26 September, PETALING JAYA – Property players are feeling more optimistic on the market outlook for the first half (H1) of 2020, according to a poll by the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda).
The outlook for the property market for the second half (H2) of this year was mostly neutral, Rehda president Datuk Soam Heng Choon said during a media briefing on the findings of the H1 2019 Property Industry Survey.
“Most respondents are more optimistic for H1 2020 on hopes that the government would come up with an expansionary budget for 2020 to create more spendings and economic activities.
“Given the current global economic scenario, it is difficult for the government of the day (to do this). However, we are hopeful,” he said.
On the survey, which covered 144 respondents, he said it was found that despite the fewer launches in the first six months of this year, there was a 15 per cent increase in sales performance.
He said a total of 10,574 units were launched in H1 2019, of which 10,296 units were residential with the selling prices mostly ranging from RM250,000 to RM700,000.
Total sales performance went up to 58 per cent from 43 per cent in the second half of last year, with top performers being terrace houses in Sendayan (Negeri Sembilan) and Durian Tunggal (Melaka), he said.
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Among top measures cited by respondents to boost sales were aggressive participation in online and social media marketing and property sales, assistance with the first 10 per cent down payment and promotion of units within affordable threshold, Soam said.
“There was also an increase in the number of respondents with unsold units, at 73 per cent (H2 2018: 62 per cent), with the majority of them reporting they had less than 30 per cent unsold stocks.
“Total unsold units stood at 5,875 units, higher than H2 2018’s 5,054 units,” he said.
Soam noted that the survey also revealed that the cost of doing business, affected by the current economic scenario, had increased by nine per cent, with the top three cost components affecting their cash flow continuing to be compliance cost, material and labour cost as well as land cost.
Moving forward, he said a total of 18,373 strata and landed property were expected to be launched in the H2 2019, with respondents anticipating that sales performance would be 50 per cent and below in the first six months.
– BERNAMA