Near completion: Mundy (right) together with the school’s director of parent engagement Jesse Rinkenberger showing the progress of the construction work on the school at Bandar Tasek Mutiara in Simpang Ampat, Penang.

Construction of Phase One of the GEMS International School of Pearl City, Penang, is now 60% complete and the school is set for intake in September as scheduled this year.

School principal Glen Mundy said the RM55mil international school in Bandar Tasek Mutiara in Simpang Ampat near Bukit Mertajam, Penang, had the groundbreaking ceremony in June last year.

GEMS International School of Pearl City is a project undertaken by GEMS Education and its local partner Maju Holdings Sdn Bhd via its subsidiary GEMS Maju Sdn Bhd.

This is GEMS Education’s first international school in Malaysia.

Mundy said the international school would be a K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade) school, for children aged three to 18, that would adopt the National Curriculum for England and Wales, leading to the IGCSE and A-level qualifications.

“We will be following the guidelines of the Education Ministry and will be teaching Bahasa Malaysia, Mandarin, Malaysia Social Studies, Islamic Studies and Moral Studies.

“It’s a way to adapt to the local culture, environment and more importantly the community.

“The advantage of the British curriculum is that it is structured, flexible and at the same time, we can use it to help the Malaysian students,” he said at the GEMS Enrolment Centre in Jalan Tasek Mutiara 2, Simpang Ampat, recently.

Mundy has over 30 years’ experience as an international educator across Europe, Africa and Asia.

He has worked in senior leadership positions in schools in Spain, Vietnam and Malawi; and taught Humanities in the UK, Denmark and the Seychelles.

He joined GEMS Education in 2010 as principal of the International School Tripoli in Libya.

With the onset of the revolution there in February 2011, Mundy evacuated the school and carried on as ambassador and administrator until September 2011.

Subsequently, he worked for GEMS Management Solutions as a senior project manager, assisting in the development of schools in Egypt and the Middle East.

He was also an accreditation inspector for the European Council of International Schools (ECIS) and an IB Diploma authorisation inspector.

Mundy holds a BEd (Hons) degree from Exeter University and an MSc (Geography) degree from the University of London and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

To find out more, visit its website at www.gemsinternationalschool-pearl.com or contact 04-5040639.

Source: StarProperty.my

* Article by FREEMEN *

Buying a property for the purpose of investment in one of the best decision one can make. However, deciding what to do with the property after we get the keys is another ball game altogether.

At challenging times like this, not only are we faced with the challenge of finding the right property and getting our loans approve; we also now need to add value to our property to differentiate it from the other properties in the market.

Adrian Wee, also known as the ID King, introduced the concept of Buy Renovate and Sell (BRS) and Buy Renovate and Rent (BRR).

Adrian Wee has come a long way as a property investor. He learnt the hard way that property investment only work if we do a proper due diligence. Needless to say his first property investment was a disaster.

He and his wife bought two properties almost fifteen years ago and make a loss amounting to almost RM100,000. This experience have deterred him from investing in properties. “After making a lost of almost RM100,000, I was scared to invest again”, he said. “Instead I then focused in my interior design work. I designed show rooms and show units for developers.” He further adds that “Because of my fear I had let go a lot of good deals and I now regret not taking action then. However, I am now a better investor and learnt not to make the same mistakes again.”

Adrian comes from a small town in Seremban, and he has been designing show houses for property developers for the past 15 years in and around Seremban town.

THE TURNING POINT

Then in the year in 2010, he met a well-known developer who convinced him that property investment is the way to go if he wanted to achieve his financial freedom. This was a turning point for Adrian, who began to look into property investmnet again.

This time he decided to invest himself first. He went and attended property seminars, read books and magazines, and spoke to property experts before starting to put money into property again. In his property investment journey, he found his formula for success. When talking to property investors and home buyers alike, he realised that many people who had bought properties, ended not knowing what to do with the property. They either sell or rent out their basic/empty unit, not knowing that they can actually maximise their profit further. He learnt that, as investors, we should buy a property, renovate it and rent it at a higher price (BRR) or buy a property, renovate it and sell (BRS) it at a higher price.

