Man devised 'deliberate scheme' to rent home without paying through shell company, sued elderly landlords

Mr Anthony Thomas Price had previously used shell companies to live rent-free in two other properties, said the judge, who ordered his firm to return the property in the latest case to its landlords and to pay them unpaid rent and other sums.

The exterior of the house in Kembangan. (Photo: Google Maps)

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SINGAPORE: A man devised a "deliberate scheme" to live rent-free in a landed home using a shell company, a judge found, ordering his company to return the property to its landlords and pay them unpaid rent and other sums.

Mr Anthony Thomas Price, an American, had used Noranth Ventures to rent a semi-detached house in Kembangan from May 1, 2026 to Apr 30, 2028. Mr Price and his family lived in the house.

While the landlords, a couple in their 80s, received the first month's rent, Noranth Ventures did not pay rent in the months that followed.

Because this breached the tenancy agreement, the landlords had the right to re-enter the home. However, Mr Price's company sued the landlords to block this.

The court dismissed the lawsuit, describing his applications as a "plain abuse of process of the court". It also allowed a counterclaim by the landlords to take back their home and recover the unpaid rent, among other things.

Noranth Ventures was ordered to pay the couple a total of S$17,031.98 (US$13,310) for legal costs and expenses incurred during the proceedings.

According to the judgment on Oct 7, Mr Price had a "pattern" of using shell companies to rent residential premises before refusing to pay rent.

He had used shell companies to rent two other landed properties between 2019 and 2024.

BREACH OF TENANCY AGREEMENT

Mr Price had used Noranth Ventures to rent the Kembangan home at S$7,500 a month.

Under the tenancy agreement, rent had to be paid on the first day of each month, tenants could not alter the home without written consent, there would be interest on any unpaid rent, and only Mr Price's wife and three other people would live in the home, among other conditions.

The tenancy agreement stated that if any stipulation was breached, the landlords were entitled to re-enter the home and seek damages.

However, only a month's rent and half the agreed S$15,000 security deposit was paid.

Mr Price also lived in the home with his family when he was in Singapore, utilities were left unpaid and closed-circuit television cameras were installed in the home without permission.

The judge found that Mr Price's communications with the landlords showed that Noranth Ventures had no intention of paying rent.

In one letter, Mr Price said that Noranth Ventures had "made practical proposals to regularise the rental position".

Mr Price had also stated in his affidavit that there were " unresolved repair, safety, tenantability and quiet enjoyment issues" and about 35 "repair, rectification or practical occupation issues" with the home.

District Judge Chiah Kok Khun described these as " worthless words and a roundabout way to say that Mr Price and the claimant (Noranth Ventures) have no intention of paying any rent".

"If at all, they reflect an attempt to raise spurious reasons not to pay rent," said Judge Chiah, adding that there was a "clear breach" of the tenancy agreement.

Judge Chiah also noted that 32 of the 35 issues highlighted by Mr Price had been rectified by Jun 8 this year "out of goodwill" and that several scheduled visits to rectify other issues were delayed by the tenants.

Mr Price also contended that the landlords had not given a valid notice to re-enter the home.

However, Judge Chiah rejected the argument, finding that no notice under Section 18(1) of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act was required for re-entry arising from the non-payment of rent. He also found that notice had been given for the other breaches.

HISTORY OF AVOIDING RENT

The judge found a "pattern of using shell companies to rent residential premises", referring to two other court proceedings involving Mr Price.

According to the judgment, Mr Price had used a company called Bundleluxe to rent a landed semi-detached property in Burnfoot Terrace, Siglap. The tenancy was for one year from Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024.

When the tenancy agreement was signed, Bundleluxe had already accumulated total losses of more than S$1.3 million from Dec 2021 to Nov 2023.

Bundleluxe paid rent for a few months before ceasing to do so.

Mr Price and his family then lived in the property rent-free for nearly 12 months, having extended their stay by about two-and-a-half months after the lease expired.

The landlord commenced legal action against Mr Price and Bundleluxe on Feb 10 last year. The case is still ongoing.

Mr Price had also used Noranth Ventures to rent another landed property at Jalan Selamat in Kembangan from Sept 2019 to Sept 2021, said the judge. Similarly, rent was only paid for one and a half months, but Mr Price and his family continued living at the home rent-free for at least five months.

