Unless you have living under a rock, you would have heard the announcement by the Singapore government that most workplaces will be shut down and dining in will not be allowed at food establishments from Tuesday (April 7 2020) for a month.
This is part of a set of “circuit breaker” measures to stem the spread of Covid-19 in the Singapore community.
Businesses that are not offering essential services or in key economic sectors have to implement telecommuting fully or stop work altogether. An estimated 75 per cent of workers will either work from home or stop working for the duration of the measures until May 4.
In a Facebook post, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the rise in local transmitted cases is one reason for the stricter measures.
With all these measures in place, how will it affect the Singapore real estate industry?
For your information, estate agency work is not categorised as one of the essential services, and the real estate agency industry must play its part to reduce the spread of
COVID-19.
Estate agents (EAs) and real estate salespersons (RESs) should co-operate and minimize movements and interactions in public and private places, and stay home unless necessary for essential purposes.
This means that all EAs and RESs should suspend their work that requires physical interactions from 7 April 2020 to 4 May 2020 (inclusive) and to adopt digital or online tools for their estate agency work, wherever possible.
If you are a property owner currently in a the midst of selling your house, please note that all on-site, physical property transaction activities should be postponed until after 4 May 2020.
These include physical viewing of properties and face-to-face marketing activities.
However, if you have scheduled appointments or matters that cannot be delayed due to special circumstances or regulatory requirements, such as the requirement for wet ink signatures for completion of property transactions, your real estate agent should not accompany you based on the latest MOH’s advisory on safe distancing measures.
For example, the Housing & Development Board (HDB) has limited the attendees of its appointments for the completion of HDB resale flat transactions to only flat sellers and buyers as they are the parties who need to sign the documents.
During this period, all Estate agents (EAs) and real estate salespersons (RESs) are strongly encouraged to adopt information technology (IT) tools in place of physical activities and face-to-face interaction with clients, to conduct property transaction activities virtually.
How about on-going property transactions?
If there are property transactions where the tenancy agreement, the option to purchase, or sale and purchase agreement have been signed prior to 7 Apr 2020 and the transaction is yet to be completed, your real estate agent should still assist you to finish these transactions where it may not be possible to delay such transactions. Please note that they should still practice safe distancing measures and reduce in-person contact when doing so.
It is also important to note that HDB will not register resale flat applications and schedule new appointments for resale completion for this period.
For those that are still unsure as to what can be or cannot be done, here is a list of frequently asked questions (faqs):
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. Can onsite property viewings be conducted if the seller and tenants are willing to do so?
The aim of the elevated set of measures is to reduce much more significantly movements and interactions in public and private places.
Hence, you should defer onsite viewings in order to minimise further spread of COVID-19.
2. If I am in urgent need of buying, selling, or renting a home, can I or my real estate agent proceed to arrange for viewings if the other party permits?
The aim of the elevated set of measures is to reduce much more significantly movements and interactions in public and private places.
All physical, in-person viewings should be deferred until after 4 May 2020 or such time that the measures have been removed.
3. If I am in urgent need of renting a home, can I or my real estate agent proceed to arrange for the signing of the tenancy agreement if the other party permits?
For rental transaction, your real estate agent should facilitate digital signing of documents where possible, and may facilitate the meeting virtually or digitally.
If you have to sign the tenancy agreement with another party that requires a wet ink signature to complete the transaction, your real estate agent should neither meet nor accompany you for this activity.
4. Can my real estate agent assist me with the handover and takeover of properties for rental transactions? Can I complete sale and purchase transactions where the Option to Purchase or Sale and Purchase agreement were signed before 7 Apr 2020?
Physical, in-person handovers/takeovers should be deferred until after 4 May 2020 where possible.
However, for property transactions where the Option to Purchase or Sale and Purchase agreement were signed prior to 7 Apr 2020 and yet to be completed, and you have to and can attend a handover/takeover of a property, your real estate agent should not accompany you for this activity.
If there are special circumstances where your real estate agent have to participate in these physical, in-person activities (e.g. where you are unable to attend personally), your real estate agent must apply safe distancing measures such as minimising physical interactions, maintaining a distance of at least one metre apart, and wearing a mask.