To achieve a higher profit the renovation must be done prudently. Many investors cannot be bothered about renovation and leave it completed to the Interior Designer they hired. Truth be told, Interior Designers are not property investors; hence they do not renovate for maximise profit but for aesthetic purposes instead.

WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR WHEN RENOVATING YOUR PROPERTY

Another important consideration when renovating your property is the lifestyle of people in the particular locality or area. Is that area occupied mostly by families, or mostly young professionals or even college students? Understanding the area and the needs of the population in that area is key to deciding on your renovation. For example, in area occupied mostly by families, you may want to add in a complete kitchen (with hood and hob) versus in an area occupied mostly by college students. College students don’t really need a complete kitchen as they mostly eat out.

The profit potential in the secondary market can be substantial. For a property that is between 15 to 20 years old, you can actually recoup the cost you invested in renovating. Let’s take a property of RM180,000. If a property structural renovations was undertaken, the same property can be sold at RM250,000. This would give you a profit of approximately RM30,000 vs the 10% renovation cost.

You can also increase the value of a property by creating a perceived value. For example, when you renovate a property nicely and successfully rented it out, the perceived price of the house will go higher. Investors can also buy shop houses and partition the place into smaller rooms and rent out. This way higher rental income can be generated.

As a property investor, we need to be creative and know what we want to do with our investment. If we want to sell it, then make our properties more attractive than the rest. Buyers will be more than willing to buy our property, which is more attractive than the next property!

Now you have a better idea on what to do with your property.

Do you want more tips on how to renovate and beautify your property at a very low cost? Well, I have a good news especially for Property Talk reader. We have compiled these tips into an E-Book titled “Renovation Secrets: 7 Tips For Creating A Minimalist Home Design” And discover on how you can add value to your property.

Get this E-Book for FREE! Click HERE to download now.

Well, I have another good news for you.

Adrian will be in town in Penang and will be speaking at the Property Outlook 2015, the first in the Northern Region, from 4th and 5th April in Penang, together with a line up of other Speakers, who is expert in their own field – Michael Tan (Founder of Freemen and Master in buying property with No-Money-Down), Keegan Tan (Property Investor and Property Coach) and Gary Chua (Senior Banker, with 11 years of banking experience) You can read more about Property Outlook 2015 HERE.

At the Outlook, Adrian will share with you in more details how you can renovate for profit. He would be more than happy to meet with you and answer any questions you have on property investment and tips to make your property ‘sexy & hot’.

Adrian seldoms comes to this part of the Malaysia. So, grab this chance now by registering here as only 17 Silver Seats left and all the Gold seats are sold out.

See you soon.

Article by,
Adrian Wee

Adrian Wee, co-founder of Massive Capital Group, aka “Interior Design King,” is a successful Interior designer and property entrepreneur, based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, who has been in the business for 20 years. Throughout his career, he has learnt and perfected his craft by designing and renovating more than 1000 properties.

Today his work has been covered in various magazines and newspapers, multiple times and he is highly sought after by developers who want to build their impressive show units, as well as rich private homeowners.

Together with FREEMEN, Adrian is now focusing on helping people build and grow their property portfolios to generate retirement options for themselves. You can find out more of our coming event here: http://www.aboutpropertyinvestment.com

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Under control: A policeman directing traffic along the newly widened Jalan Song Ban Kheng in Bukit Mertajam.

Six projects to build or upgrade roads and bridges will be implemented in Penang this year.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state had allocated RM32.7mil this year for the projects estimated to cost a total of RM86.3mil.

He did not say where the rest of the money would come from or if the funds would be from fu-ture allocations.

