The issues homeowners face when engaging the local renovation industry are not receiving sufficient attention. There are a ton of under-the-table deals transacted at the expense of none the wiser homeowners, hence they sometimes end up being out of pocket by inexplicably extravagant sums.
Fyi, interior designers (IDs) needn't attend any courses nor acquire relevant certifications from the get-go. This is starkly different compared to those from e.g the real estate industry where property agents have to register with the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) and don his/her tag whenever he/she is onsite. Or the financial industry where a business may require oversight by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). As far as IDs are concerned, anyone can call themselves one, start a company and simply close down / run away with collected deposits / start a new company the moment a dispute arises. There have been many such cases reported in the local newspapers.
But what I want to talk about here pertain to the shady relationships existing between IDs and suppliers that many Singaporeans aren't aware of. Because homeowners like us will never know the real prices of raw materials, we will always be vulnerable to unscrupulous IDs and contractors who connive together to skim off us. Because of the lack of regulation, there is nothing to stop IDs from overcharging as they damn well please.
This is very much akin to, say, the tuk-tuks in Bangkok which camp outside a tourist spot to jack up prices together in a cartel-like manner or the taxi mafia which fervently conspire to prevent Grab drivers from coming in to pick up tourists. Sure, you might still be able to enjoy market transportation rates - only if you are willing to trek 1km+ with your luggage out to the nearest open road and try your luck there. But it should NOT be that way.
I am sharing my experience herein with a recent interior designer because what happened to me is so prevalent these days, thus warranting genuine cause for concern.
More at https://shrtcô.de/nGH5st
Fyi, interior designers (IDs) needn't attend any courses nor acquire relevant certifications from the get-go. This is starkly different compared to those from e.g the real estate industry where property agents have to register with the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) and don his/her tag whenever he/she is onsite. Or the financial industry where a business may require oversight by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). As far as IDs are concerned, anyone can call themselves one, start a company and simply close down / run away with collected deposits / start a new company the moment a dispute arises. There have been many such cases reported in the local newspapers.
But what I want to talk about here pertain to the shady relationships existing between IDs and suppliers that many Singaporeans aren't aware of. Because homeowners like us will never know the real prices of raw materials, we will always be vulnerable to unscrupulous IDs and contractors who connive together to skim off us. Because of the lack of regulation, there is nothing to stop IDs from overcharging as they damn well please.
This is very much akin to, say, the tuk-tuks in Bangkok which camp outside a tourist spot to jack up prices together in a cartel-like manner or the taxi mafia which fervently conspire to prevent Grab drivers from coming in to pick up tourists. Sure, you might still be able to enjoy market transportation rates - only if you are willing to trek 1km+ with your luggage out to the nearest open road and try your luck there. But it should NOT be that way.
I am sharing my experience herein with a recent interior designer because what happened to me is so prevalent these days, thus warranting genuine cause for concern.
More at https://shrtcô.de/nGH5st
