New Reporter
26-06-23, 11:19
CNA Explains: Renting a black-and-white house in Singapore
Since the start of the year, two black-and-white bungalows in Singapore have been rented for more than S$30,000 per month.
26 Jun 2023
SINGAPORE: Black-and-white houses have been in the spotlight, with two such properties along Ridout Road being rented to ministers.
The rentals of 26 and 31 Ridout Road by Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan respectively have sparked interest in such houses.
Last month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that an independent review of the rentals will be conducted, after both ministers called for it.
The topic will also be addressed during the parliament sitting next week.
There are about 500 black-and-white houses in Singapore. They can be found across Singapore, in neighbourhoods such as Sembawang, Seletar, Tanglin, and Changi.
“These houses were once home to colonial mandarins, magistrates, magnates and towkays (local businessmen) in the early days of Singapore’s development,” wrote former Singapore Land Authority (SLA) chairman Lim Sim Seng in a publication in 2017.
“And within these corridors of power, through periods of triumph and turmoil, history was shaped and made.”
How much does it cost to rent black-and-white houses, and how do you rent them?
WHAT ARE BLACK-AND-WHITE HOUSES?
Black-and-white houses were built between 1903 and 1941, some serving as homes for European colonial and expatriate families, according to Roots.gov.sg, a website by the National Heritage Board (NHB).
They derive their name from the characteristic combination of dark timber beams and whitewashed walls.
The architectural style of these houses reflects the mock-Tudor tastes of the late Victorian era and its cross-pollination with indigenous Malayan features. Some of these houses have high ceilings and stilts for natural ventilation, as well as tiled roofs and deep overhanging eaves.
According to the Roots website, Singapore’s black-and-white chapter concluded abruptly at the outbreak of World War II.
Some of these houses were fortified and turned into defensive positions, and a few were damaged and destroyed during the war. Many of them were taken over by the invading Japanese force and used to house senior commanders. Others were placed under the control of the Kempeitai, the Japanese military police.
To preserve the heritage of these colonial houses, changes to the look and feel of these bungalows are not allowed.
But tenants often need to install additional fittings such as air-conditioning, carpentry works, and upgrade kitchens and toilets.
Many of these black-and-white bungalows are rented with the surrounding land.
Mr Shanmugam said in a written parliamentary reply to NCMP Leong Mun Wai (PSP) in August last year that the SLA managed 262 residential state black-and-white bungalows that exceed 20,000 sq ft in land area.
HOW MUCH IS THE RENT?
Properties managed by SLA are generally available for rental through an open tender. Those managed by agents, mainly residential and commercial, can be rented directly from the agents.
The guide rent is the “reserve rental based on market rates as determined by qualified valuers”, the authority told CNA previously.
In his parliamentary reply in August last year, Mr Shanmugam said that as of Jul 21, 2022, 236 of the 262 residential state black-and-white bungalows were tenanted. The median land size was about 38,000 sq ft and the median rent was about S$13,000 (US$9,700) a month.
These bungalows are typically tenanted on two- or three-year terms. The rental prices are influenced by market conditions, and it is "unwise" to compare them with the rental price of a private good class bungalow in different time periods, said the minister.
According to the State Property Information Online (SPIO) website – the SLA portal that shows state properties available for rent – a house at 2 Seton Close in Orchard was tenanted for S$42,800 per month.
It has an estimated gross floor area of 4,629 sq ft and a land area of 36,705 sq ft.
With seven bedrooms and six bathrooms, the detached house attracted two bids – the other being S$35,000. Bidding closed on Feb 10.
Another black-and-white bungalow at 14 Stevens Road – near Orchard Road – was rented for S$30,823 per month.
The property, which has an estimated gross floor area of 5,376 sq ft and a land area of 27,335 sq ft, attracted seven bids ranging from S$6,525 to the winning bid. The bidding closed on Jan 13.
In Bukit Timah, a black-and-white semi-detached house at 11 Malcolm Road with a land area of about 48,665 sq ft and an estimated gross floor area of about 4,100 sq ft was rented for S$16,188 per month.
There were five bids, with the lowest being S$10,888 when the bidding closed on Jan 20.
“Larger black-and-white bungalows tend to have lower per square feet rental rates than smaller black-and-white bungalows. As of June 2022, the occupancy rates for larger black-and-white bungalows are lower than those for smaller black-and-white bungalows,” Mr Shanmugam said last year.
WHO CAN BID?
According to an SLA form online, an individual applicant’s average monthly income should be at least three times the offered rent, or the applicant must be assessed by SLA to be of “sound financial status”. They will be assessed by SLA based on the information and documents provided with the offer.
