Are property agents obliged to reveal the history of the flat to potential buyers?
Three women died in a bloody rampage – their blood splattered and bodies strewn in a five-room flat in Yishun.
Question: Would you buy this flat if it were for sale?
The women, all Chinese nationals, were stabbed to death. Another was found dead at the foot of the block.
The scene was grisly, the crime the talk of the town and the subject of a court case.
Chances are, few would knowingly take over the flat if it were on the market.
But what if you did not know? Would ignorance be bliss? Or would you rather know?
Tragedies such as the Yishun murders raise the poser: Are property agents obliged to reveal the history of the flat to potential buyers?
One house-hunter bought a Geylang HDB flat with a particularly gruesome past – blissfully ignorant of its history.
It was where Chinese national Liu Hong Mei, 22, was chopped into seven parts. The parts were then dumped in the Kallang and Singapore rivers in 2005.
The murderer, former factory supervisor Leong Siew Chor, was hanged for his crime last November.
The new owner of the four-room flat, who didn’t want to be named, only found out about the flat’s history from this reporter.
When The New Paper visited the flat last month, the owner was not at home.
Her sister-in-law, Ms Vidya Vedam, 28, who had moved in with the family about three months ago, was shocked to learn that she’s been living in a flat that was the scene of a murder.
Said Ms Vedam: ‘What? A murder was committed here? When did it happen? What happened? This is the first time I am hearing this.’
The owner had bought the flat for about $330,000 earlier this year. That was about the market rate for such a flat.
After regaining her composure, Ms Vedam thought about how she has often felt uneasy about being in that flat.
‘I have not seen anything, but now that you’ve mentioned it, I’ve sensed some presence before.
‘I do prayers and all that. So I’m not scared,’ she added after a pause.
The flat was brightly-lit and sparsely furnished.
There was a picture of Indian spiritual leader Sai Baba on one of the tables.
The owner said she met the flat’s then owner, a woman, at the HDB office where they did the paperwork.
The owner said: ‘When I first viewed the place, I didn’t meet her (past owner). The flat was empty.
‘And the owner claimed through the housing agent that she wasn’t willing to sell the place, and wanted more cash for it. I paid the market price for this place.
‘I am happy living here and I don’t want to know about the past.’
She said her agent didn’t tell her about the flat’s history.
Are agents duty-bound to tell buyers about a property’s history in such cases?
HSR Property Group’s executive director Mr Eric Cheng, who trains over 8,500 agents, maintained that it is the fiduciary duty of the agent to tell the buyer about the history of the property, even if it has a sordid past. He said: ‘If the agent knows about the property’s history, it is his responsibility to tell the buyer. I always advise my agents to tell. It doesn’t bode well for the agent both professionally and ethically to hide the secret.
‘Anyway, how long can the secret hold? The neighbours will talk about it soon enough.’
He recalled selling a three-room flat in which a family had committed suicide three years ago.
It took him about four months to sell it, longer than the average two months-plus it takes to make a sale.
Said Mr Cheng: ‘I received five to six offers for the place but all of them rejected it after I told them about its history. Some even got quite upset and even asked why I didn’t tell them earlier.
‘I usually tell the prospective buyers when we visit the unit because there may be other factors that may be favourable to the place aside from the history.’
He finally sold the unit for $175,000 to a single Christian man who didn’t mind its history.
He said he didn’t receive any commission from this sale for pro bono reasons.
PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail, however, said agents are not obliged to reveal the history of the property. But if the buyer specifically asks the question, the agents have to tell if they know about it.
He said: ‘The buyer can take this agent to task if the agent lies. The seller’s agent usually won’t volunteer this information because you’re representing the seller so how will you be able to sell the place?
‘The agent isn’t looking after his (the seller’s) interest and it isn’t the requirement of the agent.
‘But buyers can ask the agents to ask if any mishaps have happened in the property. Buyers should also do their own checks.’
Talk to neighbours
How can buyers check? Ask the agent about the flat’s history, talk to neighbours or do online searches about the place.
Mr Cheng advised: ‘When you walk into the unit, check out for the tell-tale signs. Has the property been empty for years? Is there any furniture inside? Why is there a fresh coat of paint?
‘If you have any doubts, don’t be afraid to ask your agent questions. After all, you’re going to live there for at least five years.’
For bargain hunters, prices of properties with notorious history are usually cheaper than those in the same area.
Said Mr Cheng: ‘There will be some impact on the value because only a small group of buyers who are open-minded will buy these properties. And these buyers will also take this chance to depress the price.’
Given time, however, the stigma attached to such properties will dissipate.
For the new owner, putting the property back into the market in the future doesn’t necessarily mean a hit on his selling price.
Mr Cheng explained: ‘People have short memories. They may forget about the incident, especially after so many years.’
HOMES HAUNTED BY HIDEOUS HISTORIES
FOUND DEAD ON BED
WHERE: Blk 110, Rivervale Walk
PAST: The decomposed body of Malaysian Angel Tan, 28, was found lying face up on her bed in a room in March this year.
She had rented the room from an elderly Singaporean couple who own this five-room flat. The owners of the flat had discovered the body.
The case has been classified as unnatural death, and the police are looking for the woman’s boyfriend to assist in investigations, since neighbours had seen her entering or leaving the flat with a well-dressed young man.
PRESENT: The landlord and his wife, said to be in their 60s, had lived in the flat for about nine years.
The couple have not been seen around the place soon after the shocking find, said neighbours, according to a Straits Times report in April. But when The New Paper visited the flat last week, the landlord was inside watching TV.
When approached, the owner waved this reporter away and said ‘Don’t disturb’ repeatedly in Hokkien.
STIGMA FROM STABBING
WHERE: Blk 94, Henderson Road
PAST: Chinese national Guo Hui Long, 28, was stabbed repeatedly in this rented flat earlier this month. Police have charged Luo Faming, 35, with the murder. Luo allegedly set fire to his workplace and attacked his female supervisor as well.
PRESENT: The four-room flat has been left empty since the murder. It is owned by a resident who lives next door. The owner’s daughter, who declined to be named, said they haven’t decided whether to rent it out, or live in it.
The family bought the unit for over $300,000 about two years ago and have been renting it out until the murder. She said: ‘We may move in but we’re still apprehensive (because of the murder). Anyone would be. The place has been left empty since the murder and the police investigations.’
She said that there may be a stigma attached to the place because of the murder. It would be difficult to hide the fact from potential tenants, she said. ‘Everyone here knows about the murder, It’s such a big case. It won’t be so easy to rent out.’
ABANDONED FOR EIGHT YEARS
WHERE: Semi-detached house at Waringin Walk, off New Upper Changi Road
PAST: Polytechnic student Pamela Yiau, 19, died of Ecstasy poisoning in this house in February 2000.
She was drinking alcohol with her friend, Mr Daryl Tan, then 23, at his Waringin Walk home when she told him she felt like throwing up. She was foaming at the mouth and gasping. An ambulance was called, but it was too late. After nearly a year of investigations, police couldn’t conclude whether foul play was involved but a post-mortem found she died of Ecstasy poisoning.
PRESENT: This house was in a decrepit state when The New Paper visited last Friday, suggesting that the house has not been occupied for a long time.
One neighbour, who only wanted to be known as Mr Teo, said the family moved out after the death and returned to the house to only retrieve their mail or sweep the front porch. He said: ‘I’m not sure why they left in such a hurry. Maybe they’re ‘pantang’ (superstitious in Malay).’
Source : New Paper – 30 Sep 2008
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