By THEAN LEE CHENG

E&O launches seaside bungalows

FOR centuries, Penang has attracted traders, seafarers and adventurers from far and wide. Today, the island is no less popular, being one of Malaysia’s front-runners in the real estate investment market after Kuala Lumpur. It is against this backdrop of sun and surf, and city living that E&O Property Development Bhd is building the largest waterfront project there.

The company laid the foundation for the Seri Tanjung Pinang community by first selling double-storey terrace and semi-detached housing. It recently took things a notch higher by launching bungalows in three designs.

Martinique, one of three designs of waterfront bungalows with pool fronting the Straits of Malacca by E&O Property Development in Seri Tanjung Pinang.

Known as Skye, Abrezza and Martinique, the bungalows are set apart from other landed developments taking place on the island because of several factors.

The first is the overall ambience. Each home design draws inspiration from the different elements around the world that make living a pleasure.

Although the look, feel and design vary, a single thread binds them and the buyers who take to them – the desire for the finer things in life.

Those who have visited the show village and the show houses would probably agree that Martinique is the most spectacular of the three.

It blends classic lines with the best of materials like nyatoh balustrades, Italian marble flooring and Burmese teak.

Fronting the Straits of Malacca and enveloped by a meandering waterfront promenade, Martinique is a double-storey white sprawling mansion reminiscent of the white and beige plantation manors of the Caribbean Islands.

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(Editor :- Once again another a property outlook close to home) 

Bricks and Mortar
By TEH LIP KIM

WHILE last year was generally good for properties in Malaysia, particularly at the top end of the market, news of the credit crunch in the US stemming from the subprime mortgage crisis had become troubling by year-end. 

Still, we tend to remain optimistic about the prospects for Malaysian property. The government had put various measures in place for the property market and announced a series of liberalisations, financial incentives, and system enhancements even before the news of the credit crunch reached our shores. 

These included changes  changes to Employee Provident Fund (EPF) withdrawals. Effective this Jan 1, EPF members will be allowed to make a withdrawal every month from Account 2 of their accounts to finance their housing loans. Previously, EPF withdrawals for housing purposes were permitted only once every three years, and subsequently, once a year.  

If all 5.4 million EPF members take advantage of this initiative, about RM9.6bil is expected to be released for home purchases, which will surely give the real estate market a nudge in the right direction.  

Drawing on the experience of our neighbour down South, home ownership in Malaysia, currently at 67%, is likely to increase with this new monthly withdrawal scheme. In 1980, when Singapore allowed its Central Provident Fund (CPF) members to use their CPF money for paying off monthly mortgages, home ownership was 59%. By 2000, according to the Singapore Census, home ownership had risen to 92%.  Read more »

Editor :- I came across this interesting article on the Star newspaper on Saturday. Read it and feel free to share your comments with me. Kudos to S.DALI for publishing this article. 

THE Cost of Living (COL) survey by ECA International is carried out twice a year, comparing a basket of 128 consumer goods and services commonly purchased by expatriates in over 300 locations worldwide. Multinational companies use the results to help compensate their internationally mobile staff. Living costs for expatriates are affected by inflation, availability of goods and exchange rates, all of which can have a significant impact on expatriate remuneration packages. They concluded the following on Asian cities:  

“In Asia, Seoul maintains its position as the most expensive city in Asia for expatriates, moving from 8th to 7th in the global ranking over the past 12 months. During the same period, Tokyo, Asia’s second most costly city, dropped out of the top ten for the first time moving from 10th to 13th.   A 6% overall rise in the cost of goods and services typically purchased by expatriates has meant that despite the weakening Hong Kong dollar, Hong Kong’s position in the ranking has remained steady and is still the fifth most expensive location in the region and ranked 79th worldwide.  The recent rise in GST in Singapore from 5% to 7% has contributed to pushing up living costs in Singapore, which has risen 10 places in the ranking since 2006. This, together with no change in Hong Kong’s position, means that the gap is closing between the two locations.”  Where does Malaysia stand? 

1       (7) Seoul 

2       (13) Tokyo 

5        (79) HK 

6        (94) Taipei 

7        (95) Beijing 

8        (100) Shanghai 

9       (122) Singapore 

11       (153) Jakarta 

18       (168) Bangkok 

24       (177) Mumbai 

25        (178) New Delhi 

29        (191) Manila 

32        (195) Hanoi 

33        (197) Kuala Lumpur 

35        (203) Karachi 

36       (204) Ho Chi Minh City 

  Read more »

Imagine this.