The owner of the Jalan Selamat property took legal action, and the case was eventually settled.

Judge Chiah said these cases revealed Mr Price's "favoured approach" of renting landed properties for himself and his family.

"Price devised a deliberate scheme to rent the premises for him and his family with no intention to pay rental ... He embroiled the defendants in litigation in a bid to extend his period of unlawful occupation of the premises," said Judge Chiah.

" In this case, and in the two cases referred to above, Price is able to deploy various tools under substantive and procedural laws to frustrate the landlords' efforts to pursue their lawful rights against him, and to further his scheme to rent premises for him and his family with no intention to pay rental."

Besides paying for legal costs and expenses, Mr Price's company will also have to pay for the owed rental and other sums after the judge approved the elderly couple's counterclaim.

The landlords sought S$22,500 in rent for June to August, plus interest, as well as S$7,500 of the security deposit and about S$800 for unpaid utility charges.

Noranth Ventures would also owe the landlords double rent from Aug 15, 2026, until it returns the property.

However, the rental arrears were likely to go unpaid because the tenants on record were shell companies with minimal paid-up share capital, the judge said. Noranth Ventures, the company Mr Price used to rent the home, had paid-up capital of S$200.

"In this regard, I agree that the pattern of using shell companies to rent residential premises as observed above is a matter of some concern for landlords in Singapore," said Judge Chiah.

Public business records show that Mr Price is the director of three live companies: Noranth Ventures, Seashuttle Group and Bundleluxe. They were incorporated in Jul 2007, Apr 2015 and Dec 2020 respectively.

Two of these firms, Noranth Ventures and Bundleluxe, are registered to a virtual office address. The third company, Seashuttle Group, is registered to an address currently occupied by a separate business.

All three companies do not have websites tied to them.

CNA has reached out to Mr Price through his social media account.

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法官表示，安东尼·托马斯·普莱斯先生此前曾利用空壳公司免租居住在另外两处房产中。法官命令他的公司将最新案件中的房产归还给房东，并向房东支付未付租金和其他款项。

位于肯邦安的房屋外观。（图片来源：谷歌地图）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

新加坡：一名男子设计了一个“蓄意计划”，利用空壳公司免租居住在一栋有地住宅中，法官裁定，该男子的公司应将房产归还给房东，并支付拖欠的租金和其他款项。

美国人安东尼·托马斯·普莱斯先生通过 Noranth Ventures 公司在肯邦安租了一栋半独立式住宅，租期从 2026 年 5 月 1 日至 2028 年 4 月 30 日。普莱斯先生和他的家人住在这栋房子里。

虽然房东是一对八十多岁的老夫妇，收到了第一个月的租金，但 Noranth Ventures 在接下来的几个月里却没有支付租金。

由于这违反了租赁协议，房东有权重新进入房屋。然而，普莱斯先生的公司起诉了房东，试图阻止房东这样做。

法院驳回了该诉讼，称其申请“明显滥用诉讼程序”。法院还允许房东提起反诉，要求收回房屋并追回未付租金等款项。

Noranth Ventures 被勒令向这对夫妇支付总计 17,031.98 新加坡元（13,310 美元），作为诉讼过程中产生的法律费用和开支。

根据 10 月 7 日的判决，普莱斯先生惯于使用空壳公司租赁住宅，然后拒付租金。

2019 年至 2024 年间，他曾利用空壳公司租赁了另外两处房产。

违反租赁协议

Price 先生曾委托 Noranth Ventures 公司以每月 7,500 新元的价格租下位于 Kembangan 的这处房产。

根据租赁协议，租金必须在每月的第一天支付，租户未经书面同意不得更改房屋，任何未付租金都将产生利息，并且只有普莱斯先生的妻子和其他三个人可以住在房子里，此外还有其他一些条件。

