Termites & Treatment - Responsibility/Landlord issues

[onetwothree292]

Hey - thank you for any help/thoughts/advice anyone here might have. I have lived in the property for about 2.5 years.

TLDR: termites in property, I have followed the book, professionals have not recommended I move out but Landlord looks to be going down that route. I have no intention of moving out (due to rental market difference vs what I am paying) and will go to SCT if need be. What (if anything) can the landlord do and is there any advice as to how I should conduct myself with the agent/LL going forwards to protect myself?

Situation:
- Termites started to appear in property 1.5 months ago
- Tenant (me) promptly informed agent of pests and got a pest control guy round who said it was termites, put down powder and sealed a set of holes (more on this below)
- Termites have reappeared in the last few days and agent suggesting that landlord wants me to vacate the property so that the 'floor can be fixed'
- No professional (pest control) has reccomended that the floor requires fixing, the remediation is simply powder/foaming.
- I obviously do not want to move out into the current market and have said no. I have extensive proof this is a result of property mis-management by the landlord.

Background
- Apartment is a penthose which has water issues, drain has a bad habit of getting blocked lower down (Building issue - unresolved by Landlord). Landlord's father has put a makeshift device on top of the drain which reduces drainage flow significantly. This causes the top to flood down to the bottom level in heavy rain. The Landlord's father has installed a likely illegal drainage device to drain water from the bottom during heavy rain. The Landlord's father maintains this device weekly.

On above I have a registered plumber on record saying that 1) the makeshift device is stupid and causes downstairs flooding and 2) the bottom drainage pipe is against condo rules at best and probably illegal.


- The bedroom (where termites have manifested) has a pointless door to the outside and water has frequently (over the life of the property (~15 years) flooded the bedroom because this door is not sealed. This caused hardwood floor damage (holes by the door) before I moved in, I have evidence of this as I took an extensive video of flat condition on move in. Termites first appeared from these holes.
- The holes in question are now filled by the Pest Control professional using putty.
- The landlord has refused via the agent to seal the door professionally despite significant flooding once since I moved in (happened 1 year ago). Instead the landlord's unqualified father adjusted the illegal drainage device to increase drainage and put in tape to seal the door. This works mostly but has not sealed the bedroom, leading to prime conditions for termites to breed. When the Pest Control guy came he took the LL's tape off and hundreds of termites were stuck on the tape.

A registered plumber has said the landlord should drill a hole outside the property to drain water. Pest control has advised that landlord should seal the door using silicon instead of tape. All comms have been sent to landlord via agent

- Landlord appears to me to be a typical SG landlord - other incident(s) include the landlord refusing to replace integrated white goods with other integrated goods, instead opting for external white goods which take up floor space.

So here we are, as per above.
- Termites are back
- No professional has reccomended removing the floor
- Agent has said "landlord have mentioned that in order to fix the floor issue tenant would need to vacate the house. would you consider to look for other place? let me know"
- I have no intention to leave my current contract until it expires in 2024+ due to rental price differential, which follows the standard SG property contract template.
- I fully expect a fight for my deposit come the end of the contract and I have been relatively careful to document things since I realised the landlord was problematic.

[Pal]

Thanks for writing this long post explaining your current lease situation.

1. The termite treatment from the one time pest control likely did not totally treat the entire infested area. There may be more areas that need to be treated. I suggest calling the same guys again and work with them closely to check and treat other areas.

Only after you are sure that the termites are totally gone then look into repairing the floors.

2. The flooding and drainage problem is an expensive exercise which is not difficult to solve as long as the Landlord is trying to solve the root cause and not doing patch up work.

What is the illegal device on the drainage? Did you inform Landlord this device is obstructing the water flow?

To me your Landlord is not very keen of solving the above problem for you. It is very tough on the Tenant to find solution and it will be too much costs involved if you are coming out of your pocket.

I suggest giving your Landlord the ultimatum and inform him that if the above are not settled by XX date, then you reserve the right to terminate the lease. If this doesn't help, find another place!

