Disclaimer: I am a Singapore Licensed Realtor, speaking from the most neutral standpoint i can possibly take :/The quickest way will probably be to find one to help you out. Not necessarily the best.If you have the time (many hours) and know what you are doing, You can actually find a place yourself by starting to explore the real estate listings on websites likeSingapore Property, Property for Sale/Rent, Singapore Real Estate Singapore Property for Sale / Rent - Condo, HDB, Apartment, Room & Houses | 99.coConnect HDB Owners Direct to Searchers for Free - if youu2019re looking for HDB flats & donu2019t want any agents.All of portals have many listings by agents / owners where you can look at the pictures and descriptions, sometimes even videos, for you to see whether they fit your requirements.List down a few that you like, and you can arrange for viewings with the landlords / owners to see the place to decide whether you want it to rent / purchase it.Familiarize yourself with the process of purchasing / renting a place in Singapore, for a realistic timeline to work with.For Purchases, it usually takes about 2 Weeks (to exercise option) + 10 Weeks.(a) Please confirm the Ownership of the sellerEligibility to sellFor a private property mortgage to a bank, if the seller is selling the property below his buying price, and is unable to pay the shortfall on his bank loan, the bank may not allow the transaction to go through.BankruptcyIf the seller of the property is a bankrupt, the seller need the written consent of the Official Assignee to sell the property. The Official Assignee may request for all money, including option money to deposit to be paid to them.Eligibility to buyPurchaser should make sure of his eligibility to buy a property according to the Residential Property Act and HDBu2019s eligibility rules. There also restrictions on foreigners to buy properties in Singapore.(b) Do take note of these as wellIllegal renovations / AlterationsAsk the seller whether renovations or alterations is being done legally. Get the understanding from the seller should the relevant authorities require seller to change any of the illegal renovations or alterations, the seller should bear the costs.Ethnic IntegrationFor HDB purchase, purchaser need to satisfy the ethnic integration policy. If the number of families of the purchaseru2019s ethnic group exceeds the prescribed quota, the purchaser will not be allowed to buy a unit in that area unless the seller is also of the same ethnic group.*Do note, this is just a rough outline*(c) Purchase Process:After a price has been agreed between you and the owner, you can then proceed on to complete the sale by making payments and transferring the Certificate of Title (CT) from the seller to the purchaser. The CT is issued by the Singapore Land Authority. (i) Option of PurchaseBefore you can proceed on to apply for the Certificate of Title, you will need to enter into a valid and binding real estate contract (drafted by lawyer), in the form of Option to Purchase (OTP).At this stage, you will need to put up an option fee which is 1% of the agreed sale price. Upon this payment, you will have the right to buy the property at the agreed price within the option period (usually 14 days for private, 21 days for HDB).At this stage, you can still opt not to proceed with the deal at the Option stage losing only the option fee (the 1%).(ii) Entering Sale and Purchase Agreement.You will still need to put up another 9% of the agreed sale price known as Option Exercise Fee to accept the OTP which will then form a valid sale contract, known as Sale and Purchase Agreement.The two payments (Option fee and Option exercise fee) then form the down payment, which is 10% of the agreed sale price. The balance of the payment must be settled on or before legal completion date.This will be done after your lawyer has performed all due diligence checks including Certificate of Title and bankruptcy searches.(iii) Inspection the Certificate of Title.The Certificate of Title (CT) is the only legal document that proves property ownership. Hence, after you have accepted the Option to Purchase (OTP), the CT will be handed over to your lawyer for inspection.Usually, your lawyer will hold on the CT until legal completion where the old CT is surrender to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) for the purpose of reissuing a new CT to the new owner.(iv) Legal completionUpon approval by CPF board for the release of youru2019s CPF funds for the purchase, the lawyer will proceed on to prepare (a) completion statements and (b) draft conveyance (transfer document).(a) Completion statementsThe statements will be issued to the mortgagee bank for you to finalise the amount of down payment required and o determine the balance of the purchase price which the you must pay after deducting the deposit.Usually, it will be sent to you a few days before the legal completion date.(b) Transfer DocumentOn the legal completion date, youu2019ll settle the outstanding balance of the purchase price. The selleru2019s lawyer will then hands over the house key and the Transfer Document to the purchaseru2019s lawyer.The Transfer Document will record the evidence of the transfer of ownership of the property from the transferor (the seller) to the transferee (the purchaser) u00a0(c) Issuing of Certificate of Title (CT)The purchaseru2019s lawyer will apply for the Certificate of Title (CT) from the Singapore Land Authority on the same day and will safeguard it until the CT is handed over the mortgagee bank.For Renting - In Singapore, the minimum period to rent a pricate apartnent is 3 months, while HDB (public housing) is 6 months & usually landlords prefer periods of 1 year to 2 years.The timeline may take you about 2 weeks - 8 weeks, depending on you and your landlordu2019s term. There are cases where you could immediately move in if both parties agree.If you like the place, you can negotiate with the landlord directly & once you have confirmed the price & details such as utilities/maintenance requirements etc.. you can discuss the terms of the Tenancy agreement.Tenancy AgreementIn essence, a Tenancy agreement (TA) is simply a more detailed, and legally binding version of the letter of intent (LOI). Typically, the landlord will prepare the Tenancy Agreement and fill out the details in accordance with the mutually agreed upon terms.Security DepositProcedurally, the Tenancy Agreement always goes together with a security deposit, and when signing the Tenancy Agreement, a security deposit will have to be handed over to the landlord.It is common practice for the security deposit to be worth about one monthu2019s rent for a one year lease and double for a two year lease.The purpose of the security deposit serves as a safeguard for the landlord, in case the property will suffer damages due to negligence of the tenant.Secondly, if the lease term is terminated prematurely (and no clause was included in the Tenancy Agreement conditioning this), then the security deposit can be withheld to cover for the landlordu2019s inconvenience.There are a lot of clauses & stamp duties you might want to be aware of.You can find out more from here: 99.co's guides: All about stamp duty for rental units in SingaporeIf you have anymore questions, feel free to ask me :)Alternatively, you could simply drop me a message that you'd like to engage my services & Iu2019ll do the rest.Itu2019ll probably be easier & a more effective use of your precious time that way.Hope this helps!
