One thing I never quite understand about the property market in Malaysia is that the prices of new houses go up all the time, but at the same time, it is not difficult to find reasonably priced houses on the secondary market in areas that are not hot, but in my opinion, still quite okay, for example, Kepong, Cheras etc.

You know how people say that when you buy a new car, its price drops by 30 percent once you drive it off the lot? Okay, it's not quite so bad for property as I can see that there is a big premium for houses that are completed but that have never been lived in before, but it seems to me that houses that have been lived in before don't really command really high prices.

Note I'm not making any sorts of claims here as I admit I know next to nothing about property. It's just something I've observed and I'm curious why it's so. If I'm wrong, do tell me.

Bah, I still haven't received a reply to my question. In the meantime, I still see people posting new threads asking things like, "I want to buy a house. My budget is RM500k. But I absolutely don't want an old house." I'm extremely curious why.

Just because it's old? But everyone renovates before moving in nowadays, right, whether it's an old house or a new one. You repaint, do new kitchens, bathroom fittings, probably make a new ceiling, maybe add wall decorations, wall cabinets in rooms etc. Is there really still such a difference after all that is done?

Is there any source of good data on Malaysian real estate like you have for the US? Things like average rental rates to property price ratios, occupancy rates, average leverage of a property (percentage of debt as value of property) etc.

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Added on May 13, 2010, 5:13 pmBut this only seems to apply to new launches. Even if you bought a property 15 years ago, it would be old now. Why don't you buy a property that is 15 years old now?

This post has been edited by wankongyew: May 13 2010, 05:13 PM