Renting Apartment in Singapore

Five years back, I got my Singapore visa processed by One Visa Singapore and came here. I like to share something here. To find an apartment for rent was not easy for me. I’m speaking about my situation half a decade back. My friends in my home country who are looking to come to Singapore keep asking me about the current situation of renting apartments in Singapore. For all them, I would say the situation has become only tougher and not easier. But, to help those people in the renting process, I have some tips to share. Read them below here…

Be wary about Security Deposits:

Just like other places, in Singapore too, you’ll have to pay down a security deposit. More often, one month’s rent will be asked as a deposit and this will be returned to you at the closing of the agreement. But, if you happened to damage or destroy the apartment in any way, the owner will take compensation from this.

Remember, in some cases, the property owner will offer you some weird terms. For instance, he will agree with a low rent for higher deposits or higher rent for no deposit. In these cases, I would recommend you to run off from him because these could be the warning signs of a bootstrapped owner.

Learn about the Expat Clause:

Remember, for expat tenants, the agreement must come with an expat clause. This would allow the individual to cancel the agreement without losing your deposit amount. In case, your employer is canceling your contract earlier than agreed upon, you will not lose any amount from the deposit. But, I am seeing some cases where the property owners are not mentioning the expat clause in the writing. If you happen to find the expat clause is missing in the document, better don’t sign it.

Get to know about the Market Rates:

The better way to know whether you’re going to pay the appropriate rent for an apartment, you must learn about the market rates. You need not be a statistician to do this. Just before going to sign the agreement, look at the surrounding areas. The rents must fall within 10% of the costs claimed by your owner. In this, I would also advise you to look at the similar-looking properties in that area.

Most often, the first time expatriates confuse between the flat types. For instance, the DBSS flat will be tagged a higher rate when compared to the ordinary flats. Get to know about these before signing the lease with the homeowner.

Verify the Inventory List:

This is one area wherein most of the expats are found to be losing money. A list will be given by the owner, which will have the details about the items provided by him. Be sure to check each and every item and ensure the items in the list are matching with the real ones. For expensive items like sofas, artworks, and so on, take photos and verify whether it’s the same item described in the list. Remember, if you fail to do this, you may have to face the theft claims from your landlord at the closure of your lease.

So, this is all about renting an apartment in Singapore. The process will not be very difficult if you remember and pursue the above things carefully.