The projects comprised the widening of the bridge and road upgrading from one lane to two lanes each way from Jalan Perusahaan till the traffic light junction in Jalan Tok Kangar, central Seberang Prai (SPT), widening of Jalan Bukit Minyak in Alma (SPT), building of a new road connecting Jalan Bunga Hinai with Jalan Bunga Kaca Piring around SRJK (C) Hun Bin in the northeast district, construction of Sungai Machang Bubok bridge in Jalan Gajah Mati (SPT), replacement of the concrete culvert with a concrete bridge in Jalan Padang Lalang (SPT) and the building of a new bridge across the river on Route P169 in Kg Tanjung Berembang, south Seberang Prai district.

Lim said the state government was implementing the projects to fulfil its commitment to upgrade infrastructure and facilities in both rural and urban areas.

He was speaking in his speech at a ceremony yesterday to mark the completion of the project to widen Jalan Song Ban Kheng in Bukit Mertajam and upgrade the bridge along the road.

He said the RM20.4mil project to reduce traffic woes along the 3.2km road had begun on Feb 15, 2012, and ended on Jan 21 this year.

Also present were state executive councillors Lim Hock Seng and Chong Eng, state Economic Planning Unit director Datuk Abu Jamal Nordin, Penang Public Works Department director Salleh Awang and Seberang Prai Municipal Council president Datuk Maimunah Mohd Sharif.

Source: StarProperty.my

The new year started off on a positive note for Penang homebuyers, says Raine & Horne International Zaki +Partners director Michael Geh. Since the state government announced specific guidelines on Sept 13 last year to encourage the building of affordable houses, there has been “greater advocacy” and more approvals of such projects, Geh says in presenting The Edge/Raine & Horne International Zaki + Partners Penang Housing Property Monitor for 4Q2014.

The guidelines provide for three types of affordable homes: a RM200,000 unit with a built-up of 750 sq ft; RM300,000 unit of 850 sq ft; and RM400,000 house of 900 sq ft. A developer that wishes to build affordable houses will be exempted from the quota to build low or low medium cost units while development charges will be reduced to RM5 psf.

This bodes well for those looking to buy their first home in Penang, Geh says. From his research, he has found that Malaysia’s demographics is currently onion shaped, with the majority of the population within the 30-year-old range. This group, he notes, can only afford to pay for a house priced at about RM350,000.

“I have found that in the last five years, there has been immense pent-up demand for houses priced below RM350,000. This year is exciting because in the last two years, at every property exhibition, house buyers couldn’t  buy anything as the properties were priced out of their range,” he says. Sales activity for affordable housing, he adds, will grow exponentially this year.

More developers in Penang are listening to the market and offering affordable houses below RM400,000. Among them is MSummit Group, which launched Ramah Pavilion, an affordable apartment project in Teluk Kumbar, on Jan 31. Ballots for the units — with built-ups of 800 to 1,355 sq ft and priced from RM198,000 to RM398,000 — were held for eligible applicants who had registered with the state government.

Another developer, Ideal Property Group, is awaiting approval to build over 5,000 units of affordable houses in the Relau/Sungai Ara areas, says Geh. There is also Aspen Group Holdings Sdn Bhd’s affordable high-rise project Tri Pinnacle, in Mount Erskine, Tanjung Tokong.

It’s not only developers that have been provided plenty of incentives to jump on the bandwagon, landowners too are encouraged to develop affordable homes on their land, says Geh. As a result, moving forward, he believes the affordable house market will stay active.

Meanwhile, Geh highlights some hot spots for home owners to consider, among them, inner city George Town, within the Unesco Heritage Zone. Others include Bayan Lepas, including Bayan Baru, which is near the Penang International Airport, as well as Tanjung Tokong, which is within the vicinity of E&O Bhd ’s Sri Tanjung Pinang development. On the mainland, Batu Kawan is popular thanks to its proximity to the Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge, or second Penang Bridge.

Market activity is mostly driven by domestic demand, says Geh. Moreover, many Penangites who are working abroad are buying homes in the state.

While the affordable housing sector is going strong, the same cannot be said for other property types. The Malaysian Insider had reported on Feb 12 that developers are feeling the pinch as state contributions have been increased. “[House] prices are still up due to rising costs faced by developers,” Real Estate Housing and Developers’ Association (Rehda) Penang chairman Datuk Jerry Chan had said in a press conference.

