THE outbreak of Covid-19 is having a major impact on the property industry but seeds of recovery are being seen moving forward.
According to the National Property Information Centre’s (NAPIC) latest report for the market in 2019, there was marginal improvement last year with 328,647 transactions worth RM141.4 bil, up 4.8% in volume and 0.8% in value over 2018.
The report also said that almost all sub-sectors saw growth in activity – residential property market (6%), commercial property (7.2%), industrial property (3.8%) and agriculture (2%). Meanwhile, the land development sub-sector declined slightly, by 1.2%.
The report also said that the residential property market was the only one which saw positive value growth.
In terms of the value of transactions, the residential sub-sector recorded 5.3% growth, whereas commercial, industrial, agriculture and land development recorded otherwise, decreasing by -1.8%, -1.1%, -4.4% and -9.1% respectively.
The residential sub-sector provided the biggest weightage to the overall property market volume with a 63.7% contribution. This was followed by the agriculture sub-sector (20.9%), commercial (7.8%), development land (5.7%) and industrial (1.9%).
In terms of value, residential took the lead with a 51.2% share, followed by commercial (20.5%), industrial (10.5%), development land (9.0%) and agriculture (8.8%).
Commenting on the report, REA Group agent and developer general manager Sean Liew said that it is encouraging to see improvements, especially in the residential property sector where it saw positive value growth.
“On top of that, the decrease in the property overhang in 2019 for the first time in five years marks a significant milestone for Malaysia’s property market.
“Post Covid-19, I believe the Malaysian property market will remain resilient in the coming year.
We are glad that the government is helping Malaysians with several affordable housing
initiatives and finding the right solutions to mitigate the overhang issue.
“What’s more, the implementation of programmes to promote home ownership among Malaysians are expected to contain the overhang situation in the coming year,” he said in a statement on May 13.
As the country’s economy rebounds, he added, the property market is anticipated to move in a similar direction.
“Finally, the fact that developers are clearing their inventories coupled with the further reduction in the overnight policy rate (OPR), this might be the best time to find value in the property market.”
iProperty.com Malaysia Sdn Bhd customer data solutions and quality general manager Premendran Pathmanathan said moving forward, the residential sector will continue to be a buyer’s market.
“In fact, we might see a lot more promotions by developers in the coming months. The recent effects of Covid-19 are showing further shifts in the way property agents and property buyers, sellers and investors interact on their property journey.
“We are increasingly seeing digital and data driving the way consumers seek properties and we can expect the property market to continue to evolve as it makes adjustments to adapt to the new normal,” he added. – May 13, 2020
