KUALA LUMPUR: PropertyGuru International (M) Sdn Bhd (PropertyGuru Malaysia) maintains its “neutral” outlook for the country’s property market in 2020 but is expecting an uptick in the second half.
Country manager Sheldon Fernandez said on Dec 5 that the residential overhang has resulted in the supply-demand imbalance in the market hence the downtrend of asking prices for properties, seen since 2015.
“Despite government initiatives such as the Rent-to-Own (RTO) financing scheme and a lower RM600,000 foreign property ownership threshold in the 2020 Budget to improve the situation, we feel it is still not strong enough to stimulate and turn the market around.
“Hence, we maintain a neutral outlook for 2020,” he told a media briefing.
On the expected uptick in 2H20, Fernandez said it would still depend on how the RTO kicks into the market, as well as the response to the lower property threshold for foreigners.
“Market players will still prefer to adopt the wait-and-see approach in 1H20 before they take the right move in the rest of the year.
“But sentiment remains positive as we sees that potential buyers still intend to purchase the properties, although actions to buy still remain slow as they still want to wait and see the market performance first,” he said.
In terms of asking prices for properties in 2020, a year-on-year decrease of 0.9% is expected, similar to the price index published by the recent PropertyGuru Market Index (PMI) report for 3Q19.
Citing statistics provided by Nawawi Tie Leung Property Consultants Sdn Bhd, PropertyGuru Malaysia said as of 2Q19, the overhang units in Malaysia were estimated at 52,666, including 32,810 residential units, 18,186 serviced apartment units and 1,670 small office home office (SOHO) units.
“The residential overhang is a direct result of the supply-demand imbalance in the market, as developers build properties which buyers cannot afford to purchase,” it said.
Commenting on this, Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents CEO Soma Sundram urged the government to have some systematic planning and “some kind of control” over the property overhang scenario in the country.
Asked on Hong Kong property buyers’ interest following the prolonged anti-government protests in the city, Jones Lang Wootton executive director Prem Kumar said the influx of Hong Kong property buyers was seen taking place a few months ago.
Echoing Prem’s view, CCO & Associates (KL) Sdn Bhd executive director Chan Wai Seen said the properties purchased by Hong Kong citizens were priced over RM1 mil per unit at good locations.
“But how long it (the purchase trend) will continue depends on the situation in Hong Kong,” he said, adding that local property projects such as one in Genting Highlands would continue to draw mainland Chinese buyers in the coming years. – Bernama
