Most Malaysians say property expensive (so far I have never heard anyone say their country property is cheap too
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Some 75% of Malaysians feel that all property types in Malaysia are expensive, and three in four persons believe the government is not doing enough to keep prices affordable.
These are some of the findings by PropertyGuru.com.my in its Property Sentiments Survey 2012. Its group CEO Steve Melhuish says buyer sentiment, however, is strong and demand is still present despite the findings.
PropertyGuru Group, Asia’s market leader for online residential and commercial property, announced these findings as well as outstanding results for its Malaysian-based portal at a recent media luncheon.
The survey found that an average of 30% of respondents feel that apartments or condominiums and terrace houses are most affordable. Some 55% owners of terrace houses are interested in upgrading to another terrace house whereas 30% are looking for semi-detached houses.
On top of that, some 63% of first-time buyers are looking to purchase property in the country, with Selangor (31%) being the choice destination, followed by Kuala Lumpur (25%), Johor (13%) and Penang (16%).
Besides that, 12% of respondents are interested in overseas investment, with 80% of them being in the high-income group (above RM5,000). Among the top destinations of choice are Australia, Singapore, the UK, Indonesia and Thailand.
Some 70% of respondents agree the announcement from Budget 2013—to build 123,000 affordable homes at a cost of RM1.9 billion in key locations such as Kuala Lumpur, Shah Alam, Johor Baru, Seremban and Kuantan—will help provide affordable housing in the country.
On top of that, 67% of respondents agree that amendments to My First Home Scheme (by increasing the income limit for individual loans from RM3,000 to RM5,000 per month or joint loans of husband and wife of up to RM10,000 per month) will help in providing affordable housing in the country.
PropertyGuru’s newly appointed country manager, Gerard Kho says they see a trend where types of homes are changing according to affordability.
“There are more projects within the range of RM300,00 to RM400,000 compared to RM600,000 in the past years. You’ll find smaller units in the city, and larger units out of town, which I say fits the gap very well,” he says.
Kho brings a wealth of experience to his new position, having a decade of expertise in fast developing real estate markets such as Australia, Singapore and Malaysia.
He will oversee all aspects of PropertyGuru’s Malaysian-based operation—in KL, Penang and the Iskandar region in Johor. He will also promote the company’s rapid expansion within the online portal market amongst consumers and advertiser clients.
PropertyGuru ended last year with strong emphasis placed on mobile innovation and developing its brand identity. It also extended its market leadership position in the region, seeing rapid growth in both revenue and traffic numbers.
“It was an amazing year for PropertyGuru with performance completely exceeding expectations in all countries. I’m sure 2013 will be another exciting year. We’ll continue to create innovation in our services, brand and improve the experience for our property searchers and advertiser clients,” says Melhuish.