Hey, there are also freehold condo's worth 150K in Brickfields also la. But terrible surroundings. Almost like slums.

Im not sure what your budget is but you must ensure that u are not buying a property at inflated prices above the norm. Areas like Mont Kiara and KLCC are very volotile areas. When the economy is good, prices rise but the moment there's a downturn, these areas are among the first affected. Areas which are tenant based are always volotile. Only areas which are mostly owner occupied are stable.

Since ure looking for a property to stay, why not choose an area which has got a good environment with everything close by? TTDI is a good place. Its only a short distance from Hartamas and yet has all the amenities you would need. Kiara Park Condo although is 17 yrs old but is a well maintained homely place with alot of grenary and a good mix of owners and expats. It has a very friendly atmosphere and many ppl staying there know each other by name which is rare for condo living in KL.

Staying close to your working place is only 1 aspect of your decision making. More importantly is the environment after your work ends. Working in KL is hectic and stressful which makes your home very important to de-stress and relax.

Prices of property in TTDI have been upward moving since its start in the 90's. Its a mature and stable area and will continue to be a place of choice for many years to come. Take a slow drive around TTDI over the weekend. Have a few meals here. Visit the 3 large parks we have. And then visit Kiara Park condo and then decide if that is what you and your wife would want.

I am not a sales agent in case ure wondering. Just someone who spent 6 months carefully evaluating properties in many areas of Klang Valley before finally deciding to settle down in TTDI last year. To date, i have not regretted my decision in any way. My property has appreciated by about 40% since i bought it last year. But most importantly, the homely atmosphere and the vast amount of grenary are surely a great reason to rush home everyday after work.

Ure in TTDI and u wanna leave????

First of all, your budget is quite low if u wanna stay in a decent area. Most property prices have skyrocketed in the past 12 months. Are u sure you cannot afford a much higher valued place? When i started my property seach last yr, my budget was also around RM300K. Then i realised that for that budget i will not be a satisfied home owner. Either i sacrifice locality or i sacrifice space as in getting a small unit. So to get the best of both worlds, i decided to increase my budget and bought my current place for RM 470K. Have not regretted my decision since.

Yes Desa Kiara is not good. So thats out.

When u say RM 350K is your budget, are u refering to the overall property cost only or the max amount of loan ure willing to take? Also, have you taken into account all the other lawyer & bank loan fees plus renovation & fitting out costs into your budget?

Just make sure u are not buying at an inflated price in a non prime area. Many areas just pinjam the name damansara to give it some status.

I dont think it would affect high end properties that much. Most of those who are willing to fork out millions for these properties wouldnt mind forking out an extra 20%.

But this move will surely hit the developers who have been allowed to manipulate the property pricing for too long at the expense of the people. Now lets see what they're gonna do.

But then again this move only effects 3rd properties. Most of them can buy and put it in their wife's or working kid's names and after a few years transfer it to their name once the bubble is over.

Has anybody heard about the new condo to be built in TTDI, KL? Its on the land previously occupied by the Makbul Nasi Kandar right on Jalan Burhanudin Helmi leading to 1 Utama.

There is no hard and fast rule regarding pricing. New launch pricing must always be compared with the general market price of that area. If it is about 5-10% higher then its still acceptable. But once it goes beyond that, then u have to really consider all your options.

Which?

Dont trust the info on www.propwall.com

Its mostly property agents and developers trying to sell off their units. They are saying Empire Subang is the 2nd most sought after property in Subang. Thats a big lie. Ppl are actually trying to sell off the units there because the new LRT is coming right in between the Empire shopping centre and the residence. Its crossing at level 5 or 6 and will practically destroy the value of all the units facing the proposed LRT.

http://www.propwall.my/subang_jaya/empire_subang

Im refering to that. The residence.

Pricing guides like this are not a real indicator because its based on market driven prices. But many properties in Klang Valley and Penang now are demand driven. These figures may not be captured in these statistics.

While there are those who are buying, there are also those who are putting their purchase plans on hold. Poor occupancy may not neccessarily mean that the units aren't bought. Investors sometimes buy up units and leave them vacant waiting for the price to rise.

Yes forget the new launches. All the developers have pakat with each other to raise prices together. Best to look for 2nd hand properties. But always stick to mature areas.

Property oversupply of RM 5.3 bil, take up rate of new properties only 20.2%, household debt at record high RM 560 bil

44,954 residential units under construction

November 25, 2010
by Dr. Dzul

Property Overhang as reported by Napic (National Property Informational Centre) for the third quarter of last year was supposedly a cause for alarm. Then there was an oversupply of 20,286 residential, 5,450 shop and 619 industrial units worth a whopping RM5.3 billion.

Of the 6,401 new residential units launched during the third quarter, which was a far cry from the 14,588 units launched in the previous corresponding quarter, only 20.2% found buyers.

If the RM5.3 billion overhang failed to deter the enthusiasm of the NEM planners, let’s consider what is in the pipeline.

