Malaysia - Housing

[winston]

New RM1-million mark for foreigners may hurt property market, says developers’ association BY LEE SHI-IAN

The Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (REHDA) has expressed its concern that the increase in foreign ownership threshold from RM500,000 to RM1 million across the board, may prove detrimental to the promotion of property acquisition by foreigners.

REHDA president Datuk Seri Michael KC Yam said the announcement made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday during the 2014 Budget presentation was contrary to the 10th Malaysia Plan's aspirations of providing better incentives for the Malaysia My 2nd Home programme.

"We have to take into account that in many urban areas outside Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang and Johor Baru, there is a very limited supply of properties priced above RM500,000. Properties which are priced above RM1 million outside the four states is almost non-existent," Yam said.

"These measures announced by the government will also restrict the development of smaller units such as studio and one-bedroom apartments as prices for such properties may not be above RM1 million." REHDA also expressed its disappointment on the government's ban of Developers Interest Bearing Scheme (DIBS), saying that the innovative home financing package offered by developers of high premium properties in certain hot areas in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Selangor and Johor should be encouraged.

"DIBS will greatly assist home buyers in upgrading and facilitating their acquisition costs. Banning DIBS altogether will place the pressure of high acquisition costs solely on genuine buyers, including first time buyers and Bumiputera buyers," He said.

He conceded that the requirement for housing developers to disclose all details pertaining to sales pricing, including benefits and incentives offered to buyers, would be a challenge for the industry both administratively and practically.

"Although the implementation of this new ruling has yet to be tested, REHDA anticipates that such practices may affect buyers' ability to purchase. This is because the buyer's incidental cost in cash over and above the deposit will need to be raised."

Yam welcomed the increase in real property gains tax (RPGT) from the current rate of between 10%-15% to between 15%-30% depending on the year of property disposal. He said it would curb activities by property speculators in certain segments.

"However, in reality, the presence of speculators in the property market is insignificant. The rise in RPGT will lead to delays in terms of property disposal by sellers, which will only further reduce supply into market," he said, adding that this in turn would cause prices to increase.

Yam also expressed concern that the flat rate of 30% RPGT charged for disposal of properties by foreigners could send out the wrong signal to foreign investors with regards to Malaysia's property investment and promotion policies.

"While the 2014 Budget may have taken the interests of all stakeholders into consideration, REHDA believes that the increase in house prices is due to inevitable cost push factors and the imbalance of supply relative to demand in certain segments of the market, especially in urban areas," Yam said. - October 26, 2013.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/mala ... -+Malaysia)

[winston]

Double whammy for buyers by chee su-lin for watch this space

THE recent budget dropped a double whammy for property buyers — an increase in real property gains tax (RPGT), ranging from 30% to 15% within five years, and the prohibition of Developer Interest Bearing Schemes (DIBS) where developers pay for interest on buyers’ loans during construction.

What will be the impact on the property market?

http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/SME/ ... -year.aspx

[winston]

New tax rate to keep away flippers by Shahanaaz Habib

Property prices have been spiralling and Budget 2014 introduced tough measures to cool prices down.

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2 ... ppers.aspx

[winston]

Five criteria for buying house

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2 ... sider.aspx

[winston]

Challenging outlook looms over property market by angie ng


http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi ... easures-t/

[winston]

Malaysia's property market to take a breather this year and next

by john loh

http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi ... -and-next/

[winston]

FURTHER FALLS possible in M'sia residential property market this year

http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index ... z2qhu2OEVI

[winston]

Property sector sees rebound by eugene mahalingam

PETALING JAYA: The property sector could see a rebound by the second half of the year, as buyer and investor confidence is expected to improve after a brief lull, experts said.

Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents president Siva Shanker admitted that the cooling measures announced in Budget 2014 have sent the property market into “a tailspin”.


http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi ... s-rebound/

[winston]

Oversupply of real estate in Malaysia short-term situation

“Mont Kiara (excluding the surrounding Segambut areas) has in the last 20 years built an estimated 20,000 units. Iskandar Malaysia, on the other hand, has built some 40,000 units in the last three years. All this has created a lot of pressure on supply and the market has already adjusted by staying away,” he told a press conference.

Siva forecast that property prices around the KLCC area will reach RM5,000 per sq ft within the next three to five years. “As it is, Four Seasons Place in Ampang is going at RM3,500 per sq ft.

http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi ... situation/

[winston]

Property deals drop, value of transactions rise, prices may rise by thean lee cheng AND cheryl poo

KUALA LUMPUR: Property transactions dropped in the first nine months of last year, said the Valuation and Property Services Department, confirming observations by real estate professionals that the market is slowing down.

Although the number of transactions was lower, there was an upward trajectory in value, an indication of rising prices.

The department’s deputy director-general Faizan Abdul Rahman said the residential sub-sector, which accounted for about 64% of the total property transactions, saw a 14% drop from a year earlier, with average house prices exceeding RM300,000.

Faizan said the commercial sub-sector saw a drop of 22.3%, compared with the previous year.

The industrial, agricultural and development sub-sectors saw reductions of about 20%, 13.6% and 8.3%, respectively.

The total number of transactions for the first nine months fell to 280,820 valued at almost RM106bil, compared with 328,692 in 2012 worth RM107bil.

Transactions in 2010 surpassed the RM100bil mark as a result of an extremely buoyant market, which started in 2009. It has been on an upward trajectory since then.

On the effect of the various tightening measures, organising chairman Choy Yue Kwong said they would curb excessive speculation.

Choy, who is Rahim and Co (Selangor) Sdn Bhd managing director, said the measures would discourage speculators from using bank loans to finance their purchases.

“The curbs are slowly taking effect. The measures will have a significant impact on speculation, especially speculators who depend on bank loans,” he said.

Choy added that the real property gains tax (RPGT), however, will have little effect on curbing speculative activities in the market.

He said the RPGT should have been introduced earlier when house prices were lowerand prices had appreciated faster, resulting in higher profit margins.

Prices had skyrocketed now, squeezing profit margins and rendering the RPGT less effective, he added.

CH Williams Talhar & Wong Sdn Bhd managing director Foo Gee Jen, meanwhile, said there was a mismatch between the demand for real estate and supply.

“There is an oversupply of high-end residential property in the market. Prices have gone up too much over the last few years. What people really need is affordably priced lower-to-mid-range housing,” said Foo.

“Developers will be pressured to cater to this market segment that is most in need. Having said that, the bright side is that the market is expected to stabilise with more realistic prices over the year.”

http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi ... s-to-rise/