Ecoworld Gallery at Batu Kawan

Six developers will launch more than RM6.29bil worth of properties in the country this year amid a backdrop of property glut and rising bank interest rates.

Ideal Property Sdn Bhd will launch properties with a total gross development value (GDV) of with RM550mil, IJM Land Bhd RM987mil, Mah Sing Group Bhd RM2.2bil, Aspen (Group) Holdings Ltd RM959mil and Eastern & Oriental Bhd RM1.6bil.

Eco World Development Group Bhd has yet to finalise the GDV for its new projects in the country, while SP Setia Bhd is still deciding on a new launch.

Mah Sing

The majority of the properties planned are priced below RM1mil. Mah Sing is focusing more on units which are in the price range of between RM328,000 and RM550,000.

Executive chairman Tan Sri Leong Hoy Kum says the group will focus on developing affordable products for the mass market.

“Mid-range products will spur growth in the immediate term. About 74% of the targeted sales are priced below RM500,000,” he adds. Up to 70% of their buyers are below the age of 40. It will leverage on the digital marketing to reach out to the younger target audience, he says.

Leong says the market was supported by Malaysia’s young demographic and growing population.

Citing HSBC Housing Survey 2017, Leong says 94% of Malaysian millennials have yet to own a property and plan to do so in the next five years, which effectively means there will be “long-term demand”.

Ideal Property

In Penang there is growing demand for serviced apartments although there is quite a large segment of that in the Klang Valley currently.

Ideal Property plans to launch the RM550mil Sunsuri Residences, a serviced apartment project in Bayan Lepas this year.

Executive chairman Tan Sri Alex Ooi, dubbed the Condo King of Penang, says the Sunsuri Residences will provide good rental yield of about 6% per annum.

“Investors can rent out their units at about RM280 per night.

“Based on the daily rental and selling price of the units at around RM439,000, the yield per annum is about 6%,” he said.

The Sunsuri Residences with built-up areas of 600 sq ft and 800 sq ft are priced between RM439,000 and RM654,000.

According to Ooi, the younger generation will look to generating rental income with their properties.

“There is interest among young entrepreneurs to invest in serviced apartments to generate a monthly income.

“Although there are many hotels and AirBnB units on the island, some of them are not properly run and lack professional management.

“We plan to bring in a reputable management company to run the Sunsuri Residences,” he added.

EcoWorld

EcoWorld is planning five projects for Penang, Iskandar Malaysia, and Kuala Lumpur. In Batu Kawan, Penang, the group plans to launch Brydon, the second of collection of Eco Horizon, comprising terraced, semi-detached, super-link, and linked-semi-detached houses.

EcoWorld (north) general manager Chan Soo How says the first collection for Eco Horizon, Ashton, did very well, having sold 70% since the launch last September.

The Ashton landed units are sold from RM840,000 onwards.

“This is why we are launching Brydon, the second collection this year, comprising bungalows and semi-detached houses,” he added.

According to Chan, 2018 will be tough for the property market but with the right location, connectivity, product type and concept, demand can be strong.

“Malaysia’s strong fundamentals bode well for the outlook going forward.

“For example, Malaysia’s population is young with an average age of 30 to 31 years old.

“Unemployment remains low at just over 3%. GDP is projected to grow further. The GDP was 6.2% in the third quarter of 2017,” Chan says.

Eastern & Oriental Bhd.

Like other developers, Eastern & Oriental Bhd’s RM1.6bil worth of properties are in Penang, Johor Baru and Kuala Lumpur.

They include the final phases of The Ariza Seafront Terraces (RM28mil GDV) and 18 East Andaman (RM632mil) in Seri Tanjung Pinang, Penang, the Avira Garden Terraces (RM80mil) in Medini Central, Johor Baru, and RM880mil worth of serviced apartments in Kuala Lumpur.

E&O senior general manager (marketing and sales) Wayne Wong says this year’s outlook is positive but muted, given the continued tight mortgage financing environment coupled with other global headwinds.

