Soon can buy M’sian apt for less than 2-room HDB flat

From next yr, foreigners can buy property in federally-governed territories (mostly areas in and around KL), for only 600,000 ringgit (S$198,000: S$200,000 seems to be the value of a 2-room HDB flat in Bedok) following a move by Tun’s government to slash the threshold for foreign buyers by 40% to address an oversupply of high-rise units.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng announced the measure in October when he outlined Malaysia’s 2020 federal budget, saying that addressing the oversupply would boost the economy.

Tun (Remember he didn’t want foreigners to buy property in Johor when he came to power?) later warned that “crisis” loomed if the glut in supply was not resolved: “We have to get rid of this overhang so that the market for property becomes healthy again. We need to sell them or the developers will get into trouble.” Mahathir said. The  housing minister, Zuraida Kamaruddin said she hoped the measure would help “restore the financial position of Malaysian developers”.

But Johor or Penang, the places that S’poreans prefer, are not playing ball:

While the central government intends to lower the threshold for units in federally-governed territories next year, individual state governments are not compelled to follow suit.

Although leaders from Penang, Selangor and Johor – states suffering from an oversupply of high-end condominium units – have said they are reviewing their foreign-ownership property thresholds, two of the states have said that the 600,000-ringgit figure is too low.

In some states, foreign buyers are currently limited to property priced at 2 million ringgit(US$480,000)or above.

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3036959/us145000-malaysian-homes-get-cheaper-foreign-buyers-will-locals?fbclid=IwAR2zWYqIOT3HUExC4xH47o9rUF4KNLrsjDFk1McqPVCg2SmkViGZLsMrFIE

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Related posts:

What a 4-room HDB flat buys in Iskandar & KL

S’poreans own Iskandar

Iskandar: Dummies Guide on why it’s rubbish

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I’ll end with

Li [a taxi driver in HK] was amazed at how “cheap” apartments in Singapore are. He lives with his parents in a one-bedroom apartment that is worth HK$6.5 million (US$830,000). He cannot afford to move out and, with his fourteen-hour days, has neither the time nor money to date.

https://sudhirtv.com/2019/11/15/a-longform-on-hong-kong-vs-singapore/

 

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