A young REN (Real Estate Negotiator) told me this the other day. “My client said that he will not buy a property until after the general election. He is worried that his investment will turn bad if the result is not up to his expectation because if the wrong party wins, then Malaysia’s economy is finished. He will migrate to Macau if needed’ Let me be direct. Regardless of the party that wins, I seriously think Malaysia has many advantages versus Macau. However, any debate is for another day. Let us just understand what is STILL happening currently in the property market which has already SLOWED DOWN since 2013. Developers, those listed in Bursa are still reporting profits, especially the usual prominent names. This meant that they were still able to sell… Banks are still earning huge profits. This meant they were still lending… Many buyers have gotten keys to the units they bought in 2012, 2013. They were still able to pay their mortgages, most probably because they still have a job… Moving on to some actions on the ground.
Recent launches have been pretty hot (as in selling), especially landed properties and they are not in the usual hotspots. They are usually a little further away but priced pretty attractively. For landed properties, my personal thought is that anything below RM600,000 would be considered attractive, still. Perhaps it may attract a married couple, both working and has a baby. It is highly unlikely for people to buy landed properties over an hour away from KL city centre just to rent it out substantially below the mortgage that they pay. One example? 1 hour ‘sold out’ landed property launch Another one happened almost the same time. Paramount Property’s recent 204 units launch named Keranji was also fully sold within a few hours. Here’s that full report in theedgemarkets.com The site is in Salak Perdana, Sepang. This project is located within its Greenwoods township. As reported in the article, Paramount Property division CEO Beh Chun Chong shared that some 300 potential homebuyers started queuing up a day before the launch, despite the rain. “Many of them were queuing patiently with their umbrellas. The unit selection started at 9am and ended at 11.30am with 100% of [the homes] taken up on Saturday.” He added that their main target market comprises families using the houses for their own stay. Built-ups for the intermediate units are 1,775 sq ft, with prices starting from RM479,900 for the intermediate units. End corner units have built-ups of 1,776 sq ft (priced from RM576,900) and 2,020 sq ft (priced from RM684,400).
The development is accessible via highways such as the ELITE Expressway, North South Expressway and Maju Expressway. The amenities in the vicinity include hypermarkets such as Tesco, Giant, KIP Mart, Home Mart and recreational areas such as Taman Tasik Teratai, Stadium Mini Majlis Perbandaran Sepang and Nilai Springs Golf & Country Club. There are also many educational institutions nearby too. They include Smart Reader Kids Kindergarten, KLIA Primary School, Nilai International School, SMK Seri Sepang and East College of Technology. Medical institutions such as Nilai Medical Centre, Hospital Putrajaya and National Cancer Institute, Putrajaya. Keranji is expected to be completed by May 2020. (Just two years away)
If I am still single or just gotten married and both my wife and I are working in KL city centre, it is highly unlikely for us to buy a place which is over 50km away. However, if I have a family and my preference is for a landed property and yet I am not the super-wealthy, then the only way forward is for me to consider areas further away which at this moment is still not loved by the majority. As for that age-old question of whether these far-away properties would appreciate or not, let me just remind everyone that one upon a time, many of the happening places today were once secondary forests, huge plantations or even former mines… When these NEARER areas (to KL city centre) continues to appreciate in value (price), then the further away areas would just follow. Happy buying a home sweet home, regardless of where they may be.
written on 5 April 2018
Next suggested article: Buying in the secondary market
