Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Veloicaza | SINGAPORE (Nov. 18, 2015) - Dulcy Stout (left), a clinical counselor and family...... read more read more
SINGAPORE – Navy Region Center Singapore recently signed a rental partnership agreement with the Far East Organization, a Singaporean corporate leasing company that will provide additional rental and leasing options for military service members, DoD civilians and families relocating to Singapore.
The partnership falls in line with the U.S. Navy’s Rental Partnership Program (RPP) which is designed to provide service members with suitable and affordable off-base housing and aid in defraying some of the costs incurred by relocation, according to Tacoma Anderson, acting housing director for Navy Region Center Singapore.
“The Rental Partnership Program provides a great opportunity for the local Singaporean community and the service members, Department of Defense civilians and families to enter into leases with a win-win for both parties,” Anderson said. “The partner gets quality renters who will have set rental periods of three years or more depending on the individual renter.”
Typically, in Singapore, leasing and renting property can set military service members, DoD civilians and families back approximately $12,000 to $18,000 U.S. dollars, which includes providing local landlords or leasing agencies with two months deposit and the first month’s rent. These challenges were identified by NRCS’s housing office staff members over a year ago and, as a result, the office sought solutions to alleviate the problem. Additional challenges were identified by the NRCS housing staff and included:
- High cost of rents
- Renter must pay pro-rated agent fee if moving out early
- The inflexibility towards shorter leases (2 years is the standard)
- The “added charges” (Air condition maintenance, drapery cleaning, cost of repairs)
- The time it takes to receive any funds owed at end of lease
- Mandatory 60 days notice on intent to vacate
Meanwhile, the new partnership and agreement between NRCS and Far East Organization is good for one year but may be renewed up to three years. Within this agreement significant clauses were included and the benefits of the new partnership include:
- Ease of paperwork, only a one-page reservation form is required.
- Ease of upfront payment, only $500 reservation fee is required and one-month security deposit (versus the standard two months).
- Speed of refund of the security deposit within 15 days versus 30 days from the check-out date.
- Value-added services provided such as servicing of the air-con units and dry clean of curtains.
- The master tenancy agreement has been cleared by US Navy, thus significant time savings is accomplished without a need to negotiate on the Tenancy Agreement and a peace of mind that the interest of the personnel is taken care of.
“For the service members, DoD civilians and families, these partnerships provide reduced startup costs, a large selection of quality homes, a vetted realtor and quality neighborhoods,” Anderson said. “Rental partnership builds lasting relationships between the military and the local communities through an immersion process. It is often viewed as an asset to both the military and the realtor partner.”
For Dulcy Stout, a clinical counselor and family advocate for the Family Service Office, Navy Region Singapore, the partnership has already made an indelible impact and a positive impression. Especially, as she and her family transitions from the United States to Singapore.
“I found the home I wanted to move into on my first house hunting trip,” Stout said. “The process of securing the home and then signing the tenancy agreement went rather quickly and smoothly. Another bonus of the partnership is the financial piece in that we saved a considerable amount of money in deposit fees. Not having to come up with such a large amount of money to move into our new home was a huge relief.”
This positive effect is what the Far East Organization seems to embody. Professionalism is the key, according to Lim Eng Hwa, corporate leasing and marketing manager for the Far East Organization.
“The partnership is a testament to the perseverance and dedication of the U.S. Navy to ensure that the best possible arrangement is made to ease the transition of the personnel to Singapore and it is a vote of confidence to Far East Organization's proven track record and capabilities to deliver value and a high level of service to U.S. Navy personnel,” Hwa said.
Another important aspect to highlight is that Far East offers the military service members, DoD civilian and families more than 90 properties totaling more than 1,400 units island wide. This large stock of properties is an added benefit in that there is a wide assortment of rental and leasing choices with more to come as the company expands its properties in the future.
According to Hwa, the partnership is only a start in the right direction for both the U.S. Navy and the local Singaporean community.
“This partnership program is only a start for many great things to come and we will continue to improve and enhance our offerings and service level to ensure that the U.S. Navy personnel are well taken care of while they are in Singapore,” Hwa said.
| Date Taken: | 11.23.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 11.24.2015 22:07 |
| Story ID: | 182810 |
| Location: | SG |
| Web Views: | 376 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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