Singapore Expats

Am still house hunting but was wondering if there are any web sites or places where expats may post their wanting to break lease?

Reason I ask I've seen many empty houses but will be seeing 2 that still have tenants wanting to break lease, surely there must be more than 2 out there?

Hi..i'm thinking to break lease. But i'm staying in apt condo.
Compass Height-sengkang.

Very convy: mrt and bus station just next door. Plus compass point mall just in one building.

interested?

ya...why are you looking specifically pple who wanna break lease?

isnt an empty hse better for you..you can move in straight away!

Well I have found a place so this thread is irrelevant but we were in a segment of the market that was strange, demand was still high (not new expats, but remaining ones whose leases were due and could move into a better price for quality place) and people kept out bidding us, so I thought I"d look at a market segment where someone may want to break lease (as we found a few places where employers had cut allowances or moving staff back), the availability of those homes were not on the official market yet.

My realtor said that most leases in Singapore were for 2 years. With the current GFC the market is changing and some people need to break their leases.
Im going next week for my first familiarisation visit. Im only looking for a one year lease.
The realtor said that this may be a good option for me as I can be flexible when I start - around June July
Im looking for 2 to 3 bedrooms and am openminded about what sort of a property
Thanks
Tony

DarrenAng wrote: I'm not clear as to why people would want to break their lease.

No more money?, would be a pretty good reason.

When I read threads like this, my sympathy for tenants evaporates. It's not right to break a lease unless you've lost your job or been posted to another country, and most leases have a diplomatic clause that allows for this. If tenants start breaking leases just to save a bit of money, then they have no right to complain about landlords not returning the deposit. Both are reneging on a gentleman's agreement. Tenants deserve equally bad press as landlords if this practice is common.

(QRM, good to see you around! Hope all goes well.)

she was looking for some-one whose rent allowance had been cut so that she could take over the lease. LL gets the same money - i don't see the big deal - the problem would be finding some-one who this has happened to ( rental allowance cut). I haven't heard of this happening at all.

I did see a few places that people who had their rental allowance cut or even had to leave before their first year was up. They were nice but the landlord did not accept our bid one 2 occassions.

Wind In My Hair wrote:
(QRM, good to see you around! Hope all goes well.)

WIMH, Thank you and under the circumstances things are going well, yep its good to be back home

Wind In My Hair wrote:When I read threads like this, my sympathy for tenants evaporates. It's not right to break a lease unless you've lost your job or been posted to another country, and most leases have a diplomatic clause that allows for this. If tenants start breaking leases just to save a bit of money, then they have no right to complain about landlords not returning the deposit. Both are reneging on a gentleman's agreement. Tenants deserve equally bad press as landlords if this practice is common.

(QRM, good to see you around! Hope all goes well.)

Unfortunately, some LL's don't allow diplomatic clauses. Mine refused to include one.

At least if someone is trying to break lease, they're actually trying to recover the rental money for the LL. (The way I always understood this was that the current tenant may need to "top up" the difference if the new rent is lower...) Advertising costs etc also need to be fully borne by the tenant. I can't see how this is a bad thing for the LL at all...

I know more than one person who has been laid off and the LL has just refused to allow them out, some demand (on top of the deposit) that the rest of the contract be paid in full - which they really have no hope of getting from someone who has no job... I think we are going to see a sharp spike in people not paying rent and then disappearing in the night because of this behaviour. Asking two months rent as a deposit is insane - that is a a huge amount of money - too often seen as a gift.

Wind In My Hair wrote:When I read threads like this, my sympathy for tenants evaporates. It's not right to break a lease unless you've lost your job or been posted to another country, and most leases have a diplomatic clause that allows for this. If tenants start breaking leases just to save a bit of money, then they have no right to complain about landlords not returning the deposit. Both are reneging on a gentleman's agreement. Tenants deserve equally bad press as landlords if this practice is common.

k1w1 wrote: At least if someone is trying to break lease, they're actually trying to recover the rental money for the LL. (The way I always understood this was that the current tenant may need to "top up" the difference if the new rent is lower...) Advertising costs etc also need to be fully borne by the tenant. I can't see how this is a bad thing for the LL at all...

I agree with K1w1 - most people are not trying to "screw" the landlord by breaking their lease. They are merely reacting to circumstances. In a place where your contract is for 2 years - this is quite a commitment. What if you get married? Do you live in separate accommodation until the leases are up? It happened to me when my tenants received their PR to the country they wanted to move to. Life changes happen.

It also gives people the opportunity to move somewhere for the short-term. I know a couple of people who had a place to move to that was only ready 3/4 months after their lease was up and the current LL was not willing to extend for that period. It is a bit long to be staying with friends. What else do you do? Serviced Apartments are expensive. In this instance both the new tenant and the old tenant are happy and the LL is not negatively affected.

PS WIMH what do you think our mutual friend did when he lost his job? Fortunately in his instance the lease was in the name of the company so it wasn't for his personal expense. Last I heard, his ex-LL was advertising the property for $300pm less than what he paid.

carteki wrote:

Wind In My Hair wrote:When I read threads like this, my sympathy for tenants evaporates. It's not right to break a lease unless you've lost your job or been posted to another country, and most leases have a diplomatic clause that allows for this. If tenants start breaking leases just to save a bit of money, then they have no right to complain about landlords not returning the deposit. Both are reneging on a gentleman's agreement. Tenants deserve equally bad press as landlords if this practice is common.

PS WIMH what do you think our mutual friend did when he lost his job? Fortunately in his instance the lease was in the name of the company so it wasn't for his personal expense. Last I heard, his ex-LL was advertising the property for $300pm less than what he paid.

Kim, I agree that there are valid reasons for ending a lease and I said so - losing a job or having to leave for another country. I think that covers our mutual friend's case.

All I'm saying is that putting a signature to a 2-year lease is an agreement that should be honoured by both parties. If I'm not comfortable with the lease period or the lack of a diplomatic clause then I would negotiate or walk away. But if I sign an agreement feeling free to change my mind about the terms agreed upon, then I would have no right to complain if the LL did likewise. An agreement is either binding on both parties or on neither.

Have you actually known that to happen WIMH (tenant broke lease just to save "a little" money)? Genuine question coz I haven't on my 10 yrs + here, but I've had 50-50 occasions on getting my rental deposit back.

I think there needs to be a body to regulate this. Too many crook landlords spending the deposit. it should be in an escrow of some kind, which can only be withdrawn with common agreement from both side!