It’s a normal Monday and the kids are back from school. Out of curiosity, you log on to your home webcam just to see what they are up to :). There they are, the two kids are up to their naughty mischiefs again. “Ha ha”, you laughed, knowing where those pesky ”booby” traps are that they have “lovingly” set up for you at home.

Next you ”ping” your refrigerator and make a download of a list of foodstuff available. Going through the list, you realised that you may not have enough food for dinner later. As such you make a quick order to your friendly neighbourhood grocery shop or hypermart which then drops off your groceries at your door step as you return from work. Phew, that sure saves the trouble of queuing up at the counter. 

Amazing scenario? Well it may well come true in the township of the future which all Malaysians may one day live. This is provided that all the government efforts to increase the rate of Internet penetration in Malaysia bears fruit.

The foundations for this has already begin to take shape. The government is offering its expertise in a private-public partnership to improve the telecommunications infrastructure to existing and new housing estates. 

Read more »

To encourage Malaysians to have better quality of life as well as to ease the burden of owning a house, the Malaysian government has made provisions in Budget 2008 to allow the monthly withdrawals of the balance in Account II for home loan repayment.

In other words, Employee Provident Fund (EPF) contributors will now be able to make use of their Account II balances to assist them in the Monthly Home Mortgage repayments. For example, an average wage earner earning RM3,000 a month will be able to use his EPF to contribute an additional RM207 a month towards his home mortgage repayments.

To illustrate the above point further, here’s a breakdown on the calculations

Monthly Wage = RM3,000

Monthly EPF Contributions
a. Contribution from Employee (11%) = RM330
b. Contribution from Employer (12%) = RM360

Total Monthly Contribution to EPF (a.+b) = RM690

Hence, Monthly Account II allocation is RM207 (30% of the total monthly contributions)

As such, new and current home owners stand to benefit as follows:

• Qualifying for a higher Home Loan Quantum as the qualifying monthly Mortgage repayment is RM1,207 instead of RM1,000 (Based on the rule that monthly mortgage repayments should <1/3 of your monthly salary)

• Ability to purchase a property at a much higher price range. Current home owners may consider trading their current home for a bigger one

• Or for current home owners on Flexible Home Loan, using the monthly EPF witdrawals to boost the monthly repayments translates to lower interest charges and overall lower cost of ownership.

On the surface, this policy looks like another win-win policy for the people and the real estate industry. However the implementation of this policy from the EPF statutory body leaves a lot to yearn for. Read more »

Welcome to the third and final instalment on the Star Property and Home Fair.  In this blog post, I’ll be writing on  4 featured development projects by renowned developers like Sunway City, Asia Green Group, CP Landmark and Setia Promenade.

Sunway City Berhad

On display for this exhibition is the Sunway Bukit Gambier Project. Built off Jalan Bukit Gambier, this property development is made up of 2 1/2 storey Terrace as well as 3 storey Semi-Detached. 

Sunway group is also showcasing their upcoming Sunway Sungai Batu. Located in Teluk Kumbar (Southern Penang Island), the development consists of Commercial Shop Lots as well as 2 1/2 storey Terrace houses. Those interested may register at the booth for invitation to the official property launch later this year.

Asia Green Group

Prominently on display at the Asia Green booth is the High End, Low Density Bungalow project named Hilltop Villas. Located along the Batu Ferringhi coastline, each Bungalow units comes with a view of the Sea as well as the lush greenery of the Batu Ferringhi Hills. Consisting of only 23 units, Buyers are given e a choice of either a 3 storey Bungalow or a 4 storey Bungalow. Buyers will also be able to choose from 5 unique bungalow designs as well.

CP Landmark

At the CP Landmark booth, visitors will be greeted by the familiar sight of the BayStar Condominiums.  Consisting of only 160 units, housed in 2 blocks and 4 units per floor, the Baystar Condominium is practically a  Semi-D in the sky. The project is within walking distance to the newly opened Queensbay Mall.

 Setia Promenade

Setia Pearl Island is a residential development project by Setia Promenade Sdn. Bhd. Located in the district of Sungai Ara, the development consists of mainly 3-storey Terrace and possibly Semi-Detached units in future.

Currently available for booking is the “Isle of Aroma”. Consisting of 267 units of 3 storey terrace houses, buyers are given a choice of 5 different home designs.

