Owning a leasehold property should not be a concern for first-time housebuyers if they intend to stay there.
Lawyer Chris Tan says chances are high that these buyers will ‘upgrade’ by moving into a bigger house in the next 10 years.
He said houseowners could just renew the lease by paying a certain amount of premium.
“Rather than worry about the leasehold status, housebuyers should instead be concerned over the ‘longevity’ of the building structure.
“Do you know that a building structure by Malaysian standards can only last for 60 years?
“If a building structure is of bad quality and meant to be taken down for reconstruction after 50 years, then what’s the difference between owning a leasehold and freehold property?
“The key here is, nothing is built to last forever. All housebuyers will still have to pool in the resources to rebuild the place if it has to be demolished.
“Don’t let it hamper your decision making,” said Tan, who is the founder and managing partner of Chur Associates during his talk ‘My First Home Seminar’ at G Hotel.
Tan was touching on the topic ‘Back to Basic: Watch What You Sign, Housebuyers’.
While acknowledging that purchasing a freehold property was still the wise move, Tan said there were other aspects which should be looked into. Among them was the lifelong payment for the service charges.
He added that most people were still hopeful that their properties could be passed on from one generation to another.
“The world is evolving rapidly. The amenities and facilities of a building might not be suitable in 20 years to come.
“For example, buildings built 20 years ago won’t have fibre-optics for Internet connection. Some even do not come with air-conditioning.
“But today, we can’t live without it.
“So, you can just forget about leaving behind a ‘legacy’ (houses) for your children. Your house probably won’t be up-to-date for them when they grow up.
“They will find their own home,” he said.
Tan added that one must be aware over the documents they signed after purchasing a house.
“Buying a home is a lifelong commitment. Never take it lightly.
“You will be signing a lot of documents. It is very important to know what you get yourself into.
“Try to get your lawyer to explain to you on clauses which you do not understand,” he said.
Another speaker Timothy Law, in his topic ‘Better Late than Never in Owning Your First Property’, said first time homebuyers could always source for information online in securing their ideal homes.
“With just a click on the mouse, one can easily find their dream homes via online.
“Once you know about your choice, you must act fast.
“Otherwise, it will remain just one of the items on your unfulfilled wish lists.
“Once you get your research done, the next step is, you must leverage on the experts around you to close the deal.
“Networking is the key here.
“You can always seek advice from lawyers, property agents and bankers,” he said.
GM Training Academy chief executive officer and founder Michael Yeoh said first-time housebuyers would have difficulties securing a 100% loan from banks although such a package existed.
He lamented that Bank Negara had failed to look into the plight of the lower income group in getting affordable homes.
According to Yeoh, those buying houses priced between RM100,000 and RM400,000 could actually secure 100% loan financing from the banks.
He said the banks would finance 90% of the loan, while Cagamas Holdings Sdn Bhd, the national mortgage corporation, would finance the remaining 10%.
“But to my knowledge, it is almost impossible to secure the loans.
“We are happy with the policy introduced by Bank Negara but the problem is, the mechanism to safeguard it, is not there,” he said in his talk ‘Financing for First Home Buyers’.
Source: StarProperty.my
