The Minor Repair Clause: Who Pays for Repairs During a Singapore Tenancy?

It is the smallest number in the tenancy agreement and the one that causes the most friction. A tap drips, a socket dies, the water heater packs up, and two people who have never discussed it before start arguing about a S$180 invoice. Here is exactly how the minor repair clause works in Singapore, what the standard wording actually says, and which everyday repairs fall on each side of a typical cap in 2026.

What is the minor repair clause in a Singapore tenancy agreement?

The CEA wording is short and worth reading twice: the tenant is responsible to pay for all minor repairs so long as the cost per item per incident does not exceed the stated sum, and where the cost exceeds that amount, the tenant pays the stated sum and the balance is paid by the landlord. Three phrases in that sentence do all the work: per item, per incident, and the balance.

Per item and per incident matter because they reset: two separate faults in one month are two separate caps, not one. Read it alongside the other tenancy agreement clauses every renter should check, since it interacts with the maintenance, air-conditioning and yield-up clauses further down.

Who pays if a repair costs more than the cap?

Two conditions sit on top of that split. First, the excess is only the landlord's problem if the damage was not caused by the tenant's negligence or wilful default. A worn flexible hose that finally splits is the landlord's; a basin cracked by a dropped dumbbell is not. Second, if an item is faulty and beyond repair, the CEA template puts the full replacement cost on the landlord, again subject to the negligence carve-out. That distinction is worth money: a repair splits, a replacement does not.

Is the S$150 cap fixed by law?

Because it is convention rather than regulation, the figure drifts with the rent: on a S$5,000 a month condo, a S$150 cap is about 3% of one month's rent. Tenants of older units often push for a lower cap or a yearly aggregate ceiling, while landlords of fully furnished units push the other way, because every appliance in the inventory is one more thing that can fail.

Which everyday repairs actually cross a S$150 cap?

Indicative 2026 Singapore rates for the repairs that come up most often in a tenancy, and how they fall against a S$150 cap:

Rates are indicative 2026 Singapore ranges for labour on standard access, excluding parts and after-hours premiums. A S$10 fuel or trip surcharge per visit is now common. Always get the number in writing before the contractor is booked.

At S$150 a tenant absorbs most of the small faults in an ordinary year and shares the rest. Move the cap to S$300 and almost every routine plumbing and fixture repair sits entirely on the tenant.

What is the problem-free period, and why does it matter here?

This is the single most valuable thing a tenant can act on, and most never do. Under the CEA template, within the problem-free period the landlord cannot hold the tenant responsible for any defect in the premises, furniture or fittings that the tenant identifies and puts in writing, and the landlord must rectify it. The obligation is triggered by the written report, not by the defect existing.

So the routine is simple: in the first fortnight, run every tap, socket, aircon unit, the oven, hood and water heater, then email the list. Pair it with a photographed move-in inventory, because the same record decides the deposit argument at the other end of the lease.

Does the minor repair clause cover air-conditioning?

That last condition is where deposits die. A compressor failure on a properly serviced system is the landlord's bill; the same failure on a unit with no service records becomes the tenant's, because non-maintenance flips responsibility. The template also lets the landlord ask for the servicing receipts at the end of the term, so keep every invoice. Our guide to aircon servicing at the end of a tenancy covers what a landlord checks and what a missed quarter costs.

Can a tenant just call their own handyman and bill the landlord?

The safe sequence is always the same: report the fault in writing with a photo, ask for written approval of the quoted amount, then book the contractor, keeping it all on one thread. Note too that where the landlord sends their own contractor and the fault turns out to be the tenant's doing, the template lets the landlord charge that call-out rate back, so a speculative call-out is not free either.

What if the landlord refuses to pay their share?

For a few hundred dollars, the Community Mediation Centre is the proportionate route, and a firm letter attaching the clause, the written approval and the invoice settles most of these before anyone files anything. CEA cannot help: it regulates property agents, not the terms of your lease. The full escalation path is in deposit disputes: who actually decides.

How does the repair clause affect the deposit at handover?

Two protections are built into the same template and both are underused. The joint inspection is one: once damage and defects are ascertained at that inspection, the tenant is not liable for other damage claimed afterwards. Knowing where repair ends and fair wear and tear begins is the other, and it is the line that decides most deductions. If a deduction does land, check it against the betterment rule before paying: a landlord is entitled to be put back in position, not upgraded.

Five things to fix in the clause before you sign

1. Fill the blank yourself. An empty Item 10 is an argument waiting to happen. Write a number, in figures and words.
2. Ask for an annual aggregate. A cap of S$150 per incident with a ceiling of, say, S$600 a year protects a tenant in a unit that turns out to be a lemon.
3. Define the approval channel. Name who approves, in writing, and what happens after hours when a pipe bursts and nobody answers.
4. Set the problem-free period in writing. Thirty days is common, and the clause is worthless if the number is left blank.
5. Separate repair from replacement. Confirm that an item beyond economical repair is replaced at the landlord's cost, not split under the cap.

None of this is exotic drafting. It is five lines governing two years of small, irritating decisions, and every one is easier to agree before the keys change hands than after the ceiling starts dripping.