News by Racheal Lee

The property market in Johor will remain challenging this year and developers will focus on clearing stock and selling products priced below RM700,000.

Bukit Jalil in Kuala Lumpur has been in the limelight ever since it was chosen as the location for the National Sports Complex, the venue of the 1998 Commonwealth Games. To accommodate the more than 3,000 athletes, many apartment blocks were built in the vicinity.

O&C Resources Bhd may be a new player in the property development industry but it is ready to make a name for itself. Its management is from a low-key company, OCR Land Holdings Sdn Bhd, which was established more than 25 years ago.

Starting up your own business seems to be the trend these days, especially among those aged 40 and below. People are doing this for many reasons including flexibility, security and ambition. At a fengshui seminar earlier this year the one question that kept popping up during the Q&A session was “Is it a good year to start a business?”

The Klang Valley is facing an oversupply of retail space with more than seven sq ft per capita based on the population of more than seven million. New completions last year, which included Atria Shopping Gallery in Damansara Jaya, Sunway Putra Mall in Kuala Lumpur, Ikea Cheras, Emerald Avenue in Selayang and Star Avenue Lifestyle Mall in Shah Alam, had resulted in more than two million sq ft of new retail space.

Droves of Chinese tourists are visiting Johor Bahru daily to view Forest City and other projects from China-based developers, with many hotels reporting good occupancy rates.

Typically, when prime land in the city centre becomes scarce, fringe areas become the next natural target for both investors and developers. Besides the “location, location, location” mantra, there are many benefits to reap from this move — high demand, good investment opportunities and readily available amenities and infrastructure.

KEDAH-based property developer JKG Land Bhd may not be known by many in the Klang Valley but this could soon change. It is planning to make its presence felt with The Era Duta North in Jalan Segambut, Kuala Lumpur — its first development in the central region. A preview of the project will be held by the end of this month.

He is looking to take Mah Sing to the next level, with emphasis on delivering a structured organisation and improving operational efficiency.

Construction and property development company Kenwingston Sdn Bhd may be relatively young — it was incorporated in 2010 by a group of property professionals — but its aggressive strategy saw it grow by leaps and bounds in recent years.