Paid the Deposit and the Contractor Vanished? How to Protect Your Renovation Money in Singapore

Most people planning an HDB or condo renovation worry about the same thing, even if they don't say it out loud. You hand over tens of thousands of dollars, and the only thing standing between that money and your finished home is one contractor's promise.

Usually that promise holds. Sometimes it doesn't.

In a case reported by Mothership in December 2025, a homeowner found a renovation company on Carousell. It had good reviews, a reasonable price and said it had been around for ten years. The job was quoted at about S$40,000. Over the following months the company kept asking for more money for "unexpected" problems and material shortages. He ended up paying more than S$80,000. Then the company stopped replying, with the kitchen and air-conditioning still not done.

Renovation is consistently one of the industries Singaporeans complain about most. The Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) received 787 complaints about renovation contractors in 2025, down from 962 the year before. Fewer is good. It is still two complaints a day.

So this guide isn't about scaring you. It's about the handful of checks that make a renovation scam very hard to pull off on you.

How a Renovation Scam Usually Unfolds

Contractors who disappear rarely do it on day one. The pattern tends to look like this:

1. A quote noticeably cheaper than everyone else's. It gets you to sign quickly.
2. A large payment early, often with pressure: "pay now to lock in the price" or "we need to order materials today".
3. Slow progress. A few workers show up, then fewer.
4. New charges that weren't in the quote, each with a story attached.
5. Excuses — a sick worker, a supplier delay, a family emergency.
6. Silence. Messages go unanswered, and the office address turns out to be a shared unit or doesn't exist.

By step four, most homeowners have already paid far more than the value of the work on site. That gap is what you lose. Everything below is about keeping that gap small.

This guide covers deposits specifically. For delays, workmanship defects and noise disputes, see our guide to common renovation problems in Singapore.

How to Choose a Renovation Contractor in Singapore — Checks to Do Before You Pay

These take about half an hour, and they filter out most of the risk.

1. Check the company on ACRA

Search the company name or UEN on ACRA's BizFile. Make sure the company is live, and look at when it was registered. "Ten years of experience" from a company registered last year is worth a question.

2. Check BCA registration

A BCA registered renovation contractor has been assessed by the Building and Construction Authority for a specific workhead and grade. It doesn't guarantee good work, but it shows the company is established enough to be registered. Ask for the workhead and grade, and verify it with the BCA.

3. Ask who will submit your renovation permit

For an HDB flat, the renovation permit must be submitted by a contractor listed in HDB's Directory of Renovation Contractors (DRC). For a condo, the management office (MCST) has its own approval process. Ask plainly: who submits it, and when? A contractor who is vague about permits may be vague about other things too.

4. Look for CaseTrust accreditation

CASE credits its CaseTrust accreditation scheme for part of the drop in renovation complaints. Accredited firms use a standard contract and commit to clearer payment terms. It's one useful signal, alongside the others here.

5. Read reviews over time, not just the recent ones

A page full of five-star reviews posted in the same fortnight tells you very little. Look for Google reviews spread over months or years, with photos and specific details. A company that only exists on Carousell or a social media page deserves extra care.

6. Confirm there is a real office

Check the address. A registered office you can find, and a person you can meet, make it much harder for a company to simply vanish.

How to Pay Safely: Renovation Deposit and Progressive Payments

This is the part that protects you most. CASE's advice is simple: get a detailed contract, avoid large payments in advance, and pay in instalments after each stage is completed.

In practice that means:

• Agree the payment schedule before signing, and write it into the contract.
• Link each payment to finished work you can see — hacking done, waterproofing done and tested, tiling done, carpentry installed.
• Pay the company's bank account only, never a personal account, and never in cash without an official receipt.
• Never pay for the whole job upfront, however good the discount sounds.
• Keep a small final payment for after handover and defect rectification.

A deposit is normal. Contractors do order materials and book workers for your job. What matters is that the amount you have paid never runs far ahead of the work that has been done. If it does, ask why before you pay the next instalment.

What Your Renovation Contract Should Say

A WhatsApp message saying "ok can" is not a contract. Before any money moves, make sure you have a written agreement that covers:

• An itemised scope — every trade and item listed, with quantities.
• Materials and brands, so "tiles" can't quietly become cheaper tiles.
• The timeline, including a start date and an expected handover date.
• The payment schedule, tied to stages.
• How variations work — extra work only goes ahead after you have agreed the price in writing.
• The warranty and how defects are reported and fixed.
• What happens if either side ends the contract.

Our earlier guide on renovation cost and contractor trust goes deeper into why quotes change once work starts.

Warning Signs a Contractor May Disappear

Any one of these can have an innocent explanation. Two or three together should make you stop and ask questions before paying anything more:

• The quote is far below every other quote you received.
• You are pushed to pay quickly, or to pay a personal account.
• The quotation is a single lump sum with no breakdown.
• Extra charges keep appearing, each with a new reason.
• Work slows down while payment requests speed up.
• Replies get slower and shorter, then stop.
• Nobody can tell you who is submitting your permit.

If Your Contractor Has Already Stopped Work

If you are already in this situation, act quickly and calmly:

1. Stop further payments until the work matches what you have paid for.
2. Document everything — photos of the site, the contract, invoices, receipts and every message.
3. Send a written notice asking the contractor to resume work by a specific date.
4. Contact CASE for help with mediation.
5. Consider the Small Claims Tribunals, which hear claims up to S$20,000, or up to S$30,000 if both sides agree. Check the filing time limits on the Judiciary's website and don't leave it late.
6. Make a police report if you believe you have been deliberately cheated.

When another contractor takes over a half-finished job, expect a fresh site assessment first. Work that was started by someone else, especially waterproofing and electrical, often has to be checked or redone before anything can be built on top of it.

How We Work at One Smart

We would rather you check us than trust us blindly. These are things you can verify before paying us anything:

• Company registration: One Smart Engineering & Construction Pte. Ltd., UEN 202307659D.
• BCA registration: CR06 Interior Decoration & Finishing Works, Grade L1.
• A real office: 46 Lakeside Drive, #14-15, The Lakefront Residences, Singapore 648324.
• An itemised quotation within 3 working days of the site visit, with every trade priced separately and exclusions stated.
• No surprise charges: if extra work turns out to be needed, we explain why and agree the price with you before it starts.
• A 1-year workmanship warranty from handover.
• HDB permits are submitted by an HDB-registered (DRC) contractor, and we arrange and coordinate them for you. MCST approvals we handle directly.

Ask us for the payment schedule and the contract terms before you commit. A contractor with nothing to hide will show you both without hesitation. You can reach us at info@onesmartconstruction.com or through our free quote form, and we reply within one business day.

Frequently Asked Questions