In search of landed houses of RM600k or less in the Klang Valley

Yes, we hear you. Property prices are beyond the average wage earners’ affordability but you have always wanted your own shelter, preferably a landed type where you, your family and your pet perhaps can call home.

The question is, are there any landed terraced houses costing RM600,000 or less in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor? Those that require a monthly instalment of just around RM2,000?

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Too good to be true?
EdgeProp.my: Good deals for terraced houses below RM600k

Actually, yes!

A quick click of EdgeProp.my property listings has showed up a total of 10,108 terraced houses up for sale asking for RM600,000 or less. This was as of March 18, 2021.

Even though there might be some duplicate listings because some owners engage a few agents to market the same property, assuming one property has five duplicates, it still works out to over 2,000 listings.

Of these listings, 350 properties are in Kuala Lumpur and the rest in Selangor.

Where to find these properties

In KL, a total 124 terraced houses below RM600,000 were located in Setapak, Gombak and Wangsa Maju areas, with average asking prices ranging from RM442,000 to RM522,000.

Note: Some listings could be duplicates due to multiple agents handling one property

Cheras and Segambut also have over 30 listings with average asking prices of RM481,000 and RM490,000 respectively.

EdgeProp.my data also showed that in Selangor, Klang has 1,352 listings – the highest number of terraced houses priced below RM600,000 – with an average asking price of RM429,000.

Other areas you could find terraced houses priced below RM600,000 include Semenyih (832 listings), Shah Alam (700), Bandar Puncak Alam (683) and Kajang (653).

EdgeProp.my has reached out to realtors and seven of them have offered their takes on buying a terraced house of RM600,000 or less.

One of them opines they must be either far from major business hubs or very old buildings.

Most of the realtors, however, agree that sellers are more realistic these days and are willing to lower their asking prices.

To Shawn Fernandez, director of Aegis Property, searching for properties priced below RM600,000 is a feasible mission as property owners now are more open for negotiations and this is the time for buyers who have been saving to buy a house to look for their desired properties in their preferred locations.

“Those in the property industry who encountered the financial crisis of 1997 will remember those brave purchasers who bought houses in Bandar Utama and Desa Sri Hartamas. It was a steal then, which paid huge dividends very soon thereafter,” he tells EdgeProp.my.

Furthermore, the current favourable interest rate has made it a perfect timing for buyers to go “shopping”, he adds.

Bank Negara Malaysia has maintained the overnight policy rate at 1.75% since July last year. The low OPR will also reduce the base rate and base lending rate for bank loans, which also means lower housing loan interest rates.

Currently, the interest rate for a 30-year housing loan of RM500,000 ranges between 2.85% and 4.5%. (Click to visit the EdgeProp.my loan check calculator to know how much you could borrow.)

Good deals snapped up within one week

GS Realty senior negotiator Aaron Wong notices asking prices of landed properties in Mahkota Cheras, Bandar Kinrara in Puchong and Subang Jaya have dropped to the RM600,000 level, from over RM700,000 last year.

Some owners who are facing cash flow problems are willing to reduce the price further to cash out. Many cash-rich investors are taking this opportunity to bargain the price and good properties are out of the market within one week.

“For example, a bungalow at Country Heights has attracted many enquiries right after the listing was put up online, and the property which has an asking price of RM8.5 million was sold to a cash buyer in less than a week,” he shares.

Oriental Real Estate Sdn Bhd team leader Alps Tan Joon Kiat concurs with Wong, adding that quite a number of landed homes in matured housing areas in KL, such as Ampang, Kepong, Gombak, Taman Melawati, Setapak and Wangsa Maju, have seen asking price reduced to below RM600,000.

“This could be a good chance for owner-occupiers who are looking for landed properties in established areas which are close to various amenities and comes with good accessibility,” he adds.

However, Tan notes that the downside of buying these properties is buyers would need to allocate some funds for renovation and refurbishment as such properties might be above 10 or 20 years old.

Location or size – you can’t have it all

Terraced houses remained the most popular in the residential property segment, according to the National Property Information Centre. Terraced houses dominated the residential property transactions in the first half of 2020, with over 41% or a total of 30,876 terraced houses changing hands during the period.

Undeniably, landed houses are most buyers’ preferred choice when it comes to owning a property, but Yit Seng Realty senior real estate negotiator Wong Ai Ling advises homebuyers to consider their priorities before making buying decisions.

There are still plenty of choices for terraced houses selling below RM600,000 in established areas like Kepong and Cheras. However, these are normally in smaller sizes of below 1,600 sq ft, some are leasehold or may not be located in a guarded community.

Other than pricing and property types, it’s more

This story first appeared in the EdgeProp.my E-weekly on March 26, 2021. You can access back issues here.

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