Property prices plunge

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Streets/Wednesday/Stories/2381698/Article/index_html

NST Wednesday, 22 October 2008

KUALA LUMPUR: Owners in the Klang Valley are having a hard time selling their houses as buyers are staying away, hoping that prices would drop further.

This has been the scene in the past four months as buyers chose to "wait and see", anticipating further price drops next year.

Even though experts say prices will not dip much, some real estate agents are in jitters over the prospects for the economy next year.

Many real estate agents interviewed believe that the property market will only go downhill.

"Business has been bad. It's hard for us to sell houses nowadays," said one real estate agent.

He believes prices of condominium flats will drop heavily, after experiencing rise of RM1,000 to RM2,000 per square foot in the past two years,

He said those most likely to be affected are middle-income property owners who have difficulty in servicing their housing loans.

He said prices of middle range homes might be stagnant for a couple of years.

Another real estate agent, who wanted to be known only as Lim, said properties on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, such as those in Puchong, will feel the impact more than upmarket areas like Mont Kiara and Sri Hartamas.

Property developer Sunrise Bhd is to defer some of its projects while waiting for the market to readjust.

The developer added that it will take measures to complete its Solaris Dutamas, 10 Mont'Kiara, 11 Mont Kiara and Mont Kiara Meridin projects.

Boustead Properties executive director Datuk Ghazali Mohd Ali said prices of condominium apartments might remain stagnant.

"However, a good piece of property in an excellent location and well managed will be able to ride a recession better than other forms of investment," he said.

Real estate valuer Regroup Associates' executive chairman, Christopher Boyd, said the residential property market in Klang Valley will not drop as much as expected.

"The first thing to remember is that Malaysian house prices are not based on speculative value. This will allow the prices to be well balanced," he said.

He said the prices of houses would only be affected if people had no jobs or could not afford to keep up their mortgages.

"The rest of the world is going through turmoil. It is likely to weaken the Malaysian economy in general but because we are not as speculative as many countries, the property prices will not drop much," he added.

In the 1997 Asian financial crisis, property prices in Malaysia did not plunge as the government took measures to protect the market.

He said interest rates are still low and most Malaysians still have jobs and are able to pay their bills.

However the market was slow despite 20 to 30 per cent reduction in rents.

yeah dreamer,

the recession sounds very scary like no bottom for the share markets

be careful for those property owners who still think they can earn good "passive income"... your nightmare is not far away

yes, not only iceland, ukraine and hungary are heading to bankruptcy & need help from IMF

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7692017.stm

Malaysia's key sectors show signs of slowdown

The Straits Times, October 27, 2008

At the numerous condominium projects around the Mont Kiara suburb of Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, construction workers plod round the clock to complete multi-storey apartment blocks. Property developers in this popular neighbourhood are worried, though, that sales are starting to slow.

"Units that were previously sold are now coming back onto the market," says a project manager of one unfinished condominium complex.

Shockwaves from the global financial meltdown are starting to pound on Malaysian shores and signs of a wider slowdown are already emerging in key props of the Malaysian economy, private economists say. That's spreading caution across the board, from potential homeowners to buyers of new cars.

Full articles: http://www.asianewsnet.net/news.php?id=2279&sec=2