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I found an ad on a HDB flat for rental. I smsed the agent to express my interest to view the flat the next day. After a few hours, he still did not reply, so I smsed him again. After a few mins, I received an sms from his 'partner' to postpone the viewing to a later time. I managed to view the unit , but only the 'partner' was present (he said he was helping the agent as he was busy). During the viewing, he mentioned agent fee. A couple of days later, I arranged with another agent to view another unit that was advertised. On that day, he called to tell me he couldn't make it cos his mother was in the hospital. He said his 'partner' would call me to make arrangement for the viewing. I came to the conclusion that many agents are adopting this unethical practice. They conspire that one will get the landlord's commission and the other, the tenant's commission. It's not fair to tenants but they may not secure the unit if they refuse to pay.
Is this unprofessional practice even acceptable?
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4 Answers

Dear tenant,

Unfortunately, I have heard of similar feedback from tenants and buyers alike. Not encouraging you to do this but in terms of meeting your objective of securing a unit you like, if you really like that unit you have seen but holding back due to the applicable commission to you as a tenant, perhaps what you can try is to make an offer with the payable commissions into considerations and have that agent work hard for you to achieve a good price. Ultimately, it will also work in your favour at the end of the day when there is someone who can in general look out for you and be held responsible for anything that crops up for the tenancy. Not sure if this suggestion is helpful to you.

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Regards,

Geryl LIM
Associate Marketing Director
Global Alliance Property (L3010679B)
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Hi Sir/Mdm,

You can tell the salesperson upfront that you will not be paying the commission and checked with the salesperson whether he or she will be collecting the commission from the landlord. In this way, there will not be any miscommunications or misunderstanding along the way.

Regards,
Nick Tan
(M) +65 9644 4854 
B.Eng(Chemical)(Hons)(NUS)
Cert-in-REA
(E) nick96444854@gmail.com
(W) www.nick-tan.com

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1
Hi there,

Such acts are truly unethical, and of course unacceptable if your instincts were right. Before I joined this industry, I experienced something similar as you and the more I hear, the more I would like to make a difference - I ensure all my clients' interest are protected and I would never give in to such unethical practice.

I hope you do find value in engaging a good agent to help you with the sourcing, securing and negotiating the best possible price for you. Making your home-finding experience a better one.

All the best!

Regards,
Sophia Ng
ERA Realty Network Pte Ltd
Mobile: 9225 4321 
E-mail: sophiangsy@era.com.sg
Website: www.sophia-ng.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/realtysophia Read More
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Did the 'partner' in the second case also ask for commission?

Could the first case be an isolated one?

Many agents work in pairs, even in teams. To help each other out, as WE cant be at several places at the same time and very often, if working alone, we had to turn down appointments that coincide with what that has been made earlier. Read More
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