The current market rental rate is on a decline now so I don't see much of a problem to find another replacement property. Why continue to suffer when you are the one paying the rental? Move on! There are many properties in the market.

Hey - thank you for any help/thoughts/advice anyone here might have. I have lived in the property for about 2.5 years.

TLDR: termites in property, I have followed the book, professionals have not recommended I move out but Landlord looks to be going down that route. I have no intention of moving out (due to rental market difference vs what I am paying) and will go to SCT if need be. What (if anything) can the landlord do and is there any advice as to how I should conduct myself with the agent/LL going forwards to protect myself?

Situation:
- Termites started to appear in property 1.5 months ago
- Tenant (me) promptly informed agent of pests and got a pest control guy round who said it was termites, put down powder and sealed a set of holes (more on this below)
- Termites have reappeared in the last few days and agent suggesting that landlord wants me to vacate the property so that the 'floor can be fixed'
- No professional (pest control) has reccomended that the floor requires fixing, the remediation is simply powder/foaming.
- I obviously do not want to move out into the current market and have said no. I have extensive proof this is a result of property mis-management by the landlord.

Background
- Apartment is a penthose which has water issues, drain has a bad habit of getting blocked lower down (Building issue - unresolved by Landlord). Landlord's father has put a makeshift device on top of the drain which reduces drainage flow significantly. This causes the top to flood down to the bottom level in heavy rain. The Landlord's father has installed a likely illegal drainage device to drain water from the bottom during heavy rain. The Landlord's father maintains this device weekly.

On above I have a registered plumber on record saying that 1) the makeshift device is stupid and causes downstairs flooding and 2) the bottom drainage pipe is against condo rules at best and probably illegal.


- The bedroom (where termites have manifested) has a pointless door to the outside and water has frequently (over the life of the property (~15 years) flooded the bedroom because this door is not sealed. This caused hardwood floor damage (holes by the door) before I moved in, I have evidence of this as I took an extensive video of flat condition on move in. Termites first appeared from these holes.
- The holes in question are now filled by the Pest Control professional using putty.
- The landlord has refused via the agent to seal the door professionally despite significant flooding once since I moved in (happened 1 year ago). Instead the landlord's unqualified father adjusted the illegal drainage device to increase drainage and put in tape to seal the door. This works mostly but has not sealed the bedroom, leading to prime conditions for termites to breed. When the Pest Control guy came he took the LL's tape off and hundreds of termites were stuck on the tape.

A registered plumber has said the landlord should drill a hole outside the property to drain water. Pest control has advised that landlord should seal the door using silicon instead of tape. All comms have been sent to landlord via agent

- Landlord appears to me to be a typical SG landlord - other incident(s) include the landlord refusing to replace integrated white goods with other integrated goods, instead opting for external white goods which take up floor space.

So here we are, as per above.
- Termites are back
- No professional has reccomended removing the floor
- Agent has said "landlord have mentioned that in order to fix the floor issue tenant would need to vacate the house. would you consider to look for other place? let me know"
- I have no intention to leave my current contract until it expires in 2024+ due to rental price differential, which follows the standard SG property contract template.
- I fully expect a fight for my deposit come the end of the contract and I have been relatively careful to document things since I realised the landlord was problematic.

[abbby]

I would think if they have given you the option to move on a goodwill, then might be good to start looking around. rents have come down and not so high as earlier in the year, it's better than living in a termite infested environment.

[onetwothree292]

Thank you for your kind replies. My logic behind not wanting to move is that my rent is significantly below what the market is right now, due to signing the contract during COVID.

The landlord has committed to a contract and they should be held to it, me leaving early allows them to charge some other tenant 1k more for the months that I'd be forfeiting, hence why I think they're being petulant/wanting me to get sick of it and move.

My predominant interest is seeing out the contract and retrieving my deposit.

Since making this post the landlord (via the agent) is still refusing to acknowledge the problem and offers only the option that I move out with 2 months notice 'so they can change the floor'. It's important to note no professional has recommended this course of action.

