by Charles Tan

When we look at the Penang’s market, we can see the real demand versus supply in real action. The reason I say so is because despite the property transactions declining, the prices of landed properties, especially within the island and especially only in that few hotspots continue to rise. Datuk Jerry Chan, the Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Penang) said that prices of landed residential properties is rising and there are no signs of distress buyers yet. Land scarcity remains an issue and land prices are moving faster than property prices. Due to this, one can choose to pay EVER HIGHER for prime locations or move away.

Where are some of the ever higher places? According to CH Williams Talhar & Wong’s (WTW) in its 2015 Property Market report, prices of newly launched, landed residential properties in Penang continues to set new benchmark. Older residential units in established neighbourhoods such as Greenland is still very sought after despite the very high asking price. While he did not say but let me say that these more traditionally Penang areas are loved very much by Penangites. It is not necessarily the top choice for the migrants from other states who are working in Penang. For now, majority of landed residential properties are focussed in Seberang Perai due to the much lower land cost in comparison. According to National Property Information Centre, there are only a total of 36,795 units of landed residential in Penang. This simply meant if you own a landed property today, you will do just fine when you need to retire!

From all these reports, one thing is for sure. In Penang, island side remains a great prospect. Within the island, the landed property is even more valuable. If that location is an established one, then that property has now become a hot asset. The simple conclusion for those who just cannot accept high-rise developments and must stay in landed property in an established neighbourhood within Penang island? Be prepared, with lots of money. Happy buying or keeping one today.

>> This opinion article comes courtesy of my friend, Charles, the founder of kopiandproperty.com. He is popular for sharing his thought on property investment mostly based on his own 12 years experience as well as from all the readings and conversations with property gurus in the industry. (Source)

E&O’s latest executive apartment, The Tamarind, continues to hog the limelight as the most popular project of the month. An increased of 20% in page views compared to the previous month. However, it is likely to trend downward going forward as the remaining units are slowly being snatched up by home buyers and investors.

1. The Tamarind
2. One Foresta
3. Ramah Pavilion
4. Chelliah Park City
5. TRI Pinnacle
6. The Signature
7. i-Santorini Affordable
8. The Starhill Garden
9. Setia Sky Vista
10. Zoo Road Condo

Half of the top ten list are dominated by affordable housing projects with One Foresta being the most popular one. This project is gaining a lot of traction lately because of their active marketing activities and the balloting of unit has also started. The announcement of the new Shih Chung primary school which is located just right next to One Foresta has also attracted further interest in this project.

To know more about the current and upcoming affordable housing projects and location, below is the page that you should not missed out:

Affordable Housing Projects & Location

Just in case you are interested to know, the affordable housing project page has been viewed more than 43,000 times last month.

Despite various real estate professional and government bodies has reported slow down in property market, Penang’s property buying sentiments continue showing a persistent uptrend since January this year. Below are the total monthly visits recorded at PenangPropertyTalk.com for the past 3 months.

Visits = The total number of times this website is visited each month.
On average, there are around 2-3 page views per visit

>> PREVIOUS MONTH: 10 Most Popular Projects in February 2015

The housing industry remains uncertain on how to implement the Goods and Services Tax (GST) that takes effect from today, property developers and real estate agents have said.

Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) president Siva Shanker said he and many other real estate agents do not know whether GST will have to be paid if someone were to buy or sell a shophouse, for example.

“If I [were] to sell a shophouse to a client and I cannot even advise him whether he’s going to be paying GST or not, what good am I as a consultant?” Siva told Malay Mail Online in a recent interview ahead of the new tax.

Siva also noted that a panel of accountants at a convention he had attended in early March said they did not know if the GST would affect a property signed for before the April 1 implementation date of the tax, if the purchase was only completed after that date.

The Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (Rehda) echoed Siva’s frustration with the ambiguity surrounding the implementation of the broad based consumption tax in the housing industry.

Rehda secretariat Karen Siow said players in the housing industry at different stages of the supply chain are still unsure what portion of the GST that they pay to the government can be claimed back.

“The industry is still facing ambiguity and uncertainty,” Siow told Malay Mail Online ahead of the tax rollout.

“[People] don’t really know what’s claimable and what’s not,” she added.

Siow said Rehda has submitted numerous proposals to the government in an attempt to clarify things, including recommendations to zero-rate houses priced below RM500,000 and to abolish stamp duty on property transactions.

“Regrettably, we have yet to receive any official reply,” she said, noting that Rehda has had discussions with the Customs Department and the Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Ministry.

Siva also complained about the government’s lack of engagement on the GST, saying the Customs Department has done little to resolve the numerous uncertainties.

“I really don’t think they did very much,” he said.