“Penang is expected to remain our key revenue driver, especially with the realisation of the Seri Tanjung Pinang (STP) 2 project. Sales in Penang have been promising despite the soft market conditions,” he says.

Penang projects have consistently contributed about 80% of its revenue in recent years.

Wong says the company will leverage on pockets of stronger sentiment across the region, which will involve enhancing their value proposition by devising appealing product packages and working with the banks to structure attractive financing packages.

“Our properties have been appealing to foreign buyers for their distinctive concept, craftsmanship, location in tandem with the recent recovery of the ringgit which has further injected greater confidence from investors to the market,” he adds.

Aspen Group

Aspen (Group) Holdings Ltd president and chief executive officer Datuk M Murly says the group expecs the property market to improve. It will launch the HH Park Residence at Tanjung Bungah with a GDV of RM613mil and Viluxe Designer Bungalows worth RM346mil in GDV. There are plans to set up a new customer experience centre in Tanjung Bungah to showcase HH Park Residence.

Murly says the group’s focus is on established locations where the brand positioning of the developer and the project play an important role in launches.

“As purchasers have more choices, they will prefer to buy from reputable brands. A good location, fitted and furnished units are always our strategies.

“We have managed to attract catalyst investments in Aspen Vision City which will help to boost the commercial viability and ecosystem of the entire development,” says Murly.

He says Aspen has started construction for Beacon Executive Suite and the take-up rate is positive.

IJM Land

At IJM Land, senior general manager (north) Datuk Toh Chin Leong says the group anticipates a pick-up in the second half of 2018.

IJM Land Bhd plans to launch the RM156mil Sanctuary Ridge landed properties in Bukit Mertajam, the RM318mil 3 Residence at Karpal Singh Drive, and the RM513mil Mezzo for The Light Waterfront second phase next to the Penang Bridge soon.

SP Setia

SP Setia Bhd (north) general manager Ng Han Seong says the plan is to have a launch this year.

“We are still studying the options,” Ng says.

Following Bank Negara’s decision to raise the overnight policy rate (OPR) by 25 basis points, banks in the country have raised their lending rates to 3.25% from 3% previously.

Current housing interest rates hover around 4.65% compared with 4.25% previously.

Source: TheStar.com.my

Situated in 12 acres land in the heart of thriving Seberang Jaya township, Sunway Carnival mall has established itself as a major suburban shopping mall since opening in 2007. The expansion will be implemented in phases with Phase 1 to be completed by November 2020, featuring more than 1.2 million sqft GFA with a new face lift.

Sunway Construction Group Bhd (SunCon)’s unit has been appointed as the project delivery partner for the proposed expansion of a nine-storey commercial development to an existing mall for a total contract sum of RM274 million.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, SunCon said Sunway Construction Sdn Bhd (SCSB) accepted the letter of award by SA Architects Sdn Bhd, on behalf of Sunway REIT Management Sdn Bhd, which acts as the manager for Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (Sunway REIT).

SCSB is tasked to plan, coordinate, build and complete the development to the existing Sunway Carnival Mall in Seberang Jaya within the project period of 32 months from March this year till November 2020.

The upgrading of the federal road from Teluk Kumbar to Penang International Airport in Bayan Lepas has been completed, making commuting between the two areas faster and more convenient.

The RM207.7mil project included the upgrading of two overhead bridges, a four-lane 750m elevated structure from Jalan Teluk Kumbar to the airport and also an elevated U-turn.

The upgraded 3km four-lane road was upgraded to ease access to the second Penang bridge and to cut travelling time from 30 minutes to 10 minutes during peak hours.

The Works Ministry’s corporate communications unit in a statement said the project started on February 2014 and was completed on Dec 23 last year.

“The upgrading of the road is also aimed at promoting the growth of the local economy in Teluk Kumbar and Balik Pulau.”

Penang Works, Utilities and Transportation Committee chairman Lim Hock Seng thanked the Federal government for the project as it would serve the people especially in the Balik Pulau area well.

“It is a straight road and will give them direct passage.

