Discovery Gallery for first luxury senior living project in Malaysia officially launched today

KUALA LUMPUR (March 9): Pelaburan Hartanah Bhd (PHB), UEM Group Bhd (UEM Group), and Japan’s Medical Care Service Inc (MCS) officially launched the discovery gallery of a joint project between the three parties known as Rei Seraya Residence — Malaysia’s first luxury senior living project with care services — on Jalan Ampang, next to Gleneagles hospital.

Rei Seraya focuses exclusively on the senior retired community and will be the first luxury senior living with proficient care services providing two types of options — both of which can be viewed at the Discovery Gallery, they said.

At a press conference today, PHB group managing director and CEO Datuk Kamalul Arifin Othman said the discovery gallery was set up to gauge feedback from the public based on local interest and demand for this new product concept.

He added that the project will not be for sale, but for lease; the public feedback will also be used to fine-tune their service offerings before determining the rental and service charges of the residences by the end of this year, given the relative newness of the concept in Malaysia.

"Construction has already started and we expect the development to complete by 2021 with operations taking place in 2022. The Malaysian national and local government bodies acknowledged that there is a need for accommodation and care for the ageing population. Malaysia’s population is increasing steadily with age and by 2020, 10% of the country’s population will be above the age of 60 and by 2030, the percentage of people aged above 60 will increase to 15%. This demographic reality will undoubtedly have profound economic and social implications, as well as new healthcare concerns, leading to opportunities," he said.

The development site for the project will be located at a 1.5-acre plot owned by PHB at Jalan Ampang, next to Gleneagles Hospital.

Rei Seraya is designed by Australian architect Thomson Adsett which specialises in senior living and will be operated by MCS, a leading care provider in Japan with over 15 years of experience operating more than 280 facilities in Japan, China and the Philippines.

The project is divided into two types, namely assisted living and independent living.

The assisted living units are 300 sq ft with en-suite bathrooms and communal areas to foster social ties, and provide medium to high-care services for residents for conditions such as dementia, as well as respite palliative and day care services.

Meanwhile, the independent living units are 900 sq ft luxury two-bedroom apartments with en-suite bathroom, kitchen and living room; care services will be provided upon request by residents.

"We are looking at having 100 units of assisted living units and 200 independent living units, but we are still flexible and will decide after we gain feedback from the public," said UEM Group group managing director and CEO Datuk Izzaddin Idris who was also at the event.