5. Can I go sign papers and make payment for the completion of properties at lawyers’ offices?
You should check with the conveyancing lawyer on whether you are required to sign the documents for completion of the property transaction at the lawyer’s office.
If you are required to be at the lawyer’s office to sign the documents, your real estate agent should not accompany you.
6. Can my real estate agent still help me lodge documents and titles with the Land Titles Registry?
Due to the COVID-19 situation, the Singapore Land Authority will temporarily close its counters, including both lodgement and collection counters for the Land Titles Registry.
The submission of hard copy documents, manual lodgements as well as the collection of documents and titles will be suspended for the time being.
Electronic lodgement of instruments will continue to be available during selected hours.
For more details, please visit SLA’s website www.sla.gov.sg.
7. Will the Housing and Development Board (HDB) still go ahead with the completion and key collections? Can I still attend the completion appointment with my real estate agent?
If flat sellers and buyers have an existing appointment with HDB to complete the transaction of their resale flat, the appointment will proceed as scheduled.
However, in view of the tighter measures to minimise further spread of COVID-19, HDB will limit entry into the HDB Atrium to only the flat seller(s) and buyer(s) as they are the parties who need to sign the documents.
For resale applications on hand and yet to be registered (i.e. yet to have a completion appointment), HDB will not register the applications and schedule completion appointments.Resale flat buyers and sellers can continue to submit new applications online via the HDB Resale Portal.
However, HDB will not register the applications and schedule completion appointments.
For queries, please visit HDB InfoWEB at www.hdb.gov.sg or email HDB at hdbresale@mailbox.hdb.gov.sg.
8. Can development launches still go ahead, e.g. by appointment only?
Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has issued an advisory to all developers with a sale licence to close their show galleries with effect from 7 April 2020 until 4 May 2020 (inclusive).
Developers are strictly not allowed to conduct any viewings and marketing activities in their show galleries during this period.
Developers can still host their launches on web portals and conduct marketing and sales using digital means.
For queries on the advisory for licensed developers, please email URA at ura_coh_registry@ura.gov.sg.
9. Can my real estate agent still meet me to sign legal documents?
If your real estate agent is not the signatory to the legal documents, he/she should not be meeting you.
If your real estate agent is a signatory, please apply safe distancing measures such as minimising physical interactions, maintaining a distance of at least one metre apart, and wearing a mask.
10. Can my real estate agent attend to contractors accessing the properties?
Any work that are non-essential and non-urgent in nature should be deferred until after 4 May 2020.
If there is urgent work (e.g. life-threatening danger or severe damage to property), you or your real estate agent should apply safe distancing measures such as minimising physical interactions, maintaining a distance of at least one metre apart, and wearing a mask.
11. Can valuers still carry out the valuation work for the banks and myself?
You will have to refer to valuers if such work can be carried out at the property in view of the elevated set of measures.
HDB has advised that its appointed valuers would be asking flat sellers (or their RESs) for the photographs of the resale flat for valuation, if possible, instead of visiting the flats.
In conclusion…
While these measures may be disruptive and require adjustments to real estate activities, let’s continue to cooperate with the authorities to ensure our own safety and that of everyone in Singapore during this challenging period.
That being said, we at Let’s Talk Property will be conducting business as usual without the physical meet-ups & viewings.
This means that we will still be contactable via social media platforms as well as WhatsApp.
Meet-ups can also be facilitated via Video Conferencing platforms such as Zoom, etc.
Wondering if it’s the right time to buy, sell, or wait it out?
These decisions can be tough, and there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer.
But don’t worry, that’s where we come in!
At Let’s Talk Property, we are here to provide clarity to you and guide you step-by-step in your real estate journey!
Whether you’re a first-time buyer or a seasoned investor, we hope to partner with you to create a clear plan that’s tailored to your unique needs and provide objective guidance to help you make the best real estate decision.
So, if you’re looking to buy, sell, or just want to chat about your real estate options, we’re here for you!
With our extensive on-the-ground experience, you can trust us to provide a top-notch real estate experience that’s both informative and stress-free.
Do contact us for a sharing session!
Speak With UsYours Truly,
Let’s Talk Property
Matthew @ 9007 9035 / Dillon @ 9389 1992
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