases this is the landlord who asks them to find a tenant. Only if you specifically engage an agent to search for a place for you, do you have to pay. Be careful: Most agents will try to trick you into such an arrangement, e.g. by posting ads of
property that doesn't even exist (now probably the majority of ads you see) and when you call them saying "This one is already gone, but should I look out for similar places for you?"
so where is the distinction? If I message an agent on ., am I only allowed to enquire about that specific property before they consider themselves engaged? If I ask them to show me further properties they have, is that engaging them?
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beppi
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by beppi » Mon, 15 Sep 2014 4:47 pm
benjiiiiii wrote:so where is the distinction? If I message an agent on ., am I only allowed to enquire about that specific
property before they consider themselves engaged? If I ask them to show me further properties they have, is that engaging them?
By right, an agent should only advertise a property when he's engaged by the owner for that purpose (and thus the owner pays his fee). But this is not enforced or generally followed.
If the agent shows you other properties he was engaged for finding tenants, you don't pay. But if he starts searching for other properties for you, you pay.
There should be a written agreement detailing the fees and duties at the start of any engagement, but that, too, is neither enforced nor followed.
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Ramekins
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by Ramekins » Wed, 24 Sep 2014 6:37 am
99.999% actual fact about agents/realtors:
1) if you look for an apartment directly with the agents who post the AD,
they are Landlord agents:
- You do not have to pay them a single fee, they should be paid by the Landlord.
**downside -they don't act in your interest but you save a fee.
2) if the landord's agent ended up showing you other units, they become Your(tenant)agent:
-You have to pay half the mth's rental if you lease 1 year with any unit you chose
-You don't have to pay if you lease for 2 years, provided your rent is $2800-$3300 and above.
Different agents work differently as there is no black and white to it,
so enquire first with written communication before you proceed to avoid embarrassment or unexpected fees involved.
Hope you have rented one by now.
Feel free to ask me for more info.
cheers
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zzm9980
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by zzm9980 » Wed, 24 Sep 2014 8:05 am
Ramekins wrote:
-You don't have to pay if you lease for 2 years, provided your rent is $2800-$3300 and above.
Pet peave here. Why 2800-3300 "and above"? Why not 2800-90,000 and above? Or 2800-2807 and above?
Or better: Just say "2800 and above".
Even better: As you yourself allude to, there is no black and white value here, it's all subject to negotiation with your agent.
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sundaymorningstaple
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by sundaymorningstaple » Wed, 24 Sep 2014 8:29 am
It's because she's a wishy-washy slimeball agent herself. After one of the other mods "edited" her spiel early this morning, this 'contact me' post earned her a locked account by me.
moderator
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers
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benjiiiiii
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by benjiiiiii » Fri, 10 Oct 2014 6:49 pm
Hey all!
Thought you'd be interested in an update

I settled on a loft in Tanjong Pagar which I move into tomorrow, very excited
Thank you for all the help!
Ben
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sundaymorningstaple
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by sundaymorningstaple » Fri, 10 Oct 2014 7:42 pm
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers
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nakatago
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by nakatago » Sat, 11 Oct 2014 5:26 am
benjiiiiii wrote:Hey all!
Thought you'd be interested in an update

I settled on a loft in Tanjong Pagar which I move into tomorrow, very excited
Thank you for all the help!
Ben
House party! Who can bring the guac?
"A quokka is what would happen if there was an anime about kangaroos."
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Akimbo
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by Akimbo » Mon, 13 Oct 2014 9:09 am
Awesome!!!

My thread...
The Weekenders If you need my e-mail address, it's in the first post of the thread.
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