租赁协议规定，如果违反任何条款，房东有权重新进入房屋并要求赔偿。

然而，租户只支付了一个月的租金和约定的 15,000 新元押金的一半。

Price先生在新加坡期间也和家人住在这所房子里，期间水电费未付，并且未经许可在家中安装了闭路电视摄像头。

法官认定普莱斯先生与房东的沟通表明，诺兰斯风险投资公司没有支付租金的意图。

Price 先生在一封信中表示，Noranth Ventures 已经“提出了使租赁状况正规化的切实可行的建议”。

普莱斯先生还在宣誓书中表示，该房屋存在“未解决的维修、安全、适宜居住和安静享用问题”，以及大约 35 个“维修、纠正或实际居住问题”。

地方法官谢国坤称这些话是“毫无价值的言辞，拐弯抹角地表示普莱斯先生和原告（Noranth Ventures）无意支付任何租金”。

“如果真有什么问题，那就是试图编造虚假理由来拒付房租，”法官 Chiah 说，并补充说，这明显违反了租赁协议。

法官 Chiah 还指出，Price 先生提出的 35 个问题中，有 32 个已于今年 6 月 8 日“出于善意”得到纠正，而几次为纠正其他问题而安排的访问却被租户拖延了。

普莱斯先生还辩称，房东没有发出有效的重新进入房屋的通知。

然而，谢法官驳回了这一论点，认为根据《不动产转让及财产法》第18(1)条，因拖欠租金而收回房屋无需发出通知。他还认定，对于其他违约行为，已发出通知。

拖欠房租的历史

法官发现存在“利用空壳公司租赁住宅物业的模式”，并提到了涉及普莱斯先生的另外两起法庭诉讼。

根据判决书，普莱斯先生通过一家名为Bundleluxe的公司在实乞纳的伯恩福特台租了一套半独立式住宅。租期为一年，从2024年1月1日至2024年12月31日。

签订租赁协议时，Bundleluxe 从 2021 年 12 月到 2023 年 11 月累计亏损已超过 130 万新元。

Bundleluxe 支付了几个月的租金，然后就停止支付了。

普莱斯先生和他的家人随后在这处房产中免费居住了近 12 个月，在租约到期后又续住了大约两个半月。

房东于去年2月10日对普莱斯先生和Bundleluxe公司提起诉讼。该案目前仍在审理中。

法官指出，普莱斯先生还曾于2019年9月至2021年9月期间，通过Noranth Ventures公司在肯邦安的Jalan Selamat租住另一处独立式住宅。同样，普莱斯先生只支付了一个半月的租金，但他和家人却在该房屋内免费居住了至少五个月。

Jalan Selamat 房产的所有者采取了法律行动，该案件最终得以解决。

法官 Chiah 表示，这些案件揭示了 Price 先生“偏爱的做法”，即为自己和家人租住有地房产。

“普莱斯精心策划了一个阴谋，租下这处房产供自己和家人居住，却无意支付租金……他让被告卷入诉讼，企图延长自己非法占用该房产的时间，”法官谢说。

“在本案以及上述两起案件中，普莱斯能够利用实体法和程序法下的各种手段，阻挠房东们依法维护自身权益，并进一步实施他为自己和家人租房而不支付租金的计划。”

除了支付诉讼费用和开支外，在法官批准了这对老年夫妇的反诉后，普莱斯先生的公司还必须支付所拖欠的租金和其他款项。

房东要求租户支付 6 月至 8 月的租金 22,500 新元，外加利息，以及 7,500 新元的押金和约 800 新元的未付水电费。

Noranth Ventures 还需从 2026 年 8 月 15 日起向房东支付双倍租金，直到其归还房产为止。

然而，法官表示，由于登记在册的租户是空壳公司，实缴股本极少，因此拖欠的租金很可能无法支付。普莱斯先生用来租房的Noranth Ventures公司，实缴资本仅为200新元。

“在这方面，我同意上述利用空壳公司出租住宅的模式是新加坡房东们比较关注的问题，”谢法官说道。

公开的商业记录显示，普莱斯先生是三家运营中公司的董事：Noranth Ventures、Seashuttle Group 和 Bundleluxe。这三家公司分别成立于 2007 年 7 月、2015 年 4 月和 2020 年 12 月。

这三家公司中，Noranth Ventures 和 Bundleluxe 两家注册在虚拟办公地址。第三家公司 Seashuttle Group 的注册地址目前由另一家公司占用。

这三家公司都没有自己的网站。

CNA已通过社交媒体账号联系到普莱斯先生。

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