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Monday, October 24, 2011

Malaysia Property News (July - Oct 2011)

Monday, October 17, 2011


Breathing new life into Sandakan


KUALA LUMPUR: The multi-million ringgit Sandakan Harbour Square is set to transform Sandakan from a sleepy town mostly known for its orang utan sanctuary and natural attractions into a modern, dynamic city on the east coast of Sabah.

The seafront urban renewal project, comprising commercial shops and offices, an international hotel and shopping mall, as well as a new city square and waterfront esplanade, will provide ample business opportunities, jobs and space for recreational and social functions.

Ireka Development Management Sdn Bhd (IDM) president and chief executive officer, Lai Voon Hon, said the project aims to rejuvenate the central business district (CBD) of Sandakan.

"The general topography of Sandakan is limited by the sea and hill at the front and back of the town, leaving limited suitable land for town development. This has resulted in almost no new property development projects in the CBD in the last 20 years," he told Business Times.

The project, managed by IDM and supported by the Sabah government and Sandakan Municipal Council (MPK), covers 4.8ha land, including land reclamation.

Lai said the project is IDM's flagship project in East Malaysia.

IDM, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ireka Corporation Bhd, is the development manager for London-listed Aseana Properties Ltd. Aseana, which has property developments in other parts of Malaysia and Vietnam, is an associate company of the Ireka Group.

Lai said as an urban redevelopment project, "the Sandakan Harbour Square will be a catalyst for the modernisation of the town, with the aim of turning it into a tourist destination and a bustling commercial centre".

He said the third and the final phases of the project, comprising Harbour Mall Sandakan and Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, will be completed by year-end and early next year.

Between 3,000 and 4,000 jobs are expected to be generated by the mall and hotel, which has gross development value of RM510 million.

Among the confirmed tenants for the mall are Parkwell Departmental Store & Supermarket, Tomei, Bata, SoxWorld, GNC, Levi's, The Body Shop, Jeff Eyewear Space and Gintell.

Lai said the whole project blends well with Sandakan's development plan.

"Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman's vision is to turn Sandakan into an education hub."

At the same ceremony, MPK president Datuk James Wong said the education hub, which covers 600ha land, will be home to 15,000 people.

He said the new shopping mall will cater to the needs of the student population.

Wong believes that the project will attract more tourists to Sandakan.

By Business Times

Saturday, October 1, 2011


IJM Land to set the bar on digital lifestyle



GEORGE TOWN: IJM Land Bhd is poised to set the bar in Penang and the rest of the country soon on how a fully-networked property development can spur economic growth.

The company's flagship development - The Light Waterfront Penang - will offer a digital lifestyle to all its investors, thanks to fully fibre-to-the-home services and high-speed broadband connection to both residential and commercial investors within its 60.8 hectare project on Penang island.

The move by IJM Land will give a boost to the Penang state government's efforts in bringing fibre-optics to home users on Penang island.



"Thanks to IJM Land's efforts at future-proofing its properties in a greenfield development will stand out as a showcase, since it will soon offer its property owners 25 times more bandwidth from what Penang residents are currently having," Penang Telecommunications Task Force chairman Jeff Ooi told reporters after IJM Land, Astro Malaysia Holdings Sdn Bhd and TIME dot.Com Bhd inked a information and communications technology agreement at Menara IJM in Penang.

Present at the event were IJM group chief executive officer and managing director Datuk The Kean Ming, IJM Land Bhd's chief executive and managing director Datuk Soam Heng Choon, TIME chief executive officer Afzal Abdul Rahim and Astro chief commercial officer Liew Swee Lin.

Ooi, who is chairman of PDC Telecommunication Services Sdn Bhd and Jelutong Member of Parliament, has been working with telecommunications service providers such as TIME.dot.Com in laying 110km of fibre-optic cables around Penang island.

"We are currently short-changing ourselves in Penang where we get only 4 megabytes per second in broadband services. IJM Land is now going to offer what is offered in Seoul, Korea with a 100 mbps broadband connection," Ooi said.

Touted as the "Jewel in the Crown" for IJM, the RM6.5 billion 'The Light' project will feature waterfront living with residential, recreational, entertainment, business, hospitality, education and commercial components in one central hub.

"The offering of fibre-based services at The Light enhances efficiency and allows the flexibility to work from home," Soam said, adding that the use of fibre-optics complies with Malaysia's Green Building Index standard requirements.

By Business Times



I&P plans for more launches in Q4


An artist impression of bungalow units in Alam Impian, Shah Alam.

