Property In Kuala Lumpur

Regalia @ Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur

2009-11-03T20:00:00.000-08:00

Type: Serviced Residence

Location: Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur

Tenure: Freehold

Total units: 1033 (3 blocks i.e. Madison, Melrose and Milan)

Built-up: 515 sf - 1,870 sf

Launch price:
From RM202,000 onwards (from about RM 393psf onwards)

Expected completion: 2010

Developer: Mayland View Sdn. Bhd.

Contact: 03–2692 9663

Website: http://www.mayland.com.my

Land title: Residential

Maintenance fee: RM 0.40 psf

Accessibility:

Access to shopping centres like Sogo, Maju Junction and The Mall

Access to Seri Pacific Hotel and Legend Hotel

Near Sultan Ismail LRT Station

Facilities:

Function Room
Lobby/Lounge
House Keeping
Prayer Room
Squash Court
Wine & Cigar
Restaurant, Bistro & Bar
Aerobic/Yoga
WiFi Centre
Gymnasium
Games Room
Library/ Reading
Executive Room
Water Feature
Tropical Garden
Swimming Pool
Pool Deck
Nursery
Playground
Landscape Area
Infinity Pool
Observation Deck/ Roof Garden
Sky Lounge

Security:
CCTV Monitoring

Pearl Villas @ Section 16, PJ

2009-11-03T19:55:00.000-08:00

Type: 3-Storey Semi Detached Homes

Location: Section 16, Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Tenure: Freehold

Total units: 42 units

Built-up: 4,725 sq. ft. (4 rooms, 1 bathroom)

Launch price:
From RM 2.6 million onwards

Expected completion: Unknown

Developer: Malton Bhd.

Contact: 03-2776 6188

Website: http://www.malton.com.my/project/newprojects/pearlvillas/index.html

Land title: Residential

Facilities:

Outdoor water filter
Solar heater
A community garden which includes exercise stations, playground, benches, gazeboes, and jogging track has been crafted into the development to encourage community wellness and togetherness.

Security:

Home security system
Auto main entrance gate

Pros:

Exclusive & low density development
Freehold Land
Premium Location – Section 16 is known for its exclusive bungalow developments
Spacious & contemporary homes with built-ups of 4,725 sq ft.
All bedrooms come with en-suite baths.
Space for walk-in wardrobes in most bedrooms
High quality finishes and fittings

Malaysian real estate – cautious optimism

2008-04-18T22:50:00.000-07:00

ALTHOUGH the Malaysian property sector was buoyant in 2007, the market is expected to be somewhat cautious this year given a high base effect from 2007, lower disposable incomes from higher inflationary pressure as well as knock-on effects from foreign buyers given the US credit crisis.

Prospect for real estate properties this year will largely depend on the location and development profile of the area.

After a period of upcycle in 2003-2006, the Malaysian residential property is expected to reach a plateau in 2008, underpinned by the aggressive launches of mid-to-high developments since 2006. On the demand side, take-up rates of new projects were not encouraging during the first nine months of 2007, with average sales performance of newly launched residential schemes at 44.3% vs 40.6% in 2006, despite higher units launched.

We expect the take-up rates this year to be lukewarm, given the wait and see attitude adopted by potential buyers and investors. The low medium and medium-cost segments will see softening this year as disposable incomes are affected by the rising cost of living given escalating inflation.

The high-end residential market is expected to witness a period of rationalisation and consolidation this year, and lose significant steam into 2009 on the back of increased supply, i.e. completion of new condominiums during the period.

Given the physical supply of high-end residentials coming onstream in 2008 and 2009, the growth in rentals and capital value is expected to ease by the end of this year. The rate of growth of occupancy levels and rentals will ultimately determine whether strong foreign interest will be sustained.

Office sector

Meanwhile, the outlook of the office sector is also highly dependant on the economy achieving its projected growth of 5.7% y-o-y this year, which would subsequently improve the performance of the services sector.

In Penang, property transactions in the state appear to have come to a standstill as investors wait and see how the state’s economic landscape will unfold, given the opposition’s victory in taking control of Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor in the country’s 12th general election on March 8. The wait-and-see attitude adopted by foreign investors will definitely slow down investments in the country’s real estate sector.

Factors supporting real estate growth

·We expect economic growth momentum to remain sustainable with 2008 GDP growth projection at 5.7% y-o-y, on the back of resilient domestic aggregate demand, given accommodative monetary environment, reinforced by sustained export growth. Positive consumer and business confidence, stable labour market conditions, coupled with higher household earnings and corporate sectors suggest that growth in private sector demand would remain strong.

Nonetheless, possible adverse impact of external forces on the domestic economy cannot be ignored – volatility in crude oil prices, aftermath of the US subprime crisis leading to more-than-expected slowdown in global economies, as well as excessive interest rate hikes in the region prematurely halting growth momentum.

·Given expectations of steady growth in 2008, Malaysia’s income per capita is expected to grow further from RM22,345 in 2007 to RM23,864 in 2008. The high levels of income are expected to boost consumer spending and investment. The middle class accounts for 75% of the total population, earning in excess of RM16,900 per annum. Positive wealth effects from rising equities have also contributed to rising household incomes.

Private consumption is expected to grow by 7.9% y-o-y in 2008, supported by increases in incomes, stronger prices of commodities and stable interest rates.

However, higher inflation and a sharp drop in the equity market could dampen consumption and pose a negative wealth effect to homebuyers. The volatility in the equity market has shifted sentiment and restrained the flow of more speculative foreign funds into physical property assets.

·Malaysia’s population is expected to increase from 27.17 million in 2007 to 28.96 million in 2010. The median age of Malaysians is 27.4 years. In 2007, a total of 63.4% of the total population consisted of those in the working age group of between 15 and 64. The Government expects that 63.8% of the population would be living in urban areas, resulting in a higher demand for more houses, schools and employment.

In recent years, proportion of total potential buyers grew from 36.9% in 2002 to 39.1% in 2007, underpinned by an increase in the age groups of between 40-49 and 50-59 at a 5-year CAGR of 2.7% and 5.4%, respectively, in 2007. The 40-59 age group is likely to be more affluent than the younger age groups and also more likely to buy higher-end property and own more than one property for investment purpose or for their children.

The average lending rates continue to fall to as low as 6.27% in Jan 08 as compared to 6.57% in Jan 07, suggesting that banks are still competing for quality mortgage home loans.However, if the impact of the world economy worsens, the NPL for residential property may edge upwards, in particular for properties held for investment purposes.

·In 2007, the Government introduced several bold measures to promote the domestic property/REIT sector.

Among others, they included a 50% stamp duty exemption (for transfer of purchase of residential property under RM250,000); EPF will free up RM9.6bil annually on the withdrawal of funds for home purchases and allow monthly withdrawals from Account II to settle home loan repayment; setting up of introductory fund of RM400mil to increase bumiputra property investment in Iskandar Development Region (IDR); allocation of funds worth RM100mil to promote investments in health services related projects in IDR; and foreign investors were allowed up to 70% ownership in REIT’s management companies from 49% previously.

·The 9MP has identified five growth corridors – Eastern Corridor, Northern Corridor, East Malaysia, IDR and Central Region. Infrastructure and utilities projects to be carried under the 9MP are expected to benefit the construction and construction-related players (such as property, cement and steel industries).

However, we caution that the Northern Corridor Economic Region projects, which covers the states of Perlis, Kedah, Penang and northern Perak may come under review given the opposition’s recent victory.

Residential Market

Malaysia’s residential market, which accounts for approximately 60% of total property transactions, has been the best-performing sector since 1997. The announcement by the Government that Foreign Investment Committee (FIC) approval is no longer required for foreigners buying property and recent exemption of the real property gains tax (RPGT) had witnessed a surge in niche development and property developers with ongoing high-end residential development projects especially in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) area, Sri Hartamas (Mont Kiara), and around the Golden Triangle area.

However, given the high base effect witnessed over the last two years as well as rising cost of construction material, we do not expect to witness a surge in new launches for the high-end segment this year. In 2008, the prospect for residential properties will depend to a great degree on the location and development profile of the area.

The relaxation of property ownership regulation had drawn strong interest from foreign investors in 2007, which caused land prices in Kuala Lumpur city to accelerate.

The Four Seasons was priced at RM2,000 per sq ft as compared to RM1,000 per sq ft in 2006 for high-end properties around the KLCC area.

We expect property prices to widen between mass market and high-end residences given the spillover effects of petrodollar inflows on property demand in Malaysia as prices are relatively cheap compared to regional properties.

However, given the physical supply coming onstream in 2008 and 2009, we expect the growth in rentals and capital value to ease by the end of this year.

YTL keen on more land buys in KL

2008-04-11T21:06:00.000-07:00

KUALA LUMPUR: YTL group, which is paying a record RM2,000 per sq ft for a piece of land in Jalan Stonor, intends to make more acquisitions in the Kuala Lumpur city centre.

YTL Corp Bhd managing director Tan Sri Francis Yeoh said yesterday that land price in Kuala Lumpur city was “still very affordable'' compared with Asian cities such as Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Jakarta.

“We intend to invest in more properties in prime locations in the city, as the Kuala Lumpur property scene is set to be very exciting,'' he said, adding that this was due to Government measures such as the relaxation of approval from the Foreign Investment Committee.

Yeoh said after a briefing on Climate Change Week 2008 that YTL was planning a residential development comprising apartments on the Jalan Stonor land measuring just under 0.4ha, which it acquired for RM85mil.

The Malaysian Annual Real Estate Convention (MAREC ’08)

2007-12-20T19:43:00.000-08:00

The forthcoming Malaysian Annual Real Estate Convention (MAREC ’08) will for the first time, have a regional theme: Regionalising The Malaysian Market - The Reality of Getting There The event is expected to generate business opportunities for practitioners within the ASEAN region.
To be held at the Sime Darby Convention Centre from Jan 11- 13, the event will have the support of a large number of corporate bodies which have registered their executives as participants.
One of the most exciting features of MAREC ’08 is the all-new parallel sessions within the convention aimed at certified real estate negotiators (CREN), negotiators and support staff of real estate agencies. In previous years, the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA), designed and structured the convention mainly for real estate agents. Negotiators and other agency staff had to rely on other MIEA programmes to gain knowledge and information.

Learn how to carve out a successful career in real estate at MAREC '08Realising that attention to negotiator and support staff issues was lacking, MIEA decided to create a new session within the convention to cater to the needs of this group. Several speakers have been lined up to conduct these sessions. The speakers are senior members of the real estate fraternity and have been picked for their special skills and unique reputation in the market.
One of the topics to be covered in a parallel session is How To Be A Top Negotiator.
To guide and motivate participants, MIEA has managed to engage the services of one of its most illustrious members. Property consultant Stephen Tew has been involved in the real estate business for over 25 years.

He is a walking success story on how real estate can be a successful career if approached in the right manner. Tew started his career much like everyone else in the business, as a negotiator. Having worked hard and built up an impressive clientele, he decided to forge ahead with some partners and formed a real estate firm called The Golden Triangle. He again proved his calibre and helped built The Golden Triangle into one of the leading agencies of the day.
Several years ago, Tew decided to take on the challenge of forming his own sole proprietor-ship and ventured to form Hectares & Stratas. As principal, he has steered the company into a highly successful entity.

Steven TewTew will share with participants his secrets of carving out a successful career in real estate. He will talk about changing your mindset to achieve success and the need for discipline to make it.
“Although being a real estate negotiator is different from the average sales job, all negotiators should bear in mind that it is still a sales related job. To tap its potential and reap its rewards, negotiators have to approach the job with specific long-term goals,” says Tew.
More than 250 participants have registered for MAREC ‘08 and the MIEA expects a full house. Discounted rates of RM538 for members and RM638 for non-members are still available until Dec 31.

For negotiators intending to take advantage of the parallel sessions, MIEA is offering a special rate. For a discounted price of RM438, CRENs and negotiators will be able to participate in the entire convention and will also be eligible to attend the parallel sessions.
For information, contact the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents Secretariat at 03-77277477 or convention chairman Siva Shanker at 019-3372852.

Reasons to invest in Kuala Lumpur

2007-12-14T20:46:00.000-08:00

1.Malaysia offers a stable, freely-elected government
2.The country enjoys a stable economy with 7% GDP growth in 2004. Continued low inflation ensures the cost of living will continue to be one of the lowest in Asia
3.Kuala Lumpur has grown extensively since the Asian Economic Boom of the 1990s and is the regional headquarters of many of the world’s major corporations
4.It is one of the most vibrant cities in Asia and home to a number of stunning skyscrapers, most notably the Petronas Twin Towers and Menara Kuala Lumpur
5.The old town maintains some links to its colonial past with narrow and winding streets and a delightful hybrid of Chinese and European architecture
6.Malaysia practices a justice system based closely on the British legal system
7.Foreigners can buy up to 2 houses and are entitled to 60% bank loans
8.Kuala Lumpur continues to benefit from a growing tourism market helping to create a mature rental market
9.Kuala Lumpur is extremely well connected – major airlines fly to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and a high speed train service takes under ½ hour to reach the city
10.Kuala Lumpur’s education and medical services are some of the best in the Pacific Rim

As a foreign citizen, are my property rights different than those of Malaysian residents?

2007-12-14T19:18:00.000-08:00

No, whether you are a foreign or local investor, basically all are subject to and benefit from the same property rights. Malaysia’s land tenure is based on the
Australian system of land ownership – the Torrens system. A small percentage of lands mainly in the rural areas are reserved for the
indigenous people (Malay Reserve land) and cannot be owned or purchased by the non-native locals or foreigners. Most properties that are investment generating lie predominantly in the urban areas of the larger cities like Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Malacca and Johor Bahru (adjoining Singapore) and have no ownership restrictions.

Is financing available for investors who wish to purchase property? If so, how hard is it for foreigners to qualify for this financing?

Yes, financing is available for foreign investors and there is no hard and fast rule about it. For the potential purchaser to qualify he must show proof of possessing some source of income to enable repayment. For foreigners, the maximum loan normally allowed is 70% and the term of loan depends on the age of the purchaser.

Have you noticed any increase in the numbers of foreigners interested in investing in and/or moving to Malaysia recently?

Yes, there is an increase in foreigners interested in investing and moving to Malaysia. Some of them come under the Malaysia My 2nd Home (MM2H) Programme and others come in for investment purposes or move to Malaysia to take up a job.

2007-11-11T00:51:00.000-08:00

Kuala Lumpur Property Market

Malaysia offers a real estate investment opportunity in one of the fastest growing economies in the world. We believe the following factors make Malaysian real estate an exceptional opportunity.

Malaysia's strong political stability and stable economy encourages a more than favourable climate for investors locally and from overseas. A high literacy rate and widely spoken English makes the country a preferred choice. Its GDP is expected to grow around 6% per annum in 2007.
The likely appreciation of the Ringgit: The Malaysian currency is the third most undervalued currency in the world and is 51% undervalued relative to the US Dollar, according to the latest "Big Mac Index" published by 'The Economist'. The Ringgit is widely expected to strengthen as government controls are gradually eased.
Recent abolishment of property gains taxes: Property gains taxes have been abolished from 1st of April 2007.
Liberal investment rules relative to other emerging markets: Malaysia has amongst the most liberal property-ownership regulations for foreigners in Asia, with the process of liberalisation continuing.
High development margins: Development margins are strong due to the increasing real estate requirements of a rapidly growing and increasingly-wealthy population.
Growing competition between banks driving down lending margins: Decreasing lending margins have a favourable impact on real estate valuations Increasing international interest in Malaysian real estate, particularly from the Middle East.
Malaysia is the only country in South-East Asia which offers both conventional and Islamic financing.

12 Points to look at before investing in Kuala Lumpur

To buy a property completed or under construction by a developer?
Are you purchasing the property for investment or for staying?
What sort of budget?
Location near KLCC or out of KL Central?
Leasehold or Freehold property?
• Freehold Land - Held in perpetuity. Most inner city lands are freehold.
• Leasehold Land - 99 years or 60 years in most cases of lands alienated from the Government prior to development.
What type of property – condo/bungalow/semi-D?
How many rooms/baths/land area/built up/furnished/partly?
What level of tight security?
Near schools, amenities, shopping malls and public transport?
Do you plan on purchasing the property in cash or mortgage? How many years for repayment? Best loan package?
What will be the legal fees and professional fee/stamp duties before acquiring the property?
Upon signing Sales & Purchase Agreement (SPA) with minimum 10% deposit the balance sale is to be completed within 6 months [+/-] with the relevant consent and approval from the relevant authorities then the balance purchase sum to be paid to the owner. If you are taking a mortgage loan then once state/developer’s consent has been obtained the bank will release 70% of the loan and you will have to top up the differential sum. This will be handled by the appointed lawyers/banks.

Buying & Selling Property In Kuala Lumpur

Once the purchaser decides to buy a specific property, he is required to fill in an undertaking prepared by the estate agent/broker and pay the booking fee or earnest money (min 2%) evidenced by a receipt of payment. If subsequently the purchaser renegades on the intention to go ahead with the purchase, this earnest money is forfeited by the vendor. On the other hand, if the vendor renegades on the sale then the purchaser can claim double the sum of earnest money as damages for non-performance.
There are two choices:
Purchaser finds his own banker.
His lawyer can submit to his panel of bankers.
The real estate agent/broker will have to forward the following documents/details for the lawyer to prepare the Sale & Purchase Agreement [S&P]:
Purchaser’s & Vendor’s identity card or passport if foreigner.
A copy of the previous S&P from the Vendor
A copy of the title (if any)
Once the Sale & Purchase Agreement (S&P) is completed the lawyer will fix a date for the signing and settle the required monetary deposit of another 8% (in addition to the earlier 2% earnest money) to make up a down-payment of 10% in total.
Thereafter, the purchaser is given 3 months to settle the balance sum of the loan. In most instances, the purchaser would have taken a 70% loan from the bank and he will have to pay from his own pocket the 30% (i.e., he had earlier paid 10% during the signing S&P and pays only the differential sum of 20%). He can request the vendor another month’s extension of time subject to interest accruing at some 8% per annum.
The purchaser will hand over the balance 20% deposit to the lawyer for settling the mortgage from the bank, in order to redeem the property. Then the process of transfer can be carried on.
As the property is being redeemed and the vendor has settled all outstanding bills, the lawyer will submit the transfer form to the Land Office for registration. If the transfer form is approved, the lawyer will hand over the rest of the deposit to the vendor. At the same time, the seller has to pass the right of the property to the buyer as final realize.

Which areas offer the best long term prospects for capital appreciation?
Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), Ampang, Bangsar, Brickfields, and Mont Kiara (near the international schools) are all expat areas which have good appreciation and demand.