Read more »

The Star Property and Home Fair is an annual real estate, property and home decorative fair organised by The Star. Held once a year at PISA (Penang International Sports Arena), this year’s exhibition boasts of over 100 exhibitors comprising of property developers, banks and home furnishing industries. The fair is held from 21st Sept to the 23rd Sept and opens from 10am to 9pm.

(Editors note : Today is the last day of the exhibition. So hurry up, don’t miss this golden opportunity to shop for your dream house.)

 IJM Properties

Prominently on display at the IJM booth, is their upcoming high-end residential condominium project.  Named  the “Platino”, the project consist of 2 Towers which will housed a total of 229 units of condomiums, duplex and penthouses. The whole project development is conveniently located near Tesco, Penang. According to the IJM staff, the project is slated for launch next week.

Sunshine Residencial @ Jawi

Sunshine Residencial is a pioneer project by Silver Resort Sdn. Bhd, a subsidiary of the renowned Suiwah Corporation Berhad. Located in Jawi, Sunshine Residential is a residential development consisting of Double Storey Terrace Houses and Semi-D. 

Here’s a preview of the Double Storey Semi Detached model

Also on display are the Double Storey Terrace models as well

For Sunshine Residential, the project marketing is handled by Henry Butcher Malaysia (Butterworth) Sdn. Bhd.

Thats all for Part 2. Stay tune for Part 3, Read more »

Its time again for the annual Star Property and Home Fair. This year’s fair is held at the Penang International Sports Arena (PISA) from Sept 21 to the 23rd and boasts of over 100 exhibitors comprising of both Property developers and banks. An impressive number of exhibitors considering that this fair is held in the Northern Region Of Malaysia.

Ivory Properties Group

Upon entering the exhibition Hall, visitors will be greeted by the sight of the “Penang Times Square”. Developed by Ivory Properties Group in two phases, Penang Times Square is made up  of “Birch the Plaza” (Phase A) and “Birch Regency” (Phase B).

Penang Times Square is a mixed development project comprising of both commercial and residential units. Currently, Phase A is under development and targeted for completion in 2008.

Penang Times Square

Moonlight Bay

Also on display in the Ivory Properties Group booth is the mock up of the Moonlight Bay development. Moonlight Bay is a luxurious low density gated community made up of about 70 Villas and 2 condominium blocks.

Moonlight Bay

Hunza Properties

Next up is the Hunza Properties booth. Prominently on display is the upcoming “Gurney Paragon” development.

Gurney Paragon is a mixed developement project which comprises of both residential and commercial units. The development is located at Penang’s famous promenade namely Gurney Drive.

Gurney Paragon

Also on display at Hunza Properties is their high-end residential development project named “Infiniti“.

Infiniti, once completed will comprise of 119 condominums, penthouse and cabanas. The project is located along the famous Tanjung Bungah beachfront and each unit comes with a view of the sea.

Infiniti

That’s it for Part 1. Stay tune for part 2 where I’ll be writing on the Projects by IJM, Sunshine as well as Botanica CT.

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Some sneak peek into the the biggest exhibition on property, home and lifestyle in the northern region of Malaysia. Read more »

The Malaysian 2008 budget was tabled in Parliament two weeks back with numerous goodies for those shopping for a new home. The government hopes that these new measures would help stimulate the property sector in Malaysia.

For starters, the Stamp Duty for the Land Title Transfer for properties costing less than RM250,000 has been halved. This benefit is applicable for the purchase of one house for the whole of financial year of 2008.

Property           Price Stamp      Stamp Duty in 2007      Stamp Duty in 2008
House A            RM250,000              RM4,500                      RM2,250 (-50%)
House B            RM150,000              RM2,000                      RM1,000 (-50%)
House C            RM350,000              RM6,000                      RM6,000 (unchanged)

(Based on the current rate of 1% for first RM100,000 and 2% for RM100,001 to RM1,000,000)

With this new measure, I can foresee new home buyers benefiting in 2 ways:

• Significant Stamp Duty Savings
• Encouragement to property developers to provide more properties at sub RM250,000 price tag to entice home buyers to invest.

However new home buyers please note that in the home buying process, you will incur two major Stamp Duties namely the Stamp Duty for Title Transfer and the Stamp Duty for the Bank Loan Facility Agreement.

(Refer to Key Learnings – Lawyers Lessons 2 and Lawyers Lessons 3)

The Stamp Duty for the Bank Loan Facility agreement remains unaffected by the above changes. The current prevailing rates of 0.5% of Loan amount still prevails.

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