This is the assessment from Valuation and Property Services Department (JPPH) director Ahmad Zailan Azizuddin. Article in edgeprop.my here. He predicted that the property market in H1 2019 to be resilient and then followed by a gradual improvement in market activity. This prediction is backed by JPPH’s data which showed positive increments or only marginal declines in the movement of property market activities recently.
Ahmad Zailan said, “In 2018, the residential sub-sector had continued to lead the overall market, with a contribution of 63.4% in volume and 53.7% in value. Residential properties in established areas with efficient connectivity continued to experience capital increases. However, the occurrence of overhang and unsold completed residential properties significantly increased in certain areas which involved mostly high-rise residential units.”
For the commercial sub-sector, there has been a slight improvement in 2018. “The occupancy rates of both purpose-built offices and shopping complexes were encouraging, with most states attaining rates of above 80%. The industrial sub-sector also showed a substantial increase in value in line with the sentiment of Industrial Revolution 4.0.” He stressed that the government will have to continue its role via economic growth, accommodative monetary policy as well as to provide continuous incentives for the housing sector as this will then help to sustain the momentum in the property sector. The government’s top priority is to ensure that houses are made accessible and more affordable for Malaysians.
He then added something which I agree fully as well. He shared JPPH’s proposal to the government to have a committee to monitor the cost of development components to see how housing prices can be made more affordable in the country. He said, “I believe it will benefit the M40 and B40 groups greatly. However, the government should not be seen as controlling the price of residential property but to ensure that the housing price offered is more competitive and affordable to all people.” Article in edgeprop.my here.
When this ‘committee’ understands the cost of development components thoroughly, the government would be able to come up with better policies which can help ensure more Malaysian households own / start to own a property. We will see if this JPPH’s proposal is taken up and implemented. Happy following.
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written on 15 Feb 2019
Next suggested article: Bangsar South? Where’s that. I meant in the future
