NIBONG TEBAL: A total of 368 low-cost and low medium-cost houses are being built at Taman Sungai Duri Permai near here for the people in south Seberang Prai district.

They comprise 224 units of low-cost terrace, 114 units of low medium-cost terrace and 30 units of low medium-cost semi-detached houses. The low-cost units are built in townhouse style, with two units occupying each double-storey townhouse.

The houses, under the Penang government’s privatised housing programme, are expected to be completed by the end of October, said state Housing, Urban and Town Planning Committee chairman Wong Hon Wai.

Wong said the low-cost units are priced at RM38,000, low medium-cost units at between RM80,000 and RM104,760 while the semi-detached units are priced between RM90,000 and RM112,200.

“The Pakatan Rakyat state government will continue to approve and build low and medium-cost houses to meet the needs and demands of the people in the state.

“It is our commitment to provide sufficient affordable homes for the poor and the middle income group,” Wong said after visiting the RM28mil project undertaken by Asas Dunia Bhd in Sungai Duri yesterday.

He said only those whose monthly income was below RM2,500 were eligible to apply for the houses through the state housing department or their assemblyman.

Wong said the state had approved low and medium-cost housing projects in all five districts in the state under its privatised housing programme but could not provide details on the number of projects approved.

He said some developers had yet to start their projects due to factors like squatter problems and ground works.

Source: The Star

VISITORS to the 10th Penang Fur-niture Exhibition (Penfurnex) exhibition will be spoilt for choice as 96 exhibitors have set up 430 booths showcasing a wide range of furniture and home fixtures.

The three-day exhibition, which ends tomorrow, will be held at the Penang International Sports Arena (PISA) from 11am to 9pm.

Organising chairman Richard Ooi said the event themed ‘Modern. Simple. Characteristic’ was organised by the Penang Furniture Manufacturers and Dealers Asso- ciation (PFMDA).

He said PFMDA was emphasising the state’s ‘Go Green’ campaign at the exhibition by setting up a corner called ‘Green Home and Healthy Living’ to raise awareness among the public.

PFMDA president Ngai Chin Soon said the association would donate RM5,000 from proceeds of the exhibition to the SJKC Beng Teik (Pusat) building committee.

He was speaking during the start of the event yesterday which also saw the launch of the quarterly magazine titled ‘Furniture Malaysia’.

Ooi said the magazine provided players in the furniture industry with an opportunity to share information.

He said the magazine, priced at RM6, would be available at bookstores and retail outlets.

The event also saw trophies presented to winners of the Best Booth Design competition.

Gama Marketing Sdn Bhd won the first prize while Yo Soon Timber Sdn Bhd and Glass House Enterprise bagged the second and third prizes respectively.

Visitors to the exhibition can take part in several competitions, in- cluding the ‘Buy and Win’ lucky draw contest, and stand a chance to win prizes worth more than RM65,000.

Admission to the exhibition is free.

GEORGE TOWN: The general election appears to be a factor in property purchasing decisions by certain investors, a survey carried out by an online property portal has revealed.

PropertyGuru, Asia’s leading property portal, and its Malaysian arm HomeGuru, have said 40 per cent of over 2,000 respondents of a survey carried out in Malaysia have said they will buy properties after the elections, while 49 per cent stated the polls would have no effect on their buying decision.

“About 800 of our respondents feel the coming general election will affect their property buying decision and say they will buy properties only after the election,” HomeGuru Sdn Bhd country manager Steven Tan told Business Times.

The findings were part of the company’s “Malaysia Property Sentiment Survey” for the second half of 2011.

He said 18 per cent of the respondents said they used the Internet to do a research on property market trends, 16 per cent for home loan packages, 15 per cent for real estate agents and 15 per cent scoured online for auction properties.

Tan was in Penang on Thursday with AllProperty Media Pte Ltd group chief executive officer Steve Melhuish to relaunch Property-Guru’s northern region property website, Fullhouse.com.my.

Other finds of the survey included the fact that 20 per cent of its respondents said potential profit from capital appreciation of property is the most attractive reason to invest in property.

“About 19 per cent say property investment is good for retirement planning and 18 per cent see property as solid and safe investment,” Tan added.

“Our sentiment survey indicates that north Malaysia will continue to experience a sharp growth due to high demand from local and overseas buyers in the next two years,” Melhuish said.

