In Yishun, a new saga has unfolded, this time at Block 506B on Yishun Avenue 4. As reported by Shin Min Daily News, a tenant, who has chosen to remain anonymous, recently narrated his distressing experience after responding to a rental advertisement he found on Facebook.
On the 16 July, the individual moved into the unit, hopeful and somewhat reassured by the presence of another tenant who had already settled in.
However, his initial optimism was quickly shattered, plunging him into a daily whirlpool of disputes and confrontations with the landlord.
A Tenant’s Nightmare Unfolds
The initial peace and tranquility were fleeting.
The tenant recounted that every morning, precisely at 6am, the Yishun landlord would pound on their doors, hurling accusations of them sullying various parts of the house. It was only later that he stumbled upon online forums where he realized that this landlord had previously been blacklisted.
Caught in a relentless cycle of daily disputes, the tenant found himself at the receiving end of constant criticism and fault-finding by the landlord, who even demanded that he vacate the premises by the end of July.
Adding fuel to the fire, the landlord permitted two more tenants to move in before he had a chance to pack his belongings.
But the ordeal escalated further.
The female landlord allegedly intensified the dispute by reaching out to the tenant’s workplace, insisting on his termination. This wasn’t an isolated incident; other former tenants narrated similar tales of harassment, where the landlord would solicit their employment details, only to later use this information to stir trouble at their workplaces.
Another tenant, a 21-year-old named Mr Yang, recounted his brief yet unpleasant stay at the unit. He detailed a bizarre list of conditions imposed by the landlord:
- Do not lock the door when sleeping at night or changing clothes
- Try not to stay at home on rest days
- Use a plastic strap to tie the shower head as it cannot be moved
- When showering, only a quarter of the floor can be wet
- Turn the key once; do not make any sound
- Do not close the small window in the toilet
- Do not close the room window and curtains
- Do not use plug to charge your phone at night
- Do not dabao food home
But that wasn’t the worse.
Landlord Brandished a Knife Over $550 Deposit Dispute With Tenant
The situation reached a terrifying climax when a dispute over the S$550 deposit spiraled out of control, resembling a scene straight from a Channel 8 drama series, albeit without the censored dialogue and the very standard Mandarin.
In an alarming turn of events, the tenant’s relatives flew in from Indonesia to confront the female landlord. Far from backing down, the landlord seized a knife from the kitchen in a fit of rage, shouting, “You kill me lah!”
The tenant, visibly shaken, recounted, “I was paralyzed with fear, thinking she might actually lash out at someone. I reported the incident to the police the following day.”
Eventually, the landlord begrudgingly returned S$530 of the deposit, albeit after deducting some arbitrary fees.
So, what really happened?
In response to the escalating accusations, the male landlord, Mr Xu, a 55-year-old masseur, came forward to defend his wife’s actions.
He argued that they were initially willing to return the deposit but were antagonized by the aggressive stance of the tenant’s relatives.
“She didn’t intend to attack anyone; she was daring them to attack her,” he clarified. Furthermore, he attributed the tenant’s eviction to his poor hygiene habits.
Regarding the stringent rules they enforced, Mr Xu rationalized these as necessary measures to prevent potential fire hazards and maintain cleanliness in the communal spaces.
He even suggested that the tenants themselves were responsible for the peculiar shower head arrangement, hinting at their unsavory cleaning habits.
Despite the mounting negative reviews and a seemingly unending cycle of tenants moving in and out, Mr Xu staunchly denied allegations of a high tenant turnover. He maintained that several tenants had stayed for over a year, suggesting that not everyone found their rental terms objectionable.