Opening: The worst thing that can happen to homeowners is to be plagued by a renovation nightmare.
Now, according to the Consumers Association of Singapore, consumers lost S$1.93 million last year (2024) after making advance payments for services that were never delivered. The renovation industry accounted for the largest share of these losses, totalling approximately $728,000.
Out of the 962 complaints CASE received against renovation contractors, 97% were against non-CaseTrust-accredited contractors.
All complaints related to accredited ones were successfully resolved.
What inspired you to create this HomeMatch platform?
A: Well, it's from my first-hand experience. So... I tried renovating my home back in 2020, and there were 2 big problems I faced.
To give you a bit of background, I sat at my laptop and started researching.
And then I realised shockingly that the renovation industry was notorious for complaints.
Maybe I was naive at the time, but I always thought, Singapore is generally safe, right?
When I started searching for a renovator, I found it hard to differentiate them.
When I looked at their websites, they were making similar claims. Even the design of their websites tended to be quite similar.
So... back to the problem again. That's when it became my motivation to create HomeMatch, because when I turned to renovation platforms I was faced with another set of problems...
I got bombarded with phone calls... When I scheduled meetings with the renovators themselves, it felt like they didn't have any context about my renovation. I kept repeating myself a lot.
So the whole process felt random, and I think they were just selling my contact information.
So my motivation to create HomeMatch, the safest and smartest way to meet renovators, started from there...
To clarify, "safest" because we only work with CaseTrust renovators and we apply an additional layer of screening. We make sure they have at least 4-star reviews on neutral platforms like Facebook and Google. We also vet them individually as people for full transparency.
And "smartest", because of our matchmaking process. We use over 500 data points, and the best part is we can match homeowners to the exact person, not just the firm, for precision.
Q: How did you develop this matchmaking process?
A: Yeah, actually, there are 2 things. Firstly, the 500 datapoints as mentioned...
And the second thing is our ability to match someone to the exact person that meets their exact needs.
For example:
1. I can match you to multiple renovators, say, who are female and Mandarin-speaking.
2. They could also be pet owners themselves, if that's what you value.
3. Let's say you like the wabi-sabi style, which is very up and coming... I can show you evidence from their portfolio that they have done that before. And that they are good at coming up with out-of-the-box ideas to maximise storage for your home.
4. They can also have traits that you value, like being the non-pushy, more consultative type of renovator.
Q: For homeowners, when they're reviewing their contracts, for instance, what are some of the red flags that they should be aware of?
A: Oh, I love that question, because at HomeMatch, we also help homeowners to vet their contracts for free.
Some of the key things that we look at, firstly, are the quotes, because hidden costs are very prevalent.
A bad case would be a lump-sum quotation. For example, “Painting: $500.”
That’s a no-go. It should be broken down line by line with descriptions and clear pricing.
For example, manpower cost, material cost, etc.
Secondly, there would be a payment schedule. Payments should be made progressively.
A fair payment schedule should only take an initial deposit as a rule of thumb of about 20% maximum.
If a renovator asks for 50% or 100%, it’s a red flag—unless it’s a very small job.
Also, negotiate for a withholding payment—usually 5–10% held until the handover is completed satisfactorily.
And then another thing is delays, which are a very common complaint.
You want a very detailed renovation schedule which CaseTrust renovators provides.
There are a lot of ways to do things, but at the very minimum, you should have clear descriptions of the work done, and also a clear start and end date.
Q: What's preventing companies from going through the CaseTrust accreditation scheme?
A: HomeMatch has been guiding renovators to attain the accreditation, and although it's rigorous and tedious, it's not impossible.
All the criteria are very reasonable. Any well-run firm can adopt them.
Q: But how long would the process take?
A: Typically, 3-6 months, it depends on where the firm is at as well. The true barrier is the lack of demand from homeowners.
Q: Why?
A: Imagine you're a renovator now - you're running a successful firm, consumers aren't policing you, and you're thriving.... There's no incentive for change.
It's our mission at HomeMatch to make sure consumers are aware of what to look out for and demand fair consumer practices.
And by fair, I mean not only fair to homeowners, but fair to industry players.
I believe that's how the industry can improve, and more firms will also be up for the accreditation.
Q: Could this also be a limiting selection for consumers?
A: I think it's a matter of quality over quantity.
Especially in our local context, where there are no certifications or licensing requirements to become a renovator.
So... the barrier to entry is really very low. And I would say, that's the root cause of most issues we faced currently.
Q: How to Spot Red Flags in Your Renovation Quotation
A: We get this question a lot. I would say actually the biggest defence against this, is to meet and compare.
Comparing quotations is so important...
Think of it like dating. You don't want to marry the first person you meet, so you want to compare multiple firms.
We recommend meeting at least 5 renovators... 5 is a logical number; let's say you only meet 3.
You might end up in a freak situation. You get a low quote, medium quote, high quote.
Then what are you going to do with it? Based on this sample size of 3, you can't differentiate which is actually low, medium, or high.
Q: For those you've recommended and connected with, what if problems arise and complaints filed? How are matters typically resolved?
A: We always tell homeowners there are 3 layers of defence over here.
So the first one is the most important: our follow-ups.
We do at least 3-4 follow-ups with every single homeowner.
And it's the most important touchpoint because it's preventive in nature. It's where we stop problems in their tracks before they turn huge.
The second layer will be access to the management.
These are bosses that went through the pain of being accredited, so they care about their reputation. And they will not tolerate black sheep ruining their reputation.
The final layer is actually mediation at CASE.
All CaseTrust renovators are required to attend mediation if requested.
And this is a very powerful mechanism because it gives you a clear dispute resolution framework.
Q: As a consumer, so would everything on HomeMatch be done on online? Will there be face to face meeting with you if i'm a homeowners?
A: The process goes this way...
- You fill in a form on our website.
- One of us will reach out to you over a phone call. The phone call is a very important touchpoint to understand the intricacy of your needs.
- We then translate what we learnt from the call into data points for our algorithm. From there, we can accurately match you to suitable renovators.
Q: Any plans to weave in sustainable solutions?
A: Very relevant question not only from homeowners demand perspective but also from a climate perspective.
A quick win for HomeMatch is that we can easily add these data points for matching.
For example, I can help homeowners find the exact person across multiple firms who is most capable of implementing sustainable solutions.
