Renovation is one of the largest discretionary purchases most households ever make, handed to a contractor months before the work is finished. It is also, consistently, one of the most complained-about industries in Singapore — which is a reason to choose carefully, not a reason to despair.

The numbers

The Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) received 962 renovation-related complaints in 2024. In 2022, renovation contractors drew 1,454 complaints — the single most-complained-about category that year. The money at stake is real: CASE recorded S$728,000 in prepayment losses in 2024, the money consumers had paid upfront to firms that then failed to deliver, often because the firm closed down.

The nature of the complaints is as telling as the number. Around 39% concern unsatisfactory workmanship and about 27% concern delays in completing the project. These are not exotic risks; they are the ordinary failure modes of a trade where the customer pays before the work is proven.

Where the risk actually lies

Two patterns account for most of the pain. The first is prepayment: large deposits paid to a firm that then does poor work, drags out the schedule, or — worst — closes its doors with the money. The second is vague scope: a quotation so loosely worded that "what was promised" and "what was delivered" are impossible to reconcile, which is exactly how a workmanship dispute becomes unwinnable.

How to protect yourself

Choose an accredited firm

The CaseTrust–RCMA Joint Accreditation for renovation businesses was created specifically for these risks. An accredited firm works to a standard contract, follows defined deposit and payment practices, and takes part in a dispute-resolution process — which means there is somewhere independent to go if things go wrong. Critically, CaseTrust-accredited renovation firms provide deposit protection, which addresses the single largest category of loss above.

Get everything in writing, in detail

Insist on an itemised quotation that says what is being done, where, in what material and to what dimension. A line reading "carpentry — lump sum" is not a scope; it is a future argument. If you cannot tell from the quotation what you are getting, you will not be able to prove you did not get it.

Stage your payments against progress

Avoid paying a large share upfront. Tie payments to defined stages of completed work, so that at any point the firm is holding roughly what it has earned, not months of work it has not yet done.

Check the contractor is registered

For HDB works, only a contractor on HDB's Directory of Renovation Contractors can apply for a renovation permit. Verify the registration, and be wary of any firm that cannot show it.

None of this guarantees a perfect renovation. But accreditation, a detailed written scope and sensible staged payments together address the great majority of what actually goes wrong — and they are all decided before the first payment leaves your account.

Sources

Figures in this article were checked in October 2026 against the pages below. Schemes, rules and rates change — please confirm the current position before relying on them.

This is general information about renovating in Singapore, not legal advice. GoDesign is not a law firm. For a dispute or anything turning on your specific circumstances, consult a qualified practitioner.