I've shared that this problem is manageable for me with minor nuisance but will cause long term damage to their floor, and it's on the landlord to resolve both the underlying water issues and the termite issues. If they choose not to resolve it, that's their problem.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Thank you for your kind replies. My logic behind not wanting to move is that my rent is significantly below what the market is right now, due to signing the contract during COVID.

The landlord has committed to a contract and they should be held to it, me leaving early allows them to charge some other tenant 1k more for the months that I'd be forfeiting, hence why I think they're being petulant/wanting me to get sick of it and move.

My predominant interest is seeing out the contract and retrieving my deposit.

Since making this post the landlord (via the agent) is still refusing to acknowledge the problem and offers only the option that I move out with 2 months notice 'so they can change the floor'. It's important to note no professional has recommended this course of action.

I've shared that this problem is manageable for me with minor nuisance but will cause long term damage to their floor, and it's on the landlord to resolve both the underlying water issues and the termite issues. If they choose not to resolve it, that's their problem.

Do you have that in writing from a cetified pest control agency? If not, you will be the loser as they will just give a low end pest control company a couple of hundred to state that vacating the premises and repairs are the only solution. There is a strong possibility that your greed/principle will cost you more in the long run. Inconvenience notwithstanding.

[Lisafuller]

I would think if they have given you the option to move on a goodwill, then might be good to start looking around. rents have come down and not so high as earlier in the year, it's better than living in a termite infested environment.

Agree. Personally, I couldn't deal with termites. Bugs are not my thing. I'd get looking immediately.

[Lisafuller]

Thank you for your kind replies. My logic behind not wanting to move is that my rent is significantly below what the market is right now, due to signing the contract during COVID.

The landlord has committed to a contract and they should be held to it, me leaving early allows them to charge some other tenant 1k more for the months that I'd be forfeiting, hence why I think they're being petulant/wanting me to get sick of it and move.

My predominant interest is seeing out the contract and retrieving my deposit.

Since making this post the landlord (via the agent) is still refusing to acknowledge the problem and offers only the option that I move out with 2 months notice 'so they can change the floor'. It's important to note no professional has recommended this course of action.

I've shared that this problem is manageable for me with minor nuisance but will cause long term damage to their floor, and it's on the landlord to resolve both the underlying water issues and the termite issues. If they choose not to resolve it, that's their problem.

That could be the case. Sounds like they are trying to get you to move so that they can charge higher rent to the next tenant.

[Lisafuller]

Thank you for your kind replies. My logic behind not wanting to move is that my rent is significantly below what the market is right now, due to signing the contract during COVID.

The landlord has committed to a contract and they should be held to it, me leaving early allows them to charge some other tenant 1k more for the months that I'd be forfeiting, hence why I think they're being petulant/wanting me to get sick of it and move.

My predominant interest is seeing out the contract and retrieving my deposit.

Since making this post the landlord (via the agent) is still refusing to acknowledge the problem and offers only the option that I move out with 2 months notice 'so they can change the floor'. It's important to note no professional has recommended this course of action.

I've shared that this problem is manageable for me with minor nuisance but will cause long term damage to their floor, and it's on the landlord to resolve both the underlying water issues and the termite issues. If they choose not to resolve it, that's their problem.

Do you have that in writing from a cetified pest control agency? If not, you will be the loser as they will just give a low end pest control company a couple of hundred to state that vacating the premises and repairs are the only solution. There is a strong possibility that your greed/principle will cost you more in the long run. Inconvenience notwithstanding.

Do they normally offer their recommendations in writing? That hasn't been my experience historically.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Quotations? Or request written findings solutions before committing.

[Lisafuller]

Can't imagine them doing that, most of the pest control people I've dealt with/any technicians for that matter have been older chinese men who couldn't speak a lick of english, let alone write. My daughter has had to translate each time.

[sundaymorningstaple]

My former company (last 14 working years before I retired) was the 3rd largest Pest Control company in Singapore (don't know about now as I retired almost 4 years ago). I do know we occasionally gave qualified assessments. But again, we did have a fully degreed Entomologist on our payroll.