Checking a renovation contractor before you sign

None of these checks tells you whether a firm’s work is good. They tell you whether it’s allowed to do the job, whether it exists as it says, and whether others have complained. Run them on everyone you’re seriously considering, before any money changes hands.

1. HDB’s directory (HDB flats only)

By law, renovation in an HDB flat can only be done by a contractor registered with HDB, and using one who isn’t can get you prosecuted. Search the Directory of Renovation Contractors with HDB’s e-service. The same search finds BCA Approved Window Contractors.

Contractors can be removed from the directory: HDB delists those with 24 or more demerit points within 24 months. A listing isn’t a quality guarantee, as HDB says itself.

2. ACRA’s Bizfile

Bizfile’s free entity search shows whether a business is live and its registered address. Search by the name on the quote, or by its UEN. Check that:

• the business is live, not struck off or ceased;
• the name and UEN match the quote and the contract you’ll sign;
• the address makes sense.

For a bigger job, ACRA suggests paying for a Business Profile, which shows when the business was registered and who runs it. ACRA’s warning signs include a new business set up soon after a dubious one, with the same people or address.

3. CaseTrust

CASE accredits renovation businesses under CaseTrust. Accredited firms must:

• buy a deposit performance bond, so your deposit is protected if the business closes or is wound up;
• take payment in phases at agreed milestones, with the initial deposit capped at 20% of the total cost;
• use the CaseTrust Standard Renovation Contract;
• give a 12-month workmanship warranty from completion;
• agree variations in writing before the work, and attend mediation at CASE if you ask for it.

Check the firm on CaseTrust’s list of accredited businesses, linked from CASE’s renovation page, rather than relying on a logo. CASE says that of the 962 complaints it received against renovation contractors in 2024, about 97% were against firms without CaseTrust accreditation.

4. CASE’s Company Alert List

CASE publishes a Company Alert List of businesses it has received consumer complaints about. HDB points renovating owners to it too. It isn’t complete, so a clean record there isn’t proof of anything, but a listing is worth asking about.

The checks that aren’t on a register

• Look at finished work. Ask to see completed projects similar to yours, and speak to the owners if you can.
• Read the quote closely. Is it itemised, with materials, quantities and exclusions? See comparing renovation quotes.
• Ask who’ll do what. Which trades are in-house, who applies for your permits, and who supervises the site.
• Ask about licensed trades. The window contractor must be BCA-approved, and electrical, gas and plumbing work need licensed workers: see licensed trades.

CASE’s own checklist is short: use an HDB-registered contractor for HDB flats, get quotes from more than one, insist on a clear contract with itemised billing, put verbal promises in writing and agree a schedule with deadlines.

SpaceToReno is run by the team behind Junk to Clear, which also handles renovations. Where a guide links to Junk to Clear or a sister site, it’s because that step calls for the service, and the sentence says so. Enquiries sent through the form go to the same team. How SpaceToReno works