Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has given banking institutions until end-2019 to revise “unfair” terms and conditions, and improve clarity by using plain language for both new and existing housing loan and financing contracts.

In addition, the central bank in its Financial Stability and Payment Systems Report 2018, revealed that the Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM) and the Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM) are also working with banking institutions to review the standardised key terms and conditions for housing loan agreements involving a principal sum of RM500,000 and below to address concerns that have been raised by BNM.

BNM said financial service providers (FSPs) are expected to ensure fairness and clarity of terms and conditions in the contracts entered by them with retail customers and small and medium enterprises.

A thematic review on housing loan and financing contracts to identify terms and conditions that were inconsistent with reasonable expectations of fair conduct towards financial consumers was conducted last year by BNM.

From the review, it found that some of the terms and conditions were “disproportionately skewed in favour of the banking institutions and to the detriment of consumers”.

These included terms and conditions that provide absolute exclusions or limitations of a banking institution’s liability and obligations, and place undue reliance on signed declarations to assert that financial consumers have read and understood a contract.

“Some terms and conditions were found to be unnecessarily complex with the use of excessive legal and technical jargon that did not aid clear understanding by consumers.

“Following the review, banks were required to revise the unfair terms and conditions by end 2019,” said the central bank.

These initiatives, said BNM, are consistent with a recent landmark ruling by the Federal Court in December 2018 which held that a commercial bank could not rely on absolute exclusion of liability clauses typically found in most banking agreements to shield itself from being sued for negligence by consumers.

The Federal Court opined that, in reality, the bargaining powers of the parties in banking agreements are unequal, whereby if a financial consumer wished to obtain financial services from banking institutions, the financial consumer has to accept the terms and conditions of a standard contract prepared by the banking institutions.

In this regard, the Federal Court was of the view that there would be patent unfairness and injustice to allow the banking institutions’ absolute exclusion clause to deny the plaintiff’s rights in this case and applied the principle of public policy in arriving at its decision.

Furthermore, the Federal Court emphasised that section 24(c) of the Contracts Act 1950 provides that the consideration or object of an agreement is not lawful if it is opposed to public policy.

Source: EdgeProp.my

It is definitely a historical and proud day for Aspen Group and IKEA Southeast Asia when Vervea High Street and the Aspen Vision City’s Central Island Park successfully entered the Malaysia Book of Records (MBR).

Both development projects are located within Aspen Vision City, a joint venture development between Aspen Group and IKEA Southeast Asia.

Aspen Group managing director Anilarasu Amaranazan said the three records attained were the largest ETFE canopy walkway in Malaysia, the longest ETFE canopy walkway in Malaysia, and the highest water jet in Malaysia.

“ETFE is a translucent polymer sheeting that is used instead of glass and hard plastic in some modern buildings. The advantages offset the cost. It is durable and has a long product lifespan.

“It is also recyclable and able to transmit up to 95% of light. The ETFE roof not only keeps out the heat but allows the interior to be bathed in warm and natural lighting.

“The Vervea High Street, at 300m in length and 40m in width, will become the main artery for attractions,” he said during the award presentation ceremony at Aspen Vision City, Batu Kawan today.

He added that the Central Island Park featured a wind-resistant water jet that shoots at an approximate height of over 50m.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said Aspen Group has strived to create a sustainable environment.

“The Penang government compliments Aspen Group for thinking out of the box. We encourage developers to be more ambitious, which can contribute towards making Penang a greener and smarter state.

“We are confident that Batu Kawan will have a booming economy by 2030 with Penang Development Corporation (PDC) being the master planner alongside developers like Aspen Group, for the development of Bandar Cassia township in Batu Kawan,” Chow said.

Also present were Bukit Tambun assemblyman Goh Choon Aik, Aspen Group president and chief executive officer Datuk M. Murly and Malaysia Book of Records chief executive officer Datuk Michael Tio.

Source: Buletin Mutiara

Penang 757 Residence, an upcoming luxury condominium by Webest Land Sdn. Bhd. at Batu Maung. It is located along Jalan Permatang Damar Laut, adjacent to Sunway Mutiara housing scheme by Sunway Property.