Applicants must be 21 and over and must not be debarred by the government from participating in tenders, auctions or bidding exercises launched by the government and statutory boards.
People who are or have been tenants of state properties managed by the SLA or its agents, and who owe the government money, cannot apply.
Prospective tenderers are advised to bid according to their assessment of the rent they are willing and able to pay, SLA said on its website, adding that past tender awards are provided.
WHAT IS THE RENTAL PROCESS?
SLA rents out vacant state lands and buildings through temporary occupation licences and tenancy agreements.
According to the GoBusiness website, temporary occupation licences are generally for short fixed terms and can be renewed on a monthly or yearly basis.
Tenancy agreements are for fixed terms – up to a maximum of three years per term. These are used for those renting black-and-white state residential properties.
Listings of the available properties can be viewed on the SPIO website, and interested buyers can contact the managing agent to schedule a viewing.
If they are interested, they should prepare an application with supporting documents. These include the application form and an application deposit equivalent to the offered rent per month.
The documents should also include a computerised pay slip for the past three months or a copy of the latest tax notice of assessment. They can also submit an original letter from their employer stating their monthly salary.
They should include identification documents, such as a copy of NRIC or employment pass, of the applicant and other occupiers.
The bids are submitted in sealed envelopes and deposited in a tender box at the SLA building at 55 Newton Road.
The winning bidder will receive a letter of acceptance, after which they will have to sign a tenancy agreement.
They will also need to pay a security deposit, which is equivalent to at least three months’ rent. Stamp duties will also need to be paid, and GIRO payments need to be set up for the monthly rent payment.
If the winning bidder fails to do any of the above, the one-month deposit will be forfeited. They cannot transfer their right to rent.
Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposits returned to them.
OTHER REGULATIONS
Applicants for the houses must register the names of all occupiers. Subletting of the property without prior approval is prohibited.
Any addition or alteration work on the premises requires written approval from SLA and the relevant authorities. Tenants should engage professionals to submit plans, drawings, and calculations to obtain the necessary approvals before commencing any such work.
Rentals may be revised after the completion of such alterations.
At the end of the lease, tenants are required at their own expense to hand over the property in a "good state of repair and condition", according to sample tenancy agreements on the SPIO website. Tenants also need to demolish and remove any approved works, including new buildings and structures erected by the tenant, if notified to do so. The tenant has to pay for this.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/black-and-white-state-houses-singapore-rental-prices-cost-bidding-process-3571861
Since the start of the year, two black-and-white bungalows in Singapore have been rented for more than S$30,000 per month.
26 Jun 2023
SINGAPORE: Black-and-white houses have been in the spotlight, with two such properties along Ridout Road being rented to ministers.
The rentals of 26 and 31 Ridout Road by Home Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan respectively have sparked interest in such houses.
Last month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that an independent review of the rentals will be conducted, after both ministers called for it.
The topic will also be addressed during the parliament sitting next week.
There are about 500 black-and-white houses in Singapore. They can be found across Singapore, in neighbourhoods such as Sembawang, Seletar, Tanglin, and Changi.
“These houses were once home to colonial mandarins, magistrates, magnates and towkays (local businessmen) in the early days of Singapore’s development,” wrote former Singapore Land Authority (SLA) chairman Lim Sim Seng in a publication in 2017.
“And within these corridors of power, through periods of triumph and turmoil, history was shaped and made.”
How much does it cost to rent black-and-white houses, and how do you rent them?
WHAT ARE BLACK-AND-WHITE HOUSES?
Black-and-white houses were built between 1903 and 1941, some serving as homes for European colonial and expatriate families, according to Roots.gov.sg, a website by the National Heritage Board (NHB).
They derive their name from the characteristic combination of dark timber beams and whitewashed walls.
The architectural style of these houses reflects the mock-Tudor tastes of the late Victorian era and its cross-pollination with indigenous Malayan features. Some of these houses have high ceilings and stilts for natural ventilation, as well as tiled roofs and deep overhanging eaves.
According to the Roots website, Singapore’s black-and-white chapter concluded abruptly at the outbreak of World War II.
Some of these houses were fortified and turned into defensive positions, and a few were damaged and destroyed during the war. Many of them were taken over by the invading Japanese force and used to house senior commanders. Others were placed under the control of the Kempeitai, the Japanese military police.
To preserve the heritage of these colonial houses, changes to the look and feel of these bungalows are not allowed.
But tenants often need to install additional fittings such as air-conditioning, carpentry works, and upgrade kitchens and toilets.
Many of these black-and-white bungalows are rented with the surrounding land.
Mr Shanmugam said in a written parliamentary reply to NCMP Leong Mun Wai (PSP) in August last year that the SLA managed 262 residential state black-and-white bungalows that exceed 20,000 sq ft in land area.