State infrastructure contributions have been raised of late. For instance, developers need to pay RM15 psf on the gross development area prior to development, while drainage contribution and conversion fee amounts have increased by 100% since 2013, Geh notes.

However, he believes that “the market should be allowed to work itself out as the Penang property market is undergoing many changes at the moment”.

Geh sees the positive outlook for the last quarter of 2014 following through to the new year. “I saw optimism in the market as affordable housing projects were approved [in 4Q] and this year, they will be sold. This is a marked difference from all other quarters of 2014, where there was negativity and hopelessness in the air as house prices were simply beyond homebuyers’ purchasing range.”

House price breakdown

While areas surveyed in the monitor shows prices have risen from a year ago, Geh notes that they are plateauing now. He believes sales activities will slow, with a slight rise for premium houses priced above RM700,000.

The average price of 1-storey terraced houses in Seberang Perai Tengah on the mainland gained 20%, rising to RM200,000 from RM160,000 year on year, while on the island, houses in Green Lane and Jelutong rose 16.67% to RM780,000 from RM650,000.

For this house type, every area surveyed showed no price growth quarter-on-quarter except for the mainland. In Seberang Perai Tengah, prices rose 10% from RM180,000, Seberang Perai Selatan saw a 6.25% increase to RM160,000 from RM150,000, and Seberang Perai Utara, a jump of 5.56% to RM180,000 from RM170,000.

For 2-storey terraced houses, Seberang Perai Selatan gained 21.43% y-o-y to RM280,000 from RM220,000. The next highest gainer was Sungai Nibong, where homes rose 20% to RM1.1 million from RM880,000, followed by Sungai Ara, up 16.67% to RM900,000 from RM750,000. Q-o-q, most areas saw modest gains. In Seberang Perai Selatan, prices rose 10.71% from RM250,000, followed by Sungai Nibong with a 9.09% increase from RM1 million.

As for 2-storey semi-detached houses, the top gainers y-o-y were Island Park houses, which rose 14% to RM2 million from RM1.72 million. Sungai Ara homes posted a increase of 11.11% to RM1.35 million from RM1.2 million. Houses in Minden Heights rose 10% to RM1.5 million from RM1.35 million. Q-o-q, all houses in this category showed no change or modest price growth.

Moving on to 2-storey detached houses, the biggest gainers were Island Glades and Green Lane with both seeing a rise of 28.57%. In Island Glades, prices rose to RM2.8 million from RM2 million, while Green Lane units hit RM3.5 million from RM2.5 million. In Minden Heights, prices were up 20% to RM3.5 million from RM2.8 million. Q-o-q, only houses in Tanjung Tokong (12.5%) and Minden Heights (5.71%) showed price growth.

In the 3-bedroom flat sector, units in Relau rose 15.38% to RM260,000 from RM220,000. Other areas seeing price growth were Bandar Baru Air Itam (5.26%) and Green Lane (3.13%). Other areas remained unchanged. Q-o-q, only flats in Bandar Baru Air Itam (5.26%) and Relau (3.85%) saw a slight increase while others showed no change.

For 3-bedroom condominiums, all areas surveyed showed price growth. Units in Tanjung Tokong advanced the most, by 22.41% to RM580,000 from RM450,000. In Pulau Tikus, prices rose 17.24% to RM580,000 from RM480,000, while in Tanjung Bungah, prices shot up 16.67% to RM600,000 from RM500,000. Q-o-q, some areas showed modest growth while others remained unchanged.

In the rental market, flats and condomiuns saw no change in rental rates y-o-y and q-o-q. Other property types revealed varied results, with some areas showing marginal growth while other remained unchanged.

Geh says it is currently a tenants market as there is enough choice for renters to be selective. Furthermore, yields have dropped because market values have risen.

The Penang residential property market looks to get a boost thanks to the affordable house supply that will come onto the market in a few years. How this will change the property landscape is yet to be seen but for now, the pent-up housing demands of young Malaysians is finding an outlet.

Source: TheEdgeMarkets.com