Juwai IQI says 12MP measures mean big changes to real estate market

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THE SUN DAILY. 5TH OCTOBER: The 12th Malaysia Plan’s (12MP) new measures foresee big changes in the property sector by 2025, with the share of transactions below RM300,000 expected to increase, coupled with more activity in the price ranges most suitable for B40 and M40 buyers.

Juwai IQI co-founder and group CEO Kashif Ansari (pix) said the lower price ranges already account for nearly two-thirds of transactions. About 62% of transactions in 2020 were for property priced below RM300,000, compared with just 17% for property priced above RM500,000.
“To enable more of the B40 and the M40 to own their homes, there will be more development in the appropriate price ranges and a range of financing and policy incentives. Some of the key programmes that will be harnessed include Rent to Own (RTO), the Fund for Affordable Homes and Youth Housing Scheme, and the Skim Pinjaman Perumahan. The incentives include increasing access to financing, encouraging affordable housing construction, and closer management of affordable housing so it is reserved exclusively for qualified residents.

“To help buyers who cannot afford a downpayment on a new home, the eligible price range for the RTO programme will be raised to RM500,000. The RTO scheme is an affordable way to acquire your own home, simply by renting it for five years,” he said in a statement today.

Juwai IQI believes the 12MP’s goals of improving lifestyles and financial security, increasing property ownership, and accelerating innovation are complementary.

“Malaysia already has a relatively high rate of home ownership of 70%. The overall percentage of bumiputra households owning a residential unit is 74%. That’s significantly higher than in the European Union and the US, for example.”

Kashif said there are three reasons property ownership features so prominently in the 12MP: security, prosperity and quality of life.

In the rental market, he said, the government plans to introduce new legislation to regulate the rights of proprietors and tenants, which will provide tenants with more security and stability while renting.