Can’t afford a home? Turn to the sub-sale market

PETALING JAYA (Feb 19): As property prices increasingly escalate beyond the reach of many would-be homebuyers — as corroborated by Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) latest quarterly bulletin — some experts have advised them to turn their sights to the secondary market, where homes in Kuala Lumpur priced up to RM200,000 are still available.

According to Bernama, these properties are better for the budgets of younger folk — especially city dwellers — who are just climbing the first rungs of the career and property ladders.

Real estate and investment writer Dr Azizul Azli Ahmad said prices of sub-sale units are often cheaper than their primary market counterparts.

“For example, a secondary condominium unit in Bangsar is sold for between RM600 and RM1,000 per sq ft, compared with a newly-developed condominium unit that sells for  RM1,500 to RM2,200 per sq ft,” he said.

Citing listings from property sites, he said there were plenty of secondary-market homes in Kuala Lumpur priced at under RM200,000 — a budget-friendly option for many, especially those who have just started working.

Indeed, a search on EdgeProp.my yielded listings such as a 758 sq ft freehold apartment at Taman Sri Kuching, Jalan Kuching, with an asking price of RM200,000 and even a 950 sq ft leasehold two-storey terraced house at Jalan Rejang 10, Setapak, with an asking price of RM180,000.

“In addition, secondary or sub-sale homes are ready to be occupied, have easy access to facilities such as shops, and they [the buyer] can also deal directly with the original owner if there is damage to the house during the buying and selling process,” he added.

BNM had recently pegged RM282,000 as the maximum price of an affordable home, based on the median national household income of RM5,228. (Read the story here)

In contrast, the median price of homes stood at RM313,000 in 2016.

Meanwhile, property management programme coordinator at Universiti Teknologi Mara’s Architecture, Planning and Surveying Faculty Dr Hairul Nizam Mansor, called for more aggressive policies to control property prices.

“The government needs to expand the housing policy such as limiting expensive home purchases to two, similar to overseas practices, as well as tightening the banks’ housing loan requirements,” he said.

On the flipside, Komuniti Pejuang Hartanah founder Ahyat Ishak blamed the younger folk’s inability to buy property on their expensive lifestyles, where the latest gadgets, fashions, and travelling took precedence over savings for the future.