BUILDING DEFECTS AND REMEDIES IN CONDOMINIUM DEVELOPMENTS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

Not long ago, the crucial element that made Singapore different from other developing countries was its relatively high standard of workmanship. The compl iments of the mid-seventles have been replaced by an avalanche of complaints these days about the declining standards of our workers in the construction industry. Although residential condominium developments ought to be regarded as models of professionalism for the construction industry, in the last few years it had been plagued by the severe problem of building defects. The fall in the standards of construction, especially in the newer buildings can be attributed partly to our rapid expansion during the last property boom in the late seventies and the early eighties. The study attempts to examine some of the main causes building defects in residential condominium developments in Singapore so as to provide a better understanding for its preponderance during the last few years. Secondly, several case studies were conducted to allow for a complete appreciation of the problem and thirdly, the Sales and Purchase Agreement which is a contract between the developer and the purchaser will be evaluated in an attempt to establish the rights and obligations of both parties over the liability of building repairs.' During the course of the analysis, some inadequacies of the Sales and Purchase Agreement will also be discussed. The findings show that condominium owners have no legal protection for latent defects which surface after the expiration of the prescribed defects liability period.The ambiguity of the Sales and Purchase Agreement in the area of structural defects, among others were also revealed. In order to alleviate the seriousness and intensity of the problem in the long run, tighter regulations must be imposed in the construction industry. KEYWORDS