GEORGE TOWN: Penang is setting up its own Penang Housing Board (PHB), modelled after the successful Singapore Housing Development Board (HDB) and Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) in a long term bid to streamline the development of housing and plan more affordable housing in the state.

SUBANG: Southern Acids (M) Bhd (SAB) is set to unlock its holding of 644.49 acres of land bordering Kota Kemuning, Shah Alam, although its board of directors are still exploring its options.

KUALA LUMPUR: Melati Ehsan Holdings Bhd announced on Friday, Oct 29 that it has purchased 3.32 acres of freehold land in Bukit Jalil from Bukit Jalil Development Sdn Bhd for a future residential development project.

The Group said the acquisition is an opportunity for the Group to accumulate strategic land bank in a prime location at a reasonable price.

KUALA LUMPUR: Analysts are upbeat on Sunrise Bhd’s prospects going forward, given its growth strategy to venture into a variety of locations, both foreign and domestic.

A further positive factor is the cyclical nature of the property sector which would help propel sales as the domestic economy picks up pace.

The success of Sunrise Bhd’s recently-launched Quintet project in Richmond, Canada is a showcase of its ability to expand beyond its home base in Mont’Kiara. The success of Quintet also marks the start of the next phase of Sunrise’s growth strategy, which executive chairman Datuk Tong Kooi Ong labels as “Stage 3”.

KUALA LUMPUR: Sunrise Bhd is expected to launch at least four major property projects with gross development value (GDV) totalling RM2.7 billion next year and anticipates to register better results for FY2011 ending June 30, given its large unbilled sales of RM1.2 billion.

KUALA LUMPUR: AP Land Bhd on Friday, Oct 29 launched Shiki niseko, its first mixed-development project in Japan.

"This is considered the Aspen of the East and is targeted to high net-worth individuals," said Low Su Ming, joint managing director of AP Land after the official media presentation.

KUALA LUMPUR: The completed Bézier Apartments located in the City of London, UK is open for sale to Malaysians this weekend Oct 30 and 31, following its official launch last weekend (Oct 23 - 24).

BEIJING: China's latest interest rate rise earlier this month was not aimed at taming property prices, a senior central bank researcher said on Friday, Oct 29.

The central bank does not target asset prices when setting monetary policy, said Zhang Jianhua, the head of the research bureau at the People's Bank of China.

KUALA LUMPUR: Property is one of the main focuses of the recently-launched Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) roadmap, as the development of industrial, commercial, residential and even tourism centres are expected to help kickstart the transformation of Malaysia into a high-income economy.