Agents requesting one month rent for 12 month lease.

[dark-defender]

I am hunting to rent again and I want a 12 month lease this time. I am finding that many agents tell me they will expect one month rent from me in fee for finding me an apartment with 12 month lease. I can't for the life of me get them to tell me why. Is this legal? Is this the norm? Can anyone explain why they should get money from me just because I don't want a two year lease? Are n't they supposed to get the cash from the landlord?

Any advice appreciated.

[Yes]

They should charge a lower comission. Anyway, getting a 12 month rental is a good move now, next year rentals will be much lower.

[cmdsea]

Try and avoid agents getting their sticky fingers in the pie at all if you can.

First option is to trawl through the classifeds and look for owners advertising their property themselves and deal direct.

Second choice is to rent direct from a large corporate landlord with their own letting department Far East etc. Usually a smoother and easier check in and check out process and complete transparency on rental deposits as well...

[well mostly]

Until said corporation decides to add gst to your contract mid way through as a far east subsidiary just did.

[Noway]

You definitely should not be paying any commission whatsoever, that is the landlords responsibility!!

[go direct]

Much easier and the ll will be handling the commission.  You have about as much access to the available units as they do. These agents are sharks!

[not no way]

"You definitely should not be paying any commission whatsoever, that is the landlords responsibility!! "

Not that simple.  I believe the guidelines were over 2.5k LL pays, below and tenant does.

I also believe (though could be wrong) this guideline was removed though still largely market practice.  BM may be able to confirm.

OP doesn't state montly rental anyway.

[not no way]

Previous post notwithstanding, market practice was 1 month for a 2yr lease, 2 weeks for 1yr.

Agent does same amount of work I guess (maybe more as 12m leases harder to come by) but while I think "no way" a bit quick to jump in it still looks like agent is pushing their luck.

[Lost cause]

I will be advertising my own studio unit for rent this Saturday in the classifieds but as usual I know 99% of the calls will be from agents. I really do not understand why 99% of tenants leave it completely to their agts to look for apts for them.

As a LL I would save on commission  payable to the agt if I find a direct tenant and some of the savinsgs can be passed over to the tenant in terms of a better discount but as always I am expecting to get my tenant through an agent once again.

[dark-defender]

I don't want to use an agent at all but let me ask this...

Are all the units available advertised in the paper? I mean what exactly does the agent do? Do they have another more complete database to query for listed properties or do they just buy the paper same as you and cut out the ad's then re-advertise them online or something?

If the ST is really all there is then I am happy to ring up and make an appointment to see the place myself.

It seems like non LL agents also advertise properties though and here is the problem. Let's say one of these buying agents got my number and he/she rings me and says they have a perfect place for me but they want one month rent up front for finders fee or whatever. How do I say "feck you" and find that same place if it is not listed in ST? It's not as easy as you say to avoid these agents as there is no easy database to search for available properties that are listed by the ll. It's such a backwards old skool system that I have to sit and troll through a newspaper to try to find these properties. I wish someone like rent in singapore . com would get off their arses like domain in Oz and make a db that effectively replaces the stupid paper system in place.

[to dd]

Why not follow your own advice and set it up then instead of whining?

[MrHttp]

If you setup a database like that you will have zillion of agents there as well. In order for such a database to work it needs to be official sanctioned by the gov. and then only allowing LL's and tenants to use it - not likely to happen, too much $$$ involved.

[to dd]

Mr http, I don't disagree.

Point was more you have another Kubes clone whining that stuff isn't the same as Oz.  Tough sh+t.  Don't like it then fix it yourself, shut up or s+d off.

Stuff here frustrates me as well, so what, see what is good, deal with the bad.  Don't like the balance then leave.  I bet OP goes on about whinging pons as well.

[One Month]

One month's commission is the norm for a one year or a two year lease. For a three year lease, it is two months. Tenant pays commission for rents of 2.5k or lower. Landlord pays for rents higher than 2.5k.

Look, OP, you have a choice. You can choose to pay no commission and find your own flipping place, sort out your own flipping lease, do your own flipping inventory, whatever. Why don't you quit whinging and whining here, bugger off and get on with it? No, you are here to have a rant, to proclaim your position, grind your axe, blah, blah, blah. I hope that every agent whose path you cross gives you a wide berth.

[chaos theory]

One month's commission is the norm for a one year or a two year lease. For a three year lease, it is two months. Tenant pays commission for rents of 2.5k or lower. Landlord pays for rents higher than 2.5k.

Look, OP, you have a choice. You can choose to pay no commission and find your own flipping place, sort out your own flipping lease, do your own flipping inventory, whatever. Why don't you quit whinging and whining here, bugger off and get on with it? No, you are here to have a rant, to proclaim your position, grind your axe, blah, blah, blah. I hope that every agent whose path you cross gives you a wide berth.

This is totally out of the question. The cost of sale is always born by the producer/ seller in the value chain.

This concept that a renter should pay an agent for finding a place is typical of an old world Singapore economoy and it is absurd. Just tell the agent to F&$K off and get his commission from the LL.

I mean, for example when was the last time you sent 10 cents to Coca Cola because you bought $1 can of coke and you liked their advert so much? It is just a stupid concept.

This is a buyers market. Conduct yourself appropriately and enforce your buying power.