Property Stories

I Tried Renting Out My Own Home In Singapore: Here’s Why I Would Never Do It Again

Join our Telegram group for instant notifications
Join Now

Ryan J

A seasoned content strategist with over 17 years in the real estate and financial journalism sectors, Ryan has built a reputation for transforming complex industry jargon into accessible knowledge. With a track record of writing and editing for leading financial platforms and publications, Ryan’s expertise has been recognised across various media outlets. His role as a former content editor for 99.co and a co-host for CNA 938’s Open House programme underscores his commitment to providing valuable insights into the property market.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
11 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Bill Tay
Bill Tay
2 years ago

I thought the standard commission is 1 month rental for a lease of 2 years?

Dom Tan
Dom Tan
2 years ago
Reply to  Bill Tay

Precisely. And you dont have to pay the agent upon renewal, you can always ask to remove that clause from TA.

Jay Lim
Jay Lim
2 years ago
Reply to  Bill Tay

Yes. Common practice for 2 years rental is 1 month for service fees.

Stacked Homes
Admin
2 years ago
Reply to  Bill Tay

He managed to get a higher rental than expected, so the higher comms was negotiated separately

Bill Tay
Bill Tay
2 years ago
Reply to  Stacked Homes

Did not seem right as 2 months rental commission is really overboard! Your article seems to dissuade homeowners from diy renting. DIY renting is not as horrendous as your article made out to be as there are successful stories too.

Stacked Homes
Admin
2 years ago
Reply to  Bill Tay

Hey Bill, the two months were negotiated due to the higher rental the agent got and it was between both parties. Market conditions may also have been different then. The story is told by someone who experienced this quite a while back, so there are elements of DIY renting today that are easier. We’ve also highlighted our tips in one of our articles (https://stackedhomes.com/editorial/a-complete-8-step-guide-to-renting-out-your-property-without-an-agent/). As it’s just an experience from someone, there would naturally be a view held by them. Moreover, it was told from a first-time landlord point of view where many problems faced such as having to deal with low-quality prospects or the actual viewings still persist today. It’s just a good reminder that there are several considerations to make before jumping into it. This is why it was mentioned at the end that if one is to do the DIY route, it’s better to learn from an agent first.

Ultra Shiny Marines
Ultra Shiny Marines
2 years ago
Reply to  Stacked Homes

Am a Landlord and would like to clarify that the commission for the agent is negotiated between the landlord and the agent. Currently it is a landlord’s market and hence the commission is typically 1 month for a 2 year lease, when the market turns it could go up to 2 months for a 2 year lease.

Stacked Homes
Admin
2 years ago

Thanks for sharing!

M B
M B
2 years ago

This is exactly what people say when you try to sell your car directly. But it’s mostly fear mongering in that case.You set yourself up to be lowballed by the car dealer bidding sites.

Anna
Anna
2 years ago

stacked homes have a number of property agents working in their midst too.
which clearly explains why this article is drumming up unnecessary fear to dissuade ppl from renting out their properties on their own.

Stacked Homes
Admin
2 years ago
Reply to  Anna

Hey Anna, we believe in providing stories and sharing information from a diverse set of articles. We’ve done articles on tackling the real estate process on your own too. If we pushed only one narrative, we wouldn’t have shared as much of our insights all these years that serve to better the decision-making by consumers by themselves – something that we felt was lacking in the market before we started our editorial.

On the flip side, this article may have saved several new landlords the potential headaches they did not foresee would occur. After all, it’s easy to jump into the proposition of saving on commissions only to realise later on just how time-consuming it could be. Finally, if we really wanted to push the narrative that you should use an agent, we could’ve found and shared a story where the commissions were less than the 2-months that M has paid, but this is not the case. We choose to share all stories that are shared with us to provide greater perspectives in the market. So we see this article as just one piece of perspective within the complicated real estate industry and we hope that our readers take into consideration everything that we’ve done so far to better the industry for consumers. Hope this clarifies!

Latest Posts

Bloomsbury Residences Pricing Review
Analysis Is Bloomsbury Residences Worth A Look? A Detailed Pricing Review Against One-North Condo Alternatives
April 4, 2025
One Marina Gardens
Buying Is The 937-Unit One Marina Gardens Condo Worth A Look? (Prices Start From $1.16m)
April 3, 2025
5 Affordable Almost New 3 Bedroom Condos Priced Under $1.5m
Units Of The Week 5 Affordable Almost New 3-Bedroom Condos Priced Under $1.5m
April 3, 2025
cpf payments
Buying Why You Should Rethink Using CPF for Your Home Purchase In 2025
April 2, 2025
Screenshot
Property News An Executive Condo Just Sold For $3.05m: Is This An Outlier Or A Sign Of Things To Come?
March 30, 2025
A Bright Minimalist Condo Apartment With A Loft 1
Editors' Pick A Bright Minimalist Condo Apartment With A Loft
March 30, 2025
reduce property price
News Why Rejecting The First Property Offer In Singapore Could Cost You
March 30, 2025
Bloomsbury Residences Model 31
Editors' Pick Bloomsbury Residences Review: Unblocked Views With 2-Bedders From $1.366m In One-North
March 29, 2025
prime plus hdb
Editors' Pick HDB Just Made It Easier For Young Couples To Buy Flats: But Not Everyone Is Happy
March 28, 2025
A Bachelor’s Industrial Inspired 4 Room HDB Home With A Garden Balcony 1
Living In A Bachelor’s Industrial-Inspired 4-Room HDB Home With A Garden Balcony
March 28, 2025
property agent 2023
Selling Can You Really Sell Your Home For Just $2K In Singapore? Here’s When A Fixed-Fee Property Agent May Work
March 27, 2025
5 HDB Flats With Good Unblocked Views Above 1,000 Sqft
Units Of The Week 5 HDB Flats With Good Unblocked Views Above 1,000 Sqft
March 27, 2025
johor bahru causeway
Editors' Pick Looking To Live Near JB? Here Are The Cheapest Condos By The Causeway In Woodlands
March 25, 2025
Best layouts we’ve seen among new launches in Q1 2025
Buying The Best New Launch Condo Layouts We’ve Seen So Far In 2025
March 25, 2025
New vs Resale Two Bedders Why Are Buyers Opting for New Launches in 2025?
Commentary Why Are Homebuyers Choosing Pricier New Launch 2-Bedders Over Resale Options In 2025?
March 24, 2025
How preferences toward kitchen layouts have changed in 2025
Commentary How Condo Kitchen Preferences Have Changed In 2025
March 23, 2025