Singapore Expats

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 3:21 am

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Hard to believe the LL's story. Imagine the agent contacting the tenant one year before the lease expiration and the tenant didn't mention at that point that it was still one year to go. Likely the LL got a better offer after you signed the TA.
The options are probably those:
1) You could rent something more expensive and later sue the LL for the difference. It could be more expensive because you are time pressed and your bargaining power is affected by the action of the LL.
2) You can make the LL realize it would cost him more than what he may benefit from his action (p.1).
3) Ask for some compensation for the breach and walk away.
1 and 3 are true even if it was really a genuine mistake. Obviously in this case you may not get the flat.

BTW, for p.1 remember to pay the stamping fee at some point if not paid already. It should be paid within 14 days after signing the TA. You can also pay later (in principle you could be fined but I don't think it is likely), but TA with stamp duty not paid makes the TA not admissible to the court.

How long ago did you view the unit/sign the agreement (vs. a few weeks until move in from here)? In addition to the "better offer" scenario listed above, it is also possible that the tenant's extension option period had not expired yet (if you viewed it a while back). They could have exercised that either upon not finding anything else and/or the landlord coming back with a reasonable "market rate."

Even if true, it would still be a mistake by the other side.

x9200 wrote:

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 3:21 am

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Hard to believe the LL's story. Imagine the agent contacting the tenant one year before the lease expiration and the tenant didn't mention at that point that it was still one year to go. Likely the LL got a better offer after you signed the TA.
The options are probably those:
1) You could rent something more expensive and later sue the LL for the difference. It could be more expensive because you are time pressed and your bargaining power is affected by the action of the LL.
2) You can make the LL realize it would cost him more than what he may benefit from his action (p.1).
3) Ask for some compensation for the breach and walk away.
1 and 3 are true even if it was really a genuine mistake. Obviously in this case you may not get the flat.

BTW, for p.1 remember to pay the stamping fee at some point if not paid already. It should be paid within 14 days after signing the TA. You can also pay later (in principle you could be fined but I don't think it is likely), but TA with stamp duty not paid makes the TA not admissible to the court.

I had already signed the TA and paid the stamping fee weeks ago. I'm guessing I'll have to go to SCT to get some compensation if they do not agree?


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x9200 wrote:

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 3:21 am

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Hard to believe the LL's story. Imagine the agent contacting the tenant one year before the lease expiration and the tenant didn't mention at that point that it was still one year to go. Likely the LL got a better offer after you signed the TA.
The options are probably those:
1) You could rent something more expensive and later sue the LL for the difference. It could be more expensive because you are time pressed and your bargaining power is affected by the action of the LL.
2) You can make the LL realize it would cost him more than what he may benefit from his action (p.1).
3) Ask for some compensation for the breach and walk away.
1 and 3 are true even if it was really a genuine mistake. Obviously in this case you may not get the flat.

BTW, for p.1 remember to pay the stamping fee at some point if not paid already. It should be paid within 14 days after signing the TA. You can also pay later (in principle you could be fined but I don't think it is likely), but TA with stamp duty not paid makes the TA not admissible to the court.

x9200 wrote:

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 3:21 am

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Hard to believe the LL's story. Imagine the agent contacting the tenant one year before the lease expiration and the tenant didn't mention at that point that it was still one year to go. Likely the LL got a better offer after you signed the TA.
The options are probably those:
1) You could rent something more expensive and later sue the LL for the difference. It could be more expensive because you are time pressed and your bargaining power is affected by the action of the LL.
2) You can make the LL realize it would cost him more than what he may benefit from his action (p.1).
3) Ask for some compensation for the breach and walk away.
1 and 3 are true even if it was really a genuine mistake. Obviously in this case you may not get the flat.

BTW, for p.1 remember to pay the stamping fee at some point if not paid already. It should be paid within 14 days after signing the TA. You can also pay later (in principle you could be fined but I don't think it is likely), but TA with stamp duty not paid makes the TA not admissible to the court.

I had already signed the TA and paid the stamping fee weeks ago. I'm guessing I'll have to go to SCT to get some compensation if they do not agree?


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NYY1 wrote:How long ago did you view the unit/sign the agreement (vs. a few weeks until move in from here)? In addition to the "better offer" scenario listed above, it is also possible that the tenant's extension option period had not expired yet (if you viewed it a while back). They could have exercised that either upon not finding anything else and/or the landlord coming back with a reasonable "market rate."

Even if true, it would still be a mistake by the other side.

So they sent me a copy of the current tenants lease which is a 2 year lease starting Jan 2022. So it's either a major fkup by a bunch of clowns or they have sent me a doctored lease agreement.


