Who pays for repairs in a rented flat?

Tenant landlord repair duties in CEA's template

CEA publishes checklists for landlords and tenants, plus tenancy agreement templates for HDB flats and private residential property, on its renting or renting out page. Terms can be negotiated before signing, so yours may differ. CEA also notes that a property agent's role ends once the agreement is signed and the flat is handed over to you.

This guide follows CEA's template for HDB flats, so check your own copy. It opens with a Problem-Free Period, filled in at ITEM 17, during which the landlord rectifies defects identified. The template leaves the length blank, so look for the period your agreement sets.

For the wider picture of who looks after what, see who maintains what in an HDB flat.

The minor repair clause

Clause 4.2 of CEA's template applies after the Problem-Free Period. You are responsible for all minor repairs and replacement of parts and other expendable items, including electrical appliances and light bulbs, as long as the cost per item per incident does not exceed the amount filled in at ITEM 10.

Above that amount, the landlord bears the excess, provided the damage is not due to your negligence or wilful default. For such a repair, get the landlord's prior written consent first.

Wear and tear or damage

Under clause 4.3 of CEA's template, you keep the interior, including the sanitary and water apparatus, furniture, doors and windows, fixtures and fittings, in good and tenantable repair at your own cost. If any of them are damaged, lost or broken, you replace them.

Fair wear and tear is different. At the end of the term, you return the flat in similar condition to the start, with authorised alterations, fair wear and tear and acts of God excepted. The end-of-tenancy checklist helps with the handover.

Clause 4.7 of CEA's template says you let the landlord or their workmen in at reasonable times, by prior appointment. Where a repair is needed because of your negligence, the landlord may serve written notice and you start the work within fourteen (14) days.

Aircon, water heater and appliance faults

Under clauses 4.4 and 4.5 of CEA's template, you take up a service contract with a qualified aircon contractor to service the units at least once every three (3) months, at your expense. The landlord is responsible for breakdown, repair and replacement of parts and chemical cleaning (if necessary), but not if the breakdown is due to your negligence or non-maintenance. For regular visits, see aircon servicing.

Clause 4.2 of CEA's template names electrical appliances, so water heater and appliance repairs follow the same split: you pay up to the ITEM 10 amount, and the landlord bears the excess unless your negligence or wilful default caused the damage. If the landlord's contractor finds no fault, or finds you or your visitors caused it, you bear the contractor's charge-out rate (4.8).

Pests and mould are also yours. Under clause 4.6, you keep the flat pest, mosquito and rodent free and clean, and where necessary engage cleaners or exterminators for infestations, mould or mildew build-up at your own expense.

Before you call a contractor

Clause 4.9 of CEA's template says the tenant does not undertake or authorise any repairs without the landlord's prior written consent. Get a written yes before anyone starts work.

In practice:

• Report the fault to your landlord in writing, with photos.
• Ask whether the landlord will send their own contractor.
• Send any quote to your landlord before you accept it.
• Keep receipts, service reports and messages until the tenancy ends.

If you arrange the work, see how to compare home service quotes. The cost depends on the job, and an hourly rate or fixed price affects how easily you can check it against your ITEM 10 amount.

When to stop and call a professional

For any other electrical fault, tell your landlord and leave the work to a Licensed Electrician. Not sure which trade a fault needs? See which service you need. For leaks and chokes, tell your landlord first; if they agree in writing that you arrange it, compare plumbers.

When you write to your landlord, name the clause that covers the fault, so talk of landlord responsibilities in Singapore stays tied to what you both signed.

Questions