PROPERTY developer I&P Group Sdn Bhd is looking forward to a busy fourth quarter this year, as it is planning to launch properties with a gross development value (GDV) of RM778mil across the Klang Valley and Johor.

About 96% of the RM778mil GDV consists of residential properties ranging from double-storey terrace and semi-detached units to serviced apartments.

The group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), is known for the successful developments of projects such as Bukit Damansara, Bandar Kinrara, Alam Damai, Alam Impian, Alam Sari, Temasya Glenmarie and Bandar Baru Seri Petaling in the Klang Valley as well as Taman Pelangi and Taman Perling in Johor.


Jamaludin: ‘Today, the property market is not as bullish as it was a year ago. But, we are still seeing good take-up rates for our recent launches.’

The group’s managing director Datuk Jamaludin Osman says the property developer is on track for another year of strong financial performance, after achieving sales of more than RM1bil last year.

“Today, the property market is not as bullish as it was a year ago. But, we are still seeing good take-up rates for our recent launches.”

As an example, Jamaludin cited the group’s launch of 40 units of shop-offices on a 3.89-acre site in Bandar Baru Seri Petaling, Kuala Lumpur in July.

Priced from RM2.5mil to RM8.5mil, the 28 units of 3 storey shop-offices and 12 units of 4 storey shop-offices were sold out in a day.

The total GDV for the 40 units offered for sale was RM143mil.

In April this year, the group launched 26 units of double storey semi-detached homes and 100 units of double storey terrace homes at its 545-acre freehold Bayuemas, Klang township.

The semi-detached homes, with built-up areas ranging from 2,561 sq ft to 3,045 sq ft, were priced from RM692,888 for an intermediate unit to RM951,888 for a corner unit.

The double-storey terracehouses, with built-up areas from 1,863 sq ft to 2,048 sq ft, were priced from RM388,888 to RM515,888.

The double storey semi-detached and terrace units have a combined gross development value (GDV) of RM60.53mil, and to date, has seen take-up rates of 73% and 87% respectively.

Bandar Kinrara

The group’s largest township development in the Klang Valley is Bandar Kinrara, Puchong which is on 1,904 acres of freehold land.

Launched in 1991, Bandar Kinrara is a matured township with double-storey terrace and semi-detached houses and bungalows as well as an 18-hole golf course that is opened to the public.

Earlier this year, 118 units of freehold Q’Aseh double-storey superlink homes priced from RM945,888 to RM1.79mil with built-ups ranging from 2,799 to 3,778 sq ft were launched in Bandar Kinrara.

Also launched were 14 freehold units of Chantek double-storey semi-detached houses priced from RM1.83mil to RM2.58mil with built-ups ranging from 3,097 to 3,579 sq ft.

The GDV for the Q’Aseh and Chantek units is RM163mil.

To date, the take-up rate for these units is 69% and 21% respectively.

Alam Impian

Another highlight is Alam Impian, which features a ‘Township of the Arts’ concept, in Shah Alam.

Sited on 1,235 acres of freehold land, Alam Impian was launched in 2006 and will have 10,000 homes with an estimated GDV of RM5bil when completed.

Conceived as a platform for the arts, Alam Impian houses a gallery that doubles as workspace for artists as well as a riverside amphitheatre for performing arts.

To date, about 1,200 units have been launched in Alam Impian and 418 units have been delivered.

“The response has been good for our recent launches which consisted of double-storey terrace houses priced around RM700,000 per unit,” says Jamaludin.

More than 900 acres in Alam Impian remains to be developed, with double-storey terrace and semi-detached houses and bungalows in the pipeline.

Jamaludin says I&P Group has a remaining land bank of 5,173 acres for future developments in the Klang Valley and Johor.

Looking ahead

Upcoming projects include development on a 400-acre site near the Klang Sentral bus terminal and Bandar Setia Alam, a 300-acre plot in Salak Tinggi, Sepang and a 333-acre site in Nusajaya, Johor.

“These developments will mainly comprise landed units.”

Jamaludin says the group’s focus will remain in the Klang Valley.

“In the Johor Baru area, where we have more than 1,000 acres left to develop, we have to plan cautiously at the moment. The property market down south is slightly more saturated, than the Klang Valley, nowadays. We have to be careful not to overbuild.”

In Bandar Kinrara, there are plans for serviced apartments, semi-detached homes and bungalows on the remaining 400 acres of undeveloped land.

A serviced apartment development is also in the pipeline at the 641-acre Alam Damai township in Cheras.