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Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 11:02 am

I had already signed the TA and paid the stamping fee weeks ago. I'm guessing I'll have to go to SCT to get some compensation if they do not agree?

I expect in SCT you need to prove damages so this would be only for the option 1 I mentioned (more expensive lease because of the LL's breach). Probably in a regular court you could get some money regardless but just to get it rolling you would need to pay an arm and half of your liver - unlikely worth going this way.

By the way, as this is at this moment so called anticipatory breach you may actually not accept it and wait till the move in date. Then the damages would be higher (e.g. temporary accommodation). I am not saying you should do this but it may help you to negotiate the compensation. But you should be also aware that even if you are the innocent party you should try to minimize the damage. So it's a bit complicated.

If I were the LL I would hire an agent to find a replacement flat for you and if the agent finds something reasonable then the ball is in your court, meaning you either accept it or may need to prove it is for some reason not as good as the one you agreed on in TA.

Now, I am not a lawyer, so you may consider reconfirming with one.

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 11:05 am

NYY1 wrote:How long ago did you view the unit/sign the agreement (vs. a few weeks until move in from here)? In addition to the "better offer" scenario listed above, it is also possible that the tenant's extension option period had not expired yet (if you viewed it a while back). They could have exercised that either upon not finding anything else and/or the landlord coming back with a reasonable "market rate."

Even if true, it would still be a mistake by the other side.

So they sent me a copy of the current tenants lease which is a 2 year lease starting Jan 2022. So it's either a major fkup by a bunch of clowns or they have sent me a doctored lease agreement.


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Does the contract match any of the reported transactions from that time? Or do they have the stamp receipt?

Either way, I guess just try to a) get the problem solved (i.e. find a place to live) and b) get your stamp money back. Anything else may be as much hassle as it is worth (unfortunately).

NYY1 wrote:

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 11:05 am

NYY1 wrote:How long ago did you view the unit/sign the agreement (vs. a few weeks until move in from here)? In addition to the "better offer" scenario listed above, it is also possible that the tenant's extension option period had not expired yet (if you viewed it a while back). They could have exercised that either upon not finding anything else and/or the landlord coming back with a reasonable "market rate."

Even if true, it would still be a mistake by the other side.

So they sent me a copy of the current tenants lease which is a 2 year lease starting Jan 2022. So it's either a major fkup by a bunch of clowns or they have sent me a doctored lease agreement.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Does the contract match any of the reported transactions from that time? Or do they have the stamp receipt?

Either way, I guess just try to a) get the problem solved (i.e. find a place to live) and b) get your stamp money back. Anything else may be as much hassle as it is worth (unfortunately).

Here’s where it gets muddy.. the current tenant is a foreign embassy so apparently they are exempt from paying stamping fees so it is not listed in URA data.

I had a look at the history for transactions with same rental price and I found one around two years ago (around Jan 2021) so I thought maybe that was the real rental agreement and they just doctored the one they sent me by changing the year of the lease one year forward. I told them this and they said that that was only a one year lease extension and the latest lease was signed in Jan 2022 and will not be recorded due to the stamping fee exemption.

This really is an incredible story though if everything is true.


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Friedliver wrote: ↑

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 11:58 pm

Here’s where it gets muddy.. the current tenant is a foreign embassy so apparently they are exempt from paying stamping fees so it is not listed in URA data.

I had a look at the history for transactions with same rental price and I found one around two years ago (around Jan 2021) so I thought maybe that was the real rental agreement and they just doctored the one they sent me by changing the year of the lease one year forward. I told them this and they said that that was only a one year lease extension and the latest lease was signed in Jan 2022 and will not be recorded due to the stamping fee exemption.

This really is an incredible story though if everything is true.


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OK, seems like the next thing you are going to us is that the tenant's name is Keyser Söze .

Anyways, hope you can get a solution quickly. I'm going to exit stage left at this point...

Good luck!

Crazy.

Friedliver wrote: ↑

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 3:21 am

Hi all, wishing all a happy CNY.

Hoping for some advice if anyone has had a similar experience.

What are my options if a landlord is in breach of contract and unable to fulfill the tenancy agreement due to a mistake on their end and sheer incompetence where they signed a new TA with me but have an existing active TA that does not expire for another year?

I don't know how this happen, or even if it is true, but apparently the owner, the owner's agent, and the current tenant who let us in to view the apartment did not not realize that there was another year left on the lease.

I'm now stuck a few weeks before the planned move in date with no where to move to and a nightmare rush to find a new unit to rent for my young family.

Really appreciate any advice given. Thanks

Have you considered getting a Serviced Apartment in the interim?

This is really insane, didn't know this level of oversight was possible.