HOW MUCH IS THE RENT?
Properties managed by SLA are generally available for rental through an open tender. Those managed by agents, mainly residential and commercial, can be rented directly from the agents.
The guide rent is the “reserve rental based on market rates as determined by qualified valuers”, the authority told CNA previously.
In his parliamentary reply in August last year, Mr Shanmugam said that as of Jul 21, 2022, 236 of the 262 residential state black-and-white bungalows were tenanted. The median land size was about 38,000 sq ft and the median rent was about S$13,000 (US$9,700) a month.
These bungalows are typically tenanted on two- or three-year terms. The rental prices are influenced by market conditions, and it is "unwise" to compare them with the rental price of a private good class bungalow in different time periods, said the minister.
According to the State Property Information Online (SPIO) website – the SLA portal that shows state properties available for rent – a house at 2 Seton Close in Orchard was tenanted for S$42,800 per month.
It has an estimated gross floor area of 4,629 sq ft and a land area of 36,705 sq ft.
With seven bedrooms and six bathrooms, the detached house attracted two bids – the other being S$35,000. Bidding closed on Feb 10.
Another black-and-white bungalow at 14 Stevens Road – near Orchard Road – was rented for S$30,823 per month.
The property, which has an estimated gross floor area of 5,376 sq ft and a land area of 27,335 sq ft, attracted seven bids ranging from S$6,525 to the winning bid. The bidding closed on Jan 13.
In Bukit Timah, a black-and-white semi-detached house at 11 Malcolm Road with a land area of about 48,665 sq ft and an estimated gross floor area of about 4,100 sq ft was rented for S$16,188 per month.
There were five bids, with the lowest being S$10,888 when the bidding closed on Jan 20.
“Larger black-and-white bungalows tend to have lower per square feet rental rates than smaller black-and-white bungalows. As of June 2022, the occupancy rates for larger black-and-white bungalows are lower than those for smaller black-and-white bungalows,” Mr Shanmugam said last year.
WHO CAN BID?
According to an SLA form online, an individual applicant’s average monthly income should be at least three times the offered rent, or the applicant must be assessed by SLA to be of “sound financial status”. They will be assessed by SLA based on the information and documents provided with the offer.
Applicants must be 21 and over and must not be debarred by the government from participating in tenders, auctions or bidding exercises launched by the government and statutory boards.
People who are or have been tenants of state properties managed by the SLA or its agents, and who owe the government money, cannot apply.
Prospective tenderers are advised to bid according to their assessment of the rent they are willing and able to pay, SLA said on its website, adding that past tender awards are provided.
WHAT IS THE RENTAL PROCESS?
SLA rents out vacant state lands and buildings through temporary occupation licences and tenancy agreements.
According to the GoBusiness website, temporary occupation licences are generally for short fixed terms and can be renewed on a monthly or yearly basis.
Tenancy agreements are for fixed terms – up to a maximum of three years per term. These are used for those renting black-and-white state residential properties.
Listings of the available properties can be viewed on the SPIO website, and interested buyers can contact the managing agent to schedule a viewing.
If they are interested, they should prepare an application with supporting documents. These include the application form and an application deposit equivalent to the offered rent per month.
The documents should also include a computerised pay slip for the past three months or a copy of the latest tax notice of assessment. They can also submit an original letter from their employer stating their monthly salary.
They should include identification documents, such as a copy of NRIC or employment pass, of the applicant and other occupiers.
The bids are submitted in sealed envelopes and deposited in a tender box at the SLA building at 55 Newton Road.
The winning bidder will receive a letter of acceptance, after which they will have to sign a tenancy agreement.
They will also need to pay a security deposit, which is equivalent to at least three months’ rent. Stamp duties will also need to be paid, and GIRO payments need to be set up for the monthly rent payment.
If the winning bidder fails to do any of the above, the one-month deposit will be forfeited. They cannot transfer their right to rent.
Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposits returned to them.
OTHER REGULATIONS
Applicants for the houses must register the names of all occupiers. Subletting of the property without prior approval is prohibited.
Any addition or alteration work on the premises requires written approval from SLA and the relevant authorities. Tenants should engage professionals to submit plans, drawings, and calculations to obtain the necessary approvals before commencing any such work.
Rentals may be revised after the completion of such alterations.
At the end of the lease, tenants are required at their own expense to hand over the property in a "good state of repair and condition", according to sample tenancy agreements on the SPIO website. Tenants also need to demolish and remove any approved works, including new buildings and structures erected by the tenant, if notified to do so. The tenant has to pay for this.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/black-and-white-state-houses-singapore-rental-prices-cost-bidding-process-3571861