This development will see the construction of a 24-storey building, comprises 41 residential units and 4 levels of car park. Residence facilities to be located at the second and top floor.

More details to be available upon official launch.

Project Name : Penang 757 Resience (to be confirmed)
Location : Batu Maung, Penang
Property Type : Condominium
Total Units: 41
No. of Storeys: 24 floors
Built-up Area: (to be confirmed)
Indicative Price: (to be confirmed)
Developer : Webest Land Sdn. Bhd.

Location Map:

by Anders Ong

Wondering when is the right time to purchase property? Had been on the lookout for perfect property since last year? People still saying property market are trending downwards for year 2019? Waiting for the latest launching? Afraid of buying the wrong property or afraid of losing current lifestyle due to loan commitment? The best time to purchase property might actually past if we had not keep updated with the current property market budget and initiative by the government. Current Penang situations:

• Soft primary property market with supply overweight the demand for new property.
• Soft secondary property market with people selling at lower profit margin.

In short, it is buyers’ market for year 2019 in Penang and with the latest Home Ownership Campaign property purchase from primary market can be even more attractive.

Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) 2019

The initiative tabled by the government to solve the property overhang issues and encourage Home Ownership among Malaysian. It enables Malaysian house-buyer to be exempted from paying the stamp duties for the purchase of residential property during the period of 1st January 2019 up to 30th June 2019.

Benefits:

• Stamp Duty on instruments of transfer waived for properties priced up to RM1Million

• Stamp Duty on loan agreements of up to RM2.5Million waived.

• A minimum 10% discount on the approved property selling price.

Eligibility:

• Only Malaysian home buyers allowed and purchase under an individual name.
• Sales and loan agreement must be signed and dated within the campaign period of 1st January 2019 until 30th June 2019.
• Must be residential property and only exempted for ONE unit per purchaser.
• Must be completed or under construction property governed by the Housing Development Act.
• The developer must have a valid developer’s license and Advertisement and Sales permit (APDL) or
• Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC).
• Property must be purchased from developer and not secondary market or auction market.
• Property in peninsular Malaysia must be registered under REHDA Malaysia.
• Property in Sabah and Sarawak must be registered under SHAREDA and SHEDA.

Anders Ong – Author, Young Property Investor and Enthusiast of Real Estate. 

Penang has been chosen as one of the best places to travel to by CNN Travel, alongside popular tourist destinations such as Spain and Greece, as well as various cities in the United States.

The American broadcaster placed Penang 15th on the list of its 19 best spring travel destinations but added that the destinations were listed in alphabetical order and not rank.

CNN Travel said spring was an ideal time to visit Penang Hill for an “authentic tropical rainforest adventure”.

It said people from all walks of life, ranging from thrill-seekers to the elderly, would find the 130-million-year-old rainforest an interesting place to explore, as it comes with a nature trail, treetop walk, and even an aerial trail to watch exotic bird species.
“The Habitat’s canopy walk, home to Langurs or Dusky Leaf monkeys, provides access to rare wildlife and stunning views of valleys, headlands, the city of Georgetown and the glittering Andaman Sea,” it said.

The destinations on the list include the Aegean Islands in Greece, due to its idyllic cruises, Barcelona in Spain for its museums including the famous Sagrada Familia, which has been under construction since 1882.

Also on the list was Cancun, Mexico, for its sand beaches and nature loving eco-activities in the south of the city.

Following that was the Keukenhof Gardens in Holland for its blooming tulips, while Ledbury, United Kingdom, was listed for its “Downton Abbey-worthy homes” as well as its beautiful picnic spots.

Other destinations include Malta, Marrakech in Morocco, Mendoza to Patagonia in Argentina, Munich in Germany, Naoshima Island in Japan, and Queenstown in New Zealand.

US destinations include the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Lake Tahoe in California, Las Vegas, Orlando in Florida, Puerto Rico, St Louis Zoo in Missouri and Washington DC.

Source: TheStar.com.my