Permai 7, a small landed housing development located in Kota Permai, Bukit Mertajam. It is only a stone’s throw away from  SJK (C) Beng Teik, a short drive to the ever bustling Jalan Song Ban Kheng.

As the name implies, this development comprises 7 units of 3-storey terrace houses with spacious built-up area of 3,323 sq.ft. Each unit is design to  have a total of 4 huge big bedrooms in 1st and 2nd floor, and a guest room at ground floor.

Property Project : Permai 7
Location : Kota Permai, Bukit Mertajam
Property Type : 3-Storey Terrace
Built-up Area: 3,323 sq.ft.
Land Area: 20′ x 70′
Total Units: 7
Indicative Price: RM600,000 onwards
Tenure : Freehold
Developer : United Allied Construction Sdn. Bhd.
Contact No.:  012-420 3328

Location Map:

Group managing director Datuk Kenneth H’ng told StarBiz that the project, comprising 322 units of landed properties on 16 acres or about 35% of the 46-acre site, had been approved by the local authorities.

GUH Holdings Bhd is planning the initial launch of an RM238mil residential project in south Seberang Prai next year following the acquisition of a 46-acre land bank for RM69.68mil in Simpang Ampat.

Group managing director Datuk Kenneth H’ng told StarBiz that the project, comprising 322 units of landed properties on 16 acres or about 35% of the 46-acre site, had been approved by the local authorities.

“The purchase of the land came with the master plan for the project, which has been endorsed by the local authorities,” H’ng said after the company’s AGM, which saw the signing of the sale and purchase agreement for the said land bank.

The site was purchased from Million Crest Sdn Bhd by Notable Empire Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of GUH, for RM69.68mil cash. The acquisition is scheduled to be completed in July.

“We plan to launch the project in the first half of 2015. Based on today’s property prices, we can expect the project to generate about RM92mil to the group’s revenue over the next five years.

“With the launch of our maiden property project in Penang, we expect our property division to contribute over 20% to the group’s revenue next year compared with 15% in 2013,” H’ng added.

He said the group was optimistic about the project, as it is close to the second bridge and 2.5km from residential and commercial projects such as Bandar Tasek Mutiara, Pearl City, Taman Tambun Indah and Taman Simpang Ampat.

At present, the group still has 150 acres of undeveloped land bank in Taman Kepayang, Seremban. The group has so far developed about 350 acres of its land bank there.

On its water treatment business, H’ng said the group was presently tendering for about RM170mil of water projects in the country.

“The unbilled contracts for our water projects to date is RM40mil. We should know the status of the tenders by the end of 2014,” he added.

On its printed-circuit board (PCB) business, GUH has in hand some RM60mil worth of orders for double-sided and single-sided PCBs to be delivered by the end of the second quarter.

“The orders are coming from the home audio, car audio, television and refrigerator manufacturers,” H’ng said.

For its first quarter ended March 31, the group posted a pre-tax profit of RM8mil on the back of RM77mil in revenue, compared with RM7.8mil and RM62mil respectively achieved in the previous corresponding period.

Source: StarProperty.my

Artist’s impression of Seri Tanjung Pinang phase two.

The development of Seri Tanjung Pinang (STP) phase two in the north-east coast of Tanjung Tokong here by Eastern & Oriental Bhd’s (E&O) unit, Tanjung Pinang Development Sdn Bhd has entered a critical phase with the company awaiting the endorsement of the state government for its proposed masterplan before it can proceed with the reclamation work.

Although the state had granted an in-principle approval to E&O for the masterplan in 2011, E&O still needs the state’s clearance for the masterplan before reclamation work of the STP phase two can proceed.

The STP phase two project will involve the reclamation of 760 acres of man-made islands and 131 acres of the Gurney Drive foreshore that will be handed over to the state government for infrastructure development of a new expressway, a new Gurney Drive Promenade, and a parallel linear park for public recreational purposes.

It will be the sequel to the 240-acre STP phase one and is expected to have a development horizon of 15 years.

Time is also of the essence as E&O’s concession agreement with the Penang state government to reclaim and develop the land is subject to the completion of the reclamation work by 2019 when the reclamation concession expires. Given that the reclamation for the more sizeable STP phase two will be done further offshore in deeper waters compared with the smaller STP phase one that is closer to shore, the project is expected to incur higher costs and take a longer time.

In a recent interview here, E&O managing director Datuk Terry Tham said the company had submitted applications to the state government with regard to the endorsement of the proposed STP phase two masterplan.