“This is based on the fact that an average of 46 per cent of 120 survey respondents from northern Malaysia – notably Penang – say that property prices for apartments/condominiums, terrace and link-houses and town houses are reasonable.”

PropertyGuru, which was founded in 2006, has a presence in 8 countries, including offices in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand, along with partnerships with property websites in Australia, Hong Kong, India and Macau.

SOURCE: Business Times

KUALA LUMPUR: Investors looking for exposure to the Penang property market have naturally gravitated to the island, with Eastern & Oriental Bhd (E&O) being the current hot favourite. They have largely ignored the mainland.

But if the latest sales numbers from leading mainland Penang player Tambun Indah Land Bhd are any indication, property companies focusing on the mainland could look as interesting as those across the narrow South Straits that separates it from Penang island.

Listed in January this year, Tambun Indah, a leading mainland Penang property player, on Thursday announced a 54.2% jump in revenue for 1HFY11 ended June 30 from RM57.32 million to RM88.4 million.

In a statement, managing director Teh Kiak Seng attributed the increase to contributions from ongoing development projects.

However, higher costs narrowed the growth in pre-tax profit to 16%, or RM21.76 million in 1HFY11, compared with RM18.76 million in 1HFY10. Due to higher minority interests, net profit fell 16% to RM11.12 million in 1HFY11, or 5.03 sen per share, compared with RM13.25 million in 1HFY10. The group registered a net profit of RM23.76 million in 2009, slightly higher than RM23.47 million a year before.

The substantial jump in revenue may be an indication that the property boom on wealthy Penang island is spilling over to the mainland. And the company offers good dividends too. It has proposed an interim single-tier dividend of 4.6 sen, to be paid on Sept 7. This translates into a net dividend yield of 6.1%.

"We commenced construction of five new projects in 1HFY11, recognising the rising demand for residential properties following the rapid industrial developments in mainland Penang. At the same time, we noted positive take-up rates for our ongoing Pearl Garden and Pearl Villa developments, which together constitute approximately half of 1HFY11 group revenue," Teh said.

Tambun Indah embarked on five new projects in 1HFY11 – Pearl Villas, Dahlia Park, Impian Residence, Tanjung Heights and Capri Park. Teh expects these projects to contribute to the group's performance in the remaining half of FY11 ending December.

"At present, our GDV [gross development value] stands at RM1.7 billion, which will last us until 2016, with unbilled sales of RM225 million," he wrote, adding that he is optimistic of the group's performance for the remaining half of FY11.

Tambun Indah started operations in 1995. Its maiden project was Taman Tambun Indah, a township of over 800 houses, 300 bungalows, 40 semi-detached units, shop offices and terraced houses. The group has a landbank of over 121ha, mainly in mainland Penang.

In a year that saw most IPOs falling under water, Tambun Indah's shares were last traded at 76 sen, up 8.6% from the IPO price of 70 sen. The stock has traded between 86.5 sen and 65.5 sen since it was listed, and is currently trading at 1.1 times its book value of 68 sen as at June 30.

The company has a market capitalisation of RM168 million. Based on annualised earnings for 1HFY11, it is trading at a price-earnings ratio of around 7.6 times earnings for this year.

In an earlier note issued during the listing, MIMB Research said it expects Tambun Indah's net profit to grow by 10% in 2011 and 11% in 2012, mainly underpinned by property projects in the pipeline with a GDV of RM1 billion. "Dividend yield of 7% to 8% is one of the highest in the property sector. We value Tambun Indah Land at a fair value of 81 sen, based on a 30% discount to realiasable net asset value," it said.

SOURCE: The Edge Property

Stramax Residences is a Gated and Guarded residential development  located along Jalan Kenari within the  established township of Sungai Ara, Penang. This development comprises 85 units of 3-storey terrace, 22 units of  3-storey townhouse.

Property Project : Stramax Residences
Location : Sungai Ara, Penang
Property Type : 3-storey terrace & townhouse
Tenure : Freehold
Total Units : 85 (3-storey Terrace), 22 (3-storey Townhouse)
Developer : Palmex Industries
Contact No: 04-646 9022 / 04-646 9023
Indicative Price: RM 1,500,000 onwards

Location Map: