Quit Rent Hike In Sarawak Not Justifiable, Finance Ministry Eyes To Build Rumah Mesra Rakyat For Flood Victims And, More
28th December – 3rd January
Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) President Voon Lee Shan believes the increase in quit rent for land as well as landed and commercial properties is not justifiable considering the current economic situation.
Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry, via Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB), mulls constructing Rumah Mesra Rakyat for flood victims across the country.
1) Quit rent hike in Sarawak not justifiable
Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) President Voon Lee Shan believes the increase in quit rent for land as well as landed and commercial properties is not justifiable considering the current economic situation.
“The Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government should consider that many businesses had closed down during the Covid-19 pandemic and citizens are struggling and have weak purchasing power to turn the economy around,” he said.
Voon noted that some properties saw their quit rent increase by five times, reported Borneo Post. The quit rent for shophouses, for instance, rose from RM0.22 to RM1.62 per sq m, while those for some commercial properties climbed from RM0.20 to RM1.46 per sq m.
The PBK President cautioned that this may cause a domino effect on many industries if businesses cannot cope with the higher quit rent.
He felt it was not sensible for the state to justify the hike by claiming that the Sarawak had the lowest quit rent across Malaysia.
2) Finance Ministry eyes to build Rumah Mesra Rakyat for flood victims
The Finance Ministry, via Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB), mulls constructing Rumah Mesra Rakyat for flood victims across the country.
Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan revealed that those whose houses had been completely destroyed by floods could avail of the housing programme under SPNB, reported Bernama.
“For example, like in previous years, flood victims who have lost their houses due to floods in Kampung La have applied for the Rumah Mesra Rakyat assistance and they were assisted by local community leaders,” he said.
The minister also urged other parties to help the flood victims build new homes.
Besut Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM) Captain Ramlan Ros Wajid reportedly said that 11 houses within Kampung La were swept away by flood waters, while one house was severely damaged and needs to be repaired before it could be occupied.
3) Indahria Apartment residents to get parking complex repaired
Residents of Indahria Apartment located at Batu Tiga, in Shah Alam, Selangor were relieved to learn that their parking complex will be repaired.
Khaaliq Khairuddin, Chairman of the apartment’s Joint Management Body (JMB), shared that the repairs came after Batu Tiga assemblyman Rodziah Ismail stepped in to assist the residents, reported The Star.
He noted that only 180 apartments out of the 240 units at the development are occupied.
In December 2021, it was reported that the residents were evacuated to temporary relief centres following a flood.
Concerns were raised regarding the building’s stability after structural failures, which were confirmed by building experts, were found at the nearby carpark complex situated near Sungai Damansara.
“Although the apartments are on privately-owned land, the state government through Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) decided to take action as the residents are living in fear,” said Rodziah, who also serves as State Housing, Urban Well-being and Entrepreneur Development Committee Chairman.
She added that Institute of Public Works (Ikram) was the appointed contractor for the repair works.
The RM24.4 million repair project will commence on 12 January, said Ikram representative Abd Razif Abd Malek.
4) Savills sees stronger positive bias in property market
Savills Malaysia believes the bumpy ride seen by the local property market in 2022 will spill over to this year but with a stronger positive bias.
Savills hopes the new government would provide a better support for a strong landing.
It revealed that it expects older retail properties and offices to struggle, while newer properties in the data centre, industrial and logistics segment will “continue to be in the limelight” of market activities, reported Bernama.
Savills’ Group Managing Director/Head Datuk Paul Khong said they are hopeful that Budget 2023 will contain measures aimed at rejuvenating the entire sector and not only goodies for those within the Bottom 40 (B40) group.
Nonetheless, he acknowledged that the higher loan rates and construction costs have dampened the local property sector as well as the overall economy.
“We have seen a major cost-push (effect) on new developments. These new products will eventually result in a higher price tag,” said Savills.
Over at the residential segment, Savills said demand would be “resilient”, with improving sales expected in the first quarter to third quarter of 2023.
5) Remaining Kampung Sungai Baru residents agree to move out
The remaining residents in Kampung Sungai Baru, Kuala Lumpur will be moving out of their homes to make way for development.
This comes after the 37 homeowners agreed to receive a settlement ranging from RM800,000 to RM3 million, reported The Star.
The homeowners were given 30 days from the receipt of compensation to move out.
“The 30-day notice is standard but residents could write to the Department of Director-General of Lands and Mines (JKPTG) to ask for an extension,” said Abdul Hadi Ahmad, Public Engagement Director at developer Ritzy Gloss Sdn Bhd.
Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani revealed that some homeowners had requested for a six-month extension.
“I have asked for the houseowners to be placed temporarily at Kuala Lumpur City Hall housing,” he said.
Kampung Sungai Baru featured 264 flats as well as 64 terrace homes across 5.23ha site.
Owners of both the terrace homes and flats will be given replacement units at the new high-rise project.
6) Industrial properties to extend strong sale momentum into 2023
Maybank Investment Bank Bhd (Maybank IB) expects the industrial property sector to continue with the strong sales growth in 2023, following the reopening of international borders in April last year.
“We expect the strong sales momentum to extend into 2023 with rising investment diversion from China on persisting United States (US)-China trade war,” it said as quoted by The New Straits Times.
However, developers in Malaysia have turned cautious about industrial parks, even as they remain favoured by investors.
In fact, developers plan to introduce fewer industrial parks this year to combat rising construction costs and potential delays in delivery, said the investment bank.
“Also, developers are cautious on property demand as higher interest rates would hit buyers’ affordability,” it added.
Notably, mortgage loan applications dropped 7% quarter-on-quarter and 15% year-on-year to RM33.5 billion in October 2022.
For this year, Maybank IB forecast property sales to either remain unchanged or increase slightly year-on-year, amid the ongoing labour supply issues and slower launches by developers.