“We can start reclamation only after obtaining approval from the state government, which we hope to obtain by the fourth quarter of this year. Reclamation work is expected to commence thereafter and may take three to five years for full completion.

“We should be on track to meet the deadline for reclamation of 2019 as long as we comply with all requirements set by the regulatory authorities. Development can only start after reclamation work has been completed,” Tham told StarBiz.

The Department of Environment had on April 10 granted an approval in principle for the detailed environmental impact assessment (DEIA) study and conceptual masterplan of the STP phase two project, subject to compliance to conditions set out by the DOE to ensure the project is carried out in an environmentally responsible manner and is consistent with the prevailing regulatory framework.

Tham said E&O was ready to comply with all conditions set by the authorities, which included the necessary requirement of a DEIA study and its approval. “As a responsible developer, E&O has appointed local consultants familiar with local conditions and reputable international consultants with the experience and expertise of reclamation projects worldwide, to verify and help monitor that each stage of reclamation work is consistent with international standards, irrespective of whether it is imposed on us.

Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng told StarBiz earlier this month that E&O would be given the approval by the Penang state government if it complied with all the technical and regulatory requirements for the project.

“If all the conditions are fulfilled by the developer, the state government will have to respect the sanctity of the agreement, otherwise it will have to pay compensation to the developer for non-compliance,” Lim explained.

If given the go-ahead, E&O will proceed to call for tender proposals for the reclamation work for STP phase two with the actual reclamation work expected to begin only early next year.

Source: StarProperty.my

Spectrum Garden, an upcoming gated and guarded housing scheme by First Harvard Sdn. Bhd. in Kota Permai, Bukit Mertajm. This development is strategically located next to Boon Teik primary school, will consists of 128 units of 3-storey terrace and 4 units of 3-storey bungalow houses.

This development is currently only open for preview. More details to be available upon launching.

Project Name : Spectrum Garden
Location : Kota Permai, Bukit Mertajam, Penang
Property Type : 3-storey Terrace & Bungalow
Land Tenure: Freehold
Total Units: 128 (Terrace), 4 (Bungalow)
Developer : First Harvard Sdn. Bhd. (Zuwen Bina)
Contact Number : 04-502 1172

Location Map:

The anticipated goods and services tax (GST) and the hike in the overnight policy rate (OPR) will impact housing affordability and sales, according to Maybank IB Research.

It said the benchmark OPR of 3% was expected to rise 50 bps (basis points) to 3.5% following the central bank’s monetary policy committee meeting in early July.

The report said a 50bps increase in the mortgage rate could lead to a 6.8% jump in monthly instalments based on a base lending rate (BLR) minus 2.4% for a 35-year loan.

“This would impact affordability and investment decisions for new purchases,” it said.

The report also said the housing affordability index has been trending down since 2009 due to hikes in the BLR to 6.6%. The BLR was set at 5.6% between 2009 and 2011. Other reasons for the index to trend downwards include the spike in property prices without a significant rise in income.

The report said that with most developers already doing GST-related repricing and recosting exercises ahead of the April 2015 timeline and the anticipated higher interest rates, the housing affordability index could decline further. This would lead to a decline in property sales.

“While developers will be able to pass on the upcoming GST to buyers of non-residential properties, they may have to absorb some of the GST impact for residential properties that were sold during/before 2013 and which remain uncompleted on April 2015.

“We believe a majority of the sales secured in the last one year have not taken into account the implementation of GST,” the analyst said.

Margins are also likely to compress in the coming period due to the offering of more noncash incentives to attract property buyers.

On top of that, the report said higher labour costs and higher transportation costs after last September’s fuel price hike were expected to eat into margins.

Malaysia’s high household debt amounted to RM854bil last year, accounting for 86.8% of nominal gross domestic product (GDP).
Maybank IB said investors felt Eco World Development might be the new leader for the property sector given the support by former S P Setia staff and its expansive land bank worth RM43bil in gross developmental value.

Meanwhile, Batu Kawan in Penang was introduced as a new property hotspot in Malaysia. It stands to benefit from the new second Penang bridge and better control on land supply from the state government.

“It is unlike Iskandar Malaysia, which relies on the bilateral relations between Malaysia and Singapore,” the research house said.

Maybank IB observed that the share price of land owners Tambun Indah, Malton and Global Oriental rose 14%, 19% and 24%, respectively, benefiting from interest in Batu Kawan.

Source: StarProperty.my