Read the repair and handover clauses and keep your deposit safe.
Before you sign a tenancy agreement, find two clauses and read them side by side: the one that says who pays for repairs, and the one that says how your deposit comes back. If you already rent, find them in your copy today. A deposit dispute at move-out often depends on what you recorded at move-in, and these two clauses decide what you are arguing about.
Meera's colleague rented a flat in Tampines and moved out last year. She waited six weeks for her deposit, and it came back S$900 short. The landlord listed a stained sofa, a cracked bathroom tile and "general cleaning". She was sure the tile was already cracked when she moved in, but she had no photo. Her agreement said the tenant returns the flat in the condition received, fair wear and tear excepted, so she paid. One photo of one tile would have been enough.
Most tenancy agreements say who pays for repairs during the lease. A common arrangement is the minor repair clause: you pay for small repairs up to a stated amount, and the landlord pays above it. The amount is written in the agreement.
Agreements word this clause differently, and the wording changes how much you pay. The difference can be real money. Take a limit of S$150 (an example figure) and three repairs in one year costing S$80, S$120 and S$400. There are three common versions of the clause:
Version 1: you pay up to the limit on each repair, and the landlord pays the excess. You pay S$80 + S$120 + S$150 = S$350. Version 2: you pay the whole of any repair at or below the limit, and the landlord pays the whole of any repair above it. You pay S$80 + S$120 = S$200, and the landlord pays all of the S$400 repair. Version 3: the limit is a yearly total across all minor repairs. You pay S$150 for the year.
To read your own clause, find the stated amount, then work out which of the three versions the wording describes. If you can't tell, ask for the wording to be made clear before you sign. Also check what counts as a repair and what is excluded. Structural defects and appliances that fail on their own are common exclusions.
Most agreements separate two kinds of change to a flat. Fair wear and tear is the decline that comes from normal use over time: paint fading, carpet thinning where people walk, small marks on walls, a mattress softening. It is normally the landlord's cost, because it happens however careful you are.
Damage is harm beyond normal use: a burn on the countertop, a hole in a wall, a broken door, a stain that was not there before. It is normally your cost, and the landlord can deduct it from your deposit.
The line between the two is not always obvious, and that is where disputes start. Your best defence is evidence of the flat's condition when you arrived.
Make the inventory on or before move-in day, and date it. Go room by room and list every item the landlord provides, such as furniture, appliances, curtains, light fittings and keys, with its condition in a few words. Note every existing mark, crack, stain, chip or fault, however small.
Then photograph everything: a wide shot of each room, close-ups of each item, and close-ups of every defect on your list. Make sure your phone records the date, or put something dated in the shot. Email the inventory and photos to the landlord or agent and ask them to confirm. The email gives you a dated record that they have seen it.
Meera and Ravi moved into a flat in Clementi. On move-in day they spent an hour going through each room and found three defects: a chipped bathroom sink, a stain on one mattress, and a window latch that did not close properly. They photographed all three, along with everything else. That evening they emailed the list to the agent, and the agent replied confirming it.
At move-out, repeat the exercise with the same list and the same angles. You then have two sets of evidence, months or years apart, and any change can be measured against the first set.
Read the handover terms before you sign. Many agreements require you to have the flat professionally cleaned at move-out, and some require receipts. Many also require the air-conditioners to be serviced by a contractor at regular intervals during the lease, with records kept. If your agreement sets a servicing schedule, follow it and keep every receipt. A missing service record is an easy deduction for a landlord to make.
The deposit return clause should state how long after handover the landlord has to return the deposit, and on what basis deductions can be made. If it says nothing about timing, ask for a deadline to be added. A clause that lets the landlord return the deposit "after inspection" with no deadline gives you little to point to if the deposit does not arrive.
On handover day, walk the flat with the landlord or agent using your inventory. Note anything they raise, agree with them what counts as fair wear and tear, and get any agreed deductions in writing before you hand over the keys.
In Ravi and Meera's flat, the bedroom took longest on move-in day. It has built-in wardrobes, a bed frame, a mattress, curtains, two air-conditioners and a ceiling fan. That's a good room to start with when you write your own checklist.
Pick one room and write an inventory checklist for it, with a note on the condition of each item and a list of photos to take on handover day.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).