PropertyGuru’s Sustainability Report 2024 Charts Progress on Inclusive Listings, Sustainable Living Choices, and Decarbonisation

PropertyGuru’s Sustainability Report 2024 Charts Progress on Inclusive Listings, Sustainable Living Choices, and Decarbonisation

• According to a PropertyGuru 2024 survey, 83% of Malaysians are willing to pay a premium for a home with sustainable features, with 77% factoring climate risks into property decisions
• ‘Everyone Welcome’ tag recently launched in Malaysia, promoting inclusive rental listings across races, genders, and religions
• PropertyGuru Group transitioned to 100% renewable energy for direct operations and enhances climate risk data to support informed homebuying choices

Kuala Lumpur, May 14, 2025 – PropertyGuru Group (‘The Group’ or ‘PropertyGuru’), Southeast Asia’s leading property technology (“PropTech”) company, released its ‘Sustainability Report 2024’, reinforcing its ambition to help build more inclusive, climate-resilient cities amid growing urban pressures. With nearly 63% of the total population of Southeast Asia expected to live in urban areas by 2050, the report outlines how PropertyGuru is leveraging data, digital tools, and strategic partnerships to drive positive impact across the housing ecosystem.

According to insights from PropertyGuru’s 2024 survey, 83% of Malaysians are willing to pay a premium for a home with sustainable features, prioritising benefits such as reduced utility costs, improved climate resilience, and long-term value retention. With 32 million monthly visits from property seekers and 50,000 active real estate agents across the region, PropertyGuru delivers new platform innovations and data-driven insights that directly address pressing challenges of the property market.

“The demand for sustainable and inclusive housing is growing, and at PropertyGuru, we’re responding with actionable solutions,” said Cécile Corda, Head of Sustainability, PropertyGuru Group. “By equipping property seekers and real estate stakeholders with the tools to make informed, sustainable choices, we’re helping to build cities that are not only resilient but grounded in principles of inclusivity — driving meaningful change in the housing market.”

Equipping Property Stakeholders with the Tools to Make Sustainable Choices  

Demand for sustainable living grows in Southeast Asia, with 77% of Malaysians factoring in climate risks in their homebuying decisions, according to a PropertyGuru 2024 survey. PropertyGuru Malaysia provided data-driven insights, including historical disaster data across flood-prone, landslide-risk, and infrastructure-damaged areas nationwide. These localised insights allowed property developers to better assess risks at the neighbourhood level and make safer, more informed decisions. PropertyGuru has also produced educational content for Malaysians on understanding and climate-proofing properties, further reinforcing its role in public awareness.

Promoting Inclusive Housing and Community Wellbeing

Following the successful launch of the ‘Everyone Welcome’ tag in Singapore last year — a feature that highlights rental listings where landlords are open to tenants of all races, genders, and religions — the feature just launched in Malaysia. It empowers property seekers to make more confident decisions, while encouraging agents and landlords to embrace diversity and inclusive practices. 

This is part of PropertyGuru’s broader, ongoing effort to create a fairer property market. In addition to the tag, the Group enforces strong listing guidelines, uses language moderation tools to detect discriminatory content, and provides users with a reporting mechanism to flag bias.

PropertyGuru Malaysia also expanded its community involvement. Volunteers partnered with The Lost Food Project to recover 2,600kg of surplus food, which was distributed to 16 charities across the Klang Valley. This effort provided over 7,600 meals and prevented more than 6 tonnes of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere.

Continuing its efforts to foster inclusion within the Group, this year PropertyGuru will roll out a ‘Women Leaders Programme’ and form a women’s employee resource group in Malaysia. These initiatives aim to create a more inclusive, supportive workplace environment and pave the way for greater representation in leadership roles.

Turning Sustainability Ambition into Action

A strong commitment to climate action is at the core of the Group’s sustainability efforts. After establishing its GHG emissions baseline, the Group focused on reducing its impact related to Scope 2 emissions, achieving net-zero status for direct operations through a transition to 100% renewable energy.

Recognising that its data infrastructure contributes significantly to energy usage, PropertyGuru has moved to more energy-efficient cloud solutions. This shift reduces the carbon footprint of its platforms and further advances its decarbonisation journey — reinforcing its sustainable practices within the PropTech sector.

Kenneth Soh, Country Manager of PropertyGuru Malaysia, said, “Our data shows a clear shift in where Malaysians are searching for homes. Areas like Kota Emerald, Kuah, and Ulu Kelang have recorded more than 100 percent year-on-year search growth, driven by affordability and value. This reflects a growing concern among buyers, especially those aged 25 to 34, 60 percent of whom believe prices will continue to rise. To meet this demand, the industry must not only keep affordability in focus but also rethink how sustainable features can be integrated into mid-market and rental segments. The future of housing in Malaysia hinges on how quickly we can make sustainable living a realistic option for the majority, not just a premium few.”

“PropertyGuru remains dedicated to playing its part by equipping home seekers and industry stakeholders with actionable insights, promoting inclusivity in housing, and supporting initiatives that help make sustainable living more accessible to all.” 

For more information, download the full PropertyGuru Sustainability Report 2024 here.

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