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S’pore actual estate agent fined S$1.16m for subletting properties on Airbnb, HomeAway

S’pore actual estate agent fined S.16m for subletting properties on Airbnb, HomeAway
Claremont, Residences @ 338A, and The Abode at Devonshire condominiums (PHOTOS: Google Street View)

From left: Claremont, Residences @ 338A, and The Abode at Devonshire condominiums (Photos: Google Street Perspective)

SINGAPORE — A Singaporean genuine estate agent who presented unauthorised shorter-expression lodging on Airbnb and HomeAway was fined S$1.158 million by the Singapore district court docket on Monday (30 Could).

Simon Chan Chai Wan’s wonderful is the most significant quantity at any time imposed on an person in Singapore for offences relating to unauthorised quick-expression stays, mentioned the City Redevelopment Authority (URA) in a press release.

The 57-yr-previous experienced supplied the preparations at private residential properties with the help of his girlfriend and fellow actual estate agent Zhao Jing. Zhao, a 43-calendar year-outdated Singaporean, was fined S$84,000 for her position, which incorporated handling the listings.

Chan gained a full income of S$1,254,907.78 from the 14 premises he enable out for shorter-expression accommodation involving 30 June 2017 and July 2018. Chan paid out Zhao about S$52,000 in whole for her help — which performs out to a every month income of S$4,000.

Beneath the URA’s restrictions, all personal residential attributes have to be rented out for a bare minimum period of a few consecutive months.

Chan pleaded responsible to 9 costs below the Scheduling Act, even though Zhao pleaded responsible to four fees beneath the same act. Respectively, every single experienced five and 10 charges taken into consideration for their sentencing.

Chan had been the director or ex-director of HTM Options, HTM Management, and SNS Infotech at the time. Zhao had also been concerned as director of HTM Solutions and HTM Managements.

Applying the a few companies and Zhao, Chan rented 14 personal residences and shown them them on various small-expression letting platforms this sort of as Airbnb and HomeAway.

The premises that Chan allow out were being in condominiums or flats in prime areas of Tanjong Pagar, River Valley, Orchard and Keppel Bay.

Two residential models ended up at Worldwide Plaza, a few units at Robinson Suites, 5 units at Claremont condominium, a unit at condominium Residences @ 338A, a unit at condominium The Abode at Devonshire, a device at Centrepoint Apartments and a unit at Caribbean at Keppel Bay condominium.

To lease the attributes, Chan and Zhao entered tenancy agreements with the entrepreneurs of these models through his providers. The pair did not reveal that they were being subletting the units for small-expression accommodation, or look for permission to do so.

Chan lied to the some of the proprietors by claiming that Zhao and her boy or girl, or that Zhao and her spouse would reside at the rented models.

Aside from helping Chan in renting two models, Zhao aided established up and manage the accounts on Airbnb. She also posted listings on the system. Chan took demand of the working day to day procedure of the units.

Concerning December 2017 and Might 2018, CISCO officers inspected quite a few units sub-letted by Chan and found foreigners and their families remaining there.

For utilizing the premises to present small-expression lodging of significantly less than a few months, a initial time offender might be fined up S$200,000.

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