KPKT’s Plan to Transform Commercial Buildings into Homes

KPKT’s Plan to Transform Commercial Buildings into Homes

Study first since there are lots of things to look at before anything can be put forth

Anyone would have driven past some commercial buildings which has been abandoned. It could have been a factory but is no longer in operation. When it comes to production, the margin is usually small and thus any changes in the market could be fatal to the factory. Some of these abandoned or even unused commercial buildings have been transformed into something else. For example, a cafe… maybe even a n event space…

Now there’s this suggestion to turn these abandoned commercial buildings into affordable housing projects. In other words, instead of turning commercial buildings into some business / commercial use, we are potentially considering changing these into residential use too. Do read about what our KPKT Minister Aga Kor Ming is saying.

Article in EdgeProp.my The Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) is studying the proposal to redevelop abandoned commercial buildings into affordable housing projects.

“A comprehensive study covering legal, technical, and financial aspects is being conducted to ensure such initiatives can benefit the public without imposing additional fiscal strain on the government,” said its minister Nga Kor Ming (pictured) in a media release on Thursday. Article in EdgeProp.my

Legal Aspects?

Every piece of land has its usage pre-determined and this cannot suddenly be changed. For example, it could have been categorizes as “Agriculture,” “Building,” and “Industry,” and if there are changes, there would necessary approval and also a premium payment too. We could just simply change this because it could benefit the general public or certain groups requiring housing assistance. There’s more than this but at least this is one particular legal aspect.

Technical Aspects?

From the electrical to the piping to the corridors and even the doors to each unit, these requirements for the residential are already very different versus what is currently available at that abandoned commercial building. Even assuming the commercial building has a super high ceiling and we could actually have 2 levels, could the current structure support this? There will be a lot more because requirements for a home versus that of a commercial building are very different.

Financial Aspects?

This is one key aspect. Who will decide what to build… How would this be decided. Who will be the one paying for this conversion. If it’s the government, then from where the fund would come from. If it’s the private sector, then would they have incentives to do so? Already the property developers are saying that being forced to build affordable homes is one key reason why prices are high and why some affordable homes remain unsold even after completion. I would think this is the main thing and it’s not legal or technical.

Remember, the engineer in the right discipline will tell you when it’s technical, that means it’s solvable. Meanwhile for legal aspects, as long as there’s that benefit to the government and to the people, it’s definitely going to be approved. Thus, the key is… Show me the money!

Actually, it’s already happening. We just need to learn from the ones who have done it

Source: https://thinktv.org/repurposing-old-buildings-to-house-a-sustainable-future/

“A RentCafe analysis of Yardi Matrix data for Brick by Brick shows repurposing factories to apartments, created 25,000 units nationally from 2013-2023. In the Greater Cincinnati region, factories created more than 400 apartments in just three years.”  

Read the full article here: https://thinktv.org/repurposing-old-buildings-to-house-a-sustainable-future/

25,000 units repurposed from factories to apartments. Even though this is over a period of 10 years but 25,000 units is an amazing number! If just 2 person stay in one unit, we are able to build apartments to benefit 50,000 people simply by repurposing factories which are no longer in use into something which could now be used. Quite an amazing achievement right?

Will keep reading and informing the next update if any. Who knows, KPKT may want to engage me for some consultations too.

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