“I remember going to one seminar organised by the board of valuers where somebody from the Customs Department came and gave us a talk for an hour and a half maybe. But I remember at the end of the hour and a half being even more confused than when I first went in there. Subsequently, I think every other initiative that I’ve gone to on GST was organised by private entities or individuals,” the real estate agent added.

Rehda official Siow said Rehda estimates house prices to rise by 2.6 per cent after the GST comes into effect on April 1 at a flat rate of 6 per cent.

She noted that building material suppliers may increase prices because their cash flow is restricted, as they have to pay GST to the Customs Department at the time of supply before receiving payment from their customers.

Siow also said the GST will raise the cost of legal fees, sales and purchase agreements and bank loans, noting that such costs will eventually be borne by property buyers.

Developers will not be able to absorb these costs, she maintained, as they are already struggling with the rising costs of doing business.

Detractors argue that the GST is “regressive” and that the broad based consumption tax takes a larger percentage of income from those in the low-income groups than from high-income earners.

Economists, however, view the GST favourably, saying that it is necessary to broaden the tax base, but cautioned the government to cut wastages and leakages at the same time to improve the country’s finances.

Source: The Malay Mail Online

Penang’s secondary property market transaction volume is expected to remain resilient with the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) Penang branch Chairman Mark Saw said the GST would have a minimal impact on the secondary property market, driven by high demand especially for residential properties.

He said as long as there was population growth, the demand for properties would always be there.

“There won’t be too much impact from GST in property, and in fact I believe by August, GST will be fully understood by all,” he told reporters after introducing the MIEA Youth Penang Branch here today.

He said the demand for properties in the secondary market would likely rise due to the expensive newly-launched properties.

He explained that only new house prices, even with GST exemption, would increase slightly by three to five per cent due to the GST on building materials.

However, he said the upcoming Malaysian Secondary Property Exhibition (MASPEX) Penang 2015 from Aug 13-16 at Penang Queensbay Mall would offer buyers a wider choice of secondary properties not only in Penang but also in Johor Baharu and Kuala Lumpur.

He said the four-day exhibition would showcase affordable properties ranging from RM400,000 to RM1.2 million.

“There will be over 35 booths to exhibit various residential properties including landed, condominiums, apartments, flat and also commercial properties from the three cities,” he added.

He said the exhibition was expected to attract 50,000 visitors as it would be held in a shopping mall. – Bernama

Ewein Zenith Sdn Bhd, a joint venture between Ewein Land Sdn Bhd and Consortium Zenith BUCG Sdn Bhd (CZBUCG), has received planning permission from the Penang Island City Council to go ahead and develop a mixed project on a 3.67-acre freehold land in Bandar Tanjong Pinang, Penang.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, Ewein Bhd said Ewein Zenith, a 60%-owned subsidiary of Ewein Land Sdn Bhd which in turn is a wholly-owned unit of Ewein, received approval from the council on the planning permission yesterday.

CZBUCG holds the remaining 40% in Ewein Zenith.

The parcel of land, which is vested with the Penang state government, has been alienated to Ewein Zenith for the proposed mixed development on Feb 17 this year.

“The alienation of the land is partial payment for the works to be carried out by CZBUCG for the major road project and the third link tunnel project (in Penang) and it will be treated as CZBUCG’s contribution,” Ewein had told Bursa in June last year.

It forms part of the 110 acres of land in Tanjong Pinang that the Penang government is using to compensate CZBUCG for the construction, feasibility studies and detailed design work of a RM6.3 billion integrated road transport project. The project involves a 12km paired road and a 6.5km undersea tunnel linking the island and the mainland in an agreement signed on Oct 6, 2013.

“In consideration for the performance of the contract, Consortium Zenith will be given 110 acres of freehold land in Tanjong Pinang (at an approximate rate of RM1,300 per sq ft),” a circular from Ewein to shareholders in June 2014 read.

In February 2014, both Ewein Zenith and CZBUCG had signed a supplementary agreement where the former will pay RM133 million to CZBUCG for the land to be alienated to Ewein Zenith for the development of the mixed project.

Last August, CZBUCG chairman Datuk Zarul Ahmad Zulkifli was reported as saying that the second phase of the feasibility study for the RM6.3 billion Penang undersea tunnel project was on-going and the construction will commence in 2016.

CZBUCG is a special purpose vehicle formed among Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (99.94%), Beijing Urban Construction Group Co Ltd (0.02%), Juteras Sdn Bhd (0.02%), and Sri Tinggit Sdn Bhd (0.02%).

Ewein shares closed unchanged at 49 sen today, bringing a market capitalisation of RM103.35 million.

Source: TheEdgeMarkets.com