theSun Property September 2015

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ON FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25, 2015
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WHILE prices of residential
property in Sabah and Sarawak is
said to be still “fairly low”
comparedwith that in Kuala
Lumpur, the rate of increase has been termed
quite “scary” in recent years, considering the
generally lower average household income in
that part of the country. Then again, while
prices may be considered high for some, it is
still affordable to others. We explore the
residential market as compiled in CH
Williams 2015 property report, along with
views and comments fromCHWilliams
Talhar &Wong (Sabah) managing director
Robin Chung and CHWilliams TalharWong
&Yeomanaging director Robert Ting (on
Sarawak).
LANDED RESIDENTIAL INKK
According to theWTW2015 report, there
were fewer launches of landed residential
developments and new launches comprising
mainly double-storey terraced houses located
beyond the 10km radius of the city centre.
Older residences nearer the city centre or in
established neighbourhoods are well sought
after still. However, rentals are relatively
stable, thereby compressing yield
expectations.
Overall, the landed residential segment has
sustainedwith limited new supply in prime/
established locations. Says Chung: “I wouldn’t
call the new launches out of the city centre up
and coming areas, insteadmore like a
continuation of developing areas such as
those along or off JalanUMS-Jalan Sulaman in
the northern sector of KKwhere there are still
tracks of development land, whereinmajor
employment centres, government
administrative offices, educational
institutions and such are located in.”
Chung’s take on the outlook for the near
term: “Rather subdued given the present
market conditions.”
Here are some relatively recent residential
launches in KK.
AlamPuteri Phase 1A in Sepanggar
Rimba Phase 3 inMenggatal
Monitod Phase 2 in Kasigui
Putra Pogun in Kibabaig
Pertama Phase 2 in Penampang
Villa Nambazan in Penampang
Taman Impian in Inanam
LANDED RESIDENTIAL IN KUCHING
Stable with steady transaction volume, the
residential property prices continue to rise,
prime real estate substantially higher. In fact,
with the current market prices, first time
home buyers are having a hard time owning a
house in Kuching, let alone other parts of
Sarawak. Affordable houses are generally
priced belowRM400,000 but these are
located either in secondary areas or
X
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Transaction Activity Price Trend Take-up / Occupancy Rate
2014 2015 2014 2015 2014 2015
MAIN MARKET
Kota Kinabalu ► ► ▲ ► ► ►
Kuching ► ► ▲ ▲ ► ►
SUB MARKET
Sabah
Sandakan ► ► ▲ ► ▲ ►
Tawau ▲ ► ▲ ► ► ►
Lahad Datu ► ▼ ► ► ► ►
Keningau ► ► ▲ ► ▲ ►
Sarawak
Bintulu ► ▼ ► ▲ ► ▼
Sibu ► ► ▲ ▲ ► ►
Miri ► ▼ ▲ ▲ ▲ ►
unsuitable in house types.
Prices of semi-detached houses have
breached the RM1.5 million figure due to the
increase in land and construction costs,
especially telling for Sarawak, having lower
density development guidelines compared
with other states. Occupancy and take up
rates of housing remain stable while rentals
standmore or less unchanged from the year
before.
“Due to the generally lower average
household income in Sarawak compared
with KL, there will be increasing disparity
betweenwhat themarket is offering and
the demand of the general population
should the price of property continue to
rise at the rate it has been increasing.
Affordability of property in Sarawak is an
issue and has become a pressing problem to
provide good, basic housing for the
population at large,” says Ting. Some areas
being developed include “Bintulu – where
the SCORE projects are, and Samarahan
which is growing at a fast rate due to the
spillover effects of the extension of nearby
built-up areas like Kuching,” adds Ting.
However, 2014witnessed less launches and
less project completions probably because of
the shift to strata-titled residential units,
> Exploring residential markets in the two states
which has been significant
in numbers. Most of the
newdevelopments are
said to be “piece-meal” and
small, with new launches
noted to bemore active in
the outlying suburban areas, prime secondary
areas such asMatang, Batu Kawa and Jalan
Muara Tuang. Double-storey terraced houses
continued to be themainstay of the landed
residential sector followed by semi-d’s. Prices
in prime locations remain high, past the
RM500,000 bracket for double-storey
terraced units and RM1 million and above for
semi-d’s.
2015 is expected to reflect a similar
scenariowith slow-down in sales volume due
to further cost/price inflation andGST.
However, property prices are still expected to
rise, albeit at a lower rate.
Here are some relatively recent residential
launches in Kuching.
• Batu Kawa Residence in Jalan Batu Kawa
• Central Villa in JalanMuara Tuang
• Federal Park inMatang
• FullertonVilla in Batu Kawa
• Lot 933/Wawasan Barat Teguh in Jalan
Muara Tuang
•Malihah Jaya inMatang
• Residence 805 inMatang
• Rivervale in Bua
• Taman Sri Permai in BB Semariang
SabahandSarawak
property outlook PART2