The Finance Ministry also reported another 44,954 residential, 4,605 shop and 794 industrial units were under construction as of the third quarter. Projects approved but yet to be implemented comprised another 14,993 residential, 1,011 shop and 872 industrial units.

The massive oversupply constitutes a major financial burden on developers and their financiers, most of whom are financial institutions. More recently, Napic’s Property Overhang reports show that unsold properties in Malaysia rose to 22.6 per cent of new launches in the second quarter of this year, from 19.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year. For Kuala Lumpur, unsold properties rose to 16.1 per cent from 15.8 per cent, while for Selangor it rose to 14.6 per cent from 12.4 per cent.

Quite ironically while a glut is emerging, prices of residential property have surged by as much as 35% in the past year especially in property hotspots e.g Penang and KL, far above income growth and giving rise to concerns that the market is becoming unsustainable and a property bubble forming. Checks on developments completed this year also show that vacancy rates remain at 50 per cent or higher.

While prices keep going up, the economic returns continue to decline. This, in return, contributes towards distorting the economy and plunging the country ever deeper into a frightening ‘economic bubble’.

On the back of the emerging property bubble, the revelation of a ballooning household debt, comprising mainly house mortgages, cars loans and personal financing such as credit cards, debit cards which stood at a record high of RM560 billion as at Aug 31, 2010 from Bank Negara Malaysia data is surely a cause for alarm.

The rapid growth in household debts now poses a threat to the economy and exacerbates the vulnerability and instability to the financial sector.

It is worth noting that our household debt to GDP ratio shot up to 76% and is the highest in Asia, except for Japan. But Japan’s per capital income is US$32,700 per month in 2009, while Malaysia’s average income is less than RM2000 per month.

According to a note by CIMB Research, the ratio of household debt to personal disposal income hit 140.4 % in 2009- higher than Singapore 105.3% and the US 123.3%. This means Malaysians owe double the amount they earn.

Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK) reported a total of 50,361 cases enrolled in debt management program with 10.6% of them who could not pay their credit card debt while 74.3% had repayment problem with housing loans, car loans and credit cards outstanding.

AKPK’s CEO Mohamed Akwal Sultan said some 44% of the individuals who join the programme belong to the 30 to 40 age group. Some individuals start to have repayment issues when they are even younger because many of them do not have salaries that commensurate with their lifestyle. High car prices, due to protectionist policy of the government doesn’t help while most are already in debt as soon as after graduation because of loan repayment for their studies ie the PTPTN. The problems worsen when they hit their 30s and beyond.

Since Malaysians tend to have short memories and have a penchant for the denial syndrome, it’s pertinent to remind our political leaders and planners of the costly deflation of the property bubble in the aftermath of the 1997/98 regional financial crisis.

When the property bubble burst in 1998, the banking system was left with RM51.8 billion worth of non-performing loans (NPLs), forcing the government of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to form Danaharta Bhd to assume the NPLs and Danamodal to help recapitalise the banks.

Danaharta subsequently assumed NPLs worth over RM50 billion and overnight, became the largest real estate owner in the country with assets valued at RM3.63 billion while Danamodal injected RM11.7 billion to revitalize and recapitalise the banks.

Going by the orgy of real estate developments in recent years, it is clear that both the regulators and the developers have forgotten the 1997/98 lessons or have not learnt much. Notably the government is discouraged to put a higher real property gains tax (RPGT) and restrictive loan-to-value (LTV) caps as it will be a deterrent to foreign direct investments and high net worth individuals. Besides, a higher LTV for 3rd home buyers of 70:30, may not be complied with after all, by the financial institutions.

They claim its sold out. Its always based on the color chart. But its never the truth. Dont believe what developers tell you.

Yes mature and above average locations will not be affected much. Prices there will always remain. Either stagnant or going up. Rarely falling.

Stop eating shark fins. Do you know that is a cruel and irresponsible act that is the main reason for the drastic reduction in shark numbers. Stop the consumption and the killing will stop.

Typical Government brainwashing. Thats the crap the Gov has been feeding us with for the last 53 years. You only do a currency conversion when you are a tourist. If ure living and earning in the local currency of that country you do not do a currency conversion.

Same with prices of cars. Why convert a USD$45,000 BMW 3 series to local RM when comparing with our damn Proton? U earn in USD, u pay taxes in USD, your daily expenses are in USD and your property and car purchase is in USD. So why the heck do u convert the currency to RM and claim the BMW is expensive???

Ask those who have worked and lived in the US. You can buy a nice hillside bungalow house overlooking the ocean in California for about USD650K. What can you get for RM650K in KL? Even my 18 year condo in TTDI costs RM 670K now.

And you still wanna say cost of living in Malaysia is low???

You can easily survive in Singapore with a SGD$3,000 salary with an average lifestyle. U dont even need a car there since their public transportation is world class. Only their property prices are sky high but that is expected since its a small island with very limited land. Taxes is a bit higher but i wouldnt mind since my tax money is well spent. Can u say the same about Malaysia?

This post has been edited by cybermaster98: Dec 1 2010, 10:26 AM