Source: TheStar.com.my

A proposed mixed landed residential development by Hartamas Bestari Sdn. Bhd. at Kubang Semang, a small township in Central Seberang Perai district. It is just a stone’s throw away from Taman Seri Mengkuang, about 15 drive from Penang Bridge via Butterworth – Kulim Expressway.

This development comprises a mix of 2-storey terrace, semi-detached and shop houses:

• 2-storey semi-detached (12 units)
• 2-storey terrace (61 units)
• 2-storey shop office (27 units)

This project is still pending for approval, more details to be available upon official project launch.

Project Name: (to be confirmed)
Location : Kubang Semang
Property Type : Mixed development
Tenure : Freehold
Total Units: 12 (semi-detached), 61 (terrace), 27 (shop office)
Indicative Price: (to be confirmed)
Developer : Hartamas Bestari Sdn. Bhd.

Location Map:

The Malaysian property market is expected to remain weak in the first half of this year amid flagging demand ahead of the upcoming general election, an independent property consultant said.

Knight Frank Malaysia, a unit of London-based Knight Frank LLP, said the property market is expected to continue its lacklustre momentum from the second half of last year which as the performance was derailed by oversupplied position in the main sub-sectors such as high-end residential, office and retail.

“The second half of 2017 continued to see developers shifting their focus to the middle-income and affordable housing segments to cater to a wider target catchment amid challenges in the high-end market,” managing director Sarkunan Subramaniam said.

He said there was also mounting pressures on occupancy and rental levels for tenant-favoured office market as the increasing high supply pipeline continued to overshadow low absorption.

However, he said the mid- to longer-term prospect remained positive as more retailers embrace the concept of “clicks and mortar” amid the e-commerce boom, while owners and mall operators continued to undertake asset enhancement initiatives to reposition their assets in the changing retail landscape.

Sarkunan said the recent property freeze might provide a breather to the oversupplied markets but was not expected to correct the oversupply situation in the short to medium term.

“The property market will continue to self-correct as it looks to find its equilibrium,” he said.

Meanwhile, Knight Frank’s report entitled “Real estate highlights for the second half of 2017” found that secondary market pricing and rental remained flat during the review period for high-end condominium market in Kuala Lumpur.

“Despite the weak market sentiment, sequels to selected projects were launched at higher pricing but with more discounts,” it said.

It said that more developers diversified their target market to other countries/ overseas territories such as Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Taiwan following China’s capital control.

It added that the 50% tax exemption on rental income amounting up to RM2,000 a month as announced under Budget 2018 might also improved demand for this category of investment properties.

The report said office market for Kuala Lumpur and Selangor continued to self-correct as increasing supply shadowed low absorption.

“Negative absorption of Kuala Lumpur office space following downsizing and consolidation of the oil and gas and its related sectors,” it said.

However, it said the demand for Multimedia Super Corridor certified space remained resilient.

The report also highlighted the expansion of net lettable area (NLA) of retail spaces in the Klang Valley by approximately 72,464 square metres brought the cumulative supply to approximately 5.33 million square metres, or about 0.65 square metre per person, as one of the highest in the region.

On Penang’s property market, the report said the state’s office market remained relatively healthy with both occupancy rates and rentals holding steady.

“The condominium sub-sector is still consolidating while the retail sub-sector is expected to face further challenges with additional incoming supply poised to come into the market in 2019,” it said.

The report also highlighted the postponing of new residential project launches in Johor Baru as developers were clearing existing stocks by offering attractive discounts and incentives.

It said notable developments and catalytic projects in other sectors such as the Coastal Highway Southern Link, Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex and Desaru Coast Golf Course were expected to help support the growth in residential, commercial and retail sub-sectors in Iskandar Malaysia and Johor, in general.

On Kota Kinabalu’s property market, it said the high supply pipeline of residential properties, particularly high-rise units from recently completed and soon to be completed projects is expected to exert pressures on the capital and rental market.

It added that there is no new incoming supply of purpose-built offices but the market has plateaued with overall occupancy hovering at a healthy level.

Source: TheSunDaily.my