Concerning the group’s Tesmasya Glenmarie mixed development, which spans across 231 hectares in Shah Alam, Jamaludin says there are plans to launch 154 units of double-storey super-link terrace homes with a GDV of RM189mil at the end of this year.

By The Star

Thursday, July 14, 2011


Naza TTDI plans 18 new launches by end of year


KUALA LUMPUR: Naza TTDI Sdn Bhd, the property development arm of the Naza Group, plans to launch 18 new developments including new phases worth over RM1 billion by end of the year.

Group managing director SM Faliq SM Nasimuddin said new property launches will include three high-end residential projects.

"We are looking to launch 18 new projects this year, which include our three trophy high-rise luxury residential towers in Kuala Lumpur," he said at the signing of a service agreement with Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) here yesterday.

Naza TTDI will launch one block with more than 50 floors at the company's RM4 billion Platinum Park development in Kuala Lumpur by third quarter.

The second residential project is on a 0.8ha site located near the embassies, such as Singapore High Commission, on Jalan Tun Razak.

The third residential project comprising 30 floors will be developed on a 0.4ha site in Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

Among the new phases to be launched is TTDI Alam Impian in Shah Alam.

Faliq said the company has 323ha of undeveloped landbank for its future developments - about 202ha are in the northern region and 121ha in the Klang Valley.

It was reported earlier that Naza TTDI wanted to achieve a turnover of RM1 billion this year, from RM635 million in 2010.

Meanwhile, TM vice-president of Selangor Datuk Zaini Maatan said UniFi's subscriber base stands at about 110,000 and the service is available in 68 exchange areas.

The agreement will see TM providing its high-speed broadband services to TTDI Alam Impian by 2016, dubbed the first UniFi township project in the central region.

By Business Times

Friday, July 8, 2011


Star project in Nilai


Well received: Choo (left) showing the scaled-down version of the Starz Valley.

Tagged with a glamourous name, interested house buyers are flocking to see the newly launched Starz Valley project in Nilai.

The freehold mixed development by Golden Plateau Sdn Bhd may be the company’s debut project but has sold out its commercial units in just a day.

All 38 units of its shoplots priced between RM600,000 and RM1.1mil each were snapped up during its launch and 104 units of Soho offices were sold out within a month.

Located oppposite Inti International University, the project encompasses commercial lots, a five-storey boutique hotel, a sports centre and four blocks of serviced apartments.

Company managing director Y.C. Choo said the strategic location of the project coupled with its modern design were among the main selling points for the development.

“Before embarking on the project, we conducted a detailed survey on the properties here and designed our project to meet actual demand.

“Our strategy must be working judging from the overwhelming response,” he said.

The four blocks of 13-storey serviced apartments will house 1,111 units with the smallest unit (studio) measuring 290sq ft and the largest (three-room) measuring 1,018sq ft.

The apartments are priced between RM109,000 and RM320,000 for the first block.

The serviced apartments which will have a community hall, swimming pool and gym are equipped with security features including a panic button in each unit and touch card for the elevators going up to the residential floors.

The apartments also come semi-furnished with wardrobes, air-conditioning units and kitchen cabinets.

The project, which will begin construction soon, is scheduled to be completed in the next three years.

Choo said the first phase of the project will be ready by the end of 2013.

By The Star

Tuesday, July 5, 2011


Naza TTDI to launch high-rise luxury homes

NAZA TTDI Sdn Bhd, the property development arm of the Naza Group is launching three high-rise luxury residential towers in Kuala Lumpur, worth more than RM1 billion by the year-end.



Group managing director SM Faliq SM Nasimuddin told Business Times that it will launch one block with more than 50 floors at the company’s RM4 billion Platinum Park development in Kuala Lumpur.

This will be the first residential tower at the Platinum Park, currently the largest luxury development in Kuala Lumpur.

At Platinum Park, three buildings are currently under construction. They include two 50-storey office towers, each to house the new headquarters of Felda Group and Naza Group, and the 38-storey Tabung Haji tower.

The second residential project featuring twin towers, retail and food outlets on a 0.8 hectare is located near embassies such as the Singapore High Commission on Jalan Tun Razak.

The indicative selling price for each unit at the two residential towers would be more than RM1,600 per sq ft, based on the current market price, Faliq said.

The third residential project comprising 30 floors will be developed on a 0.4ha site in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, or near the Damansara Specialist Hospital.

Based on prices of residential properties within the vicinity such as Glomac Damansara and Tropics Serviced Apartment above the Tropicana Mall, Naza TTDI may sell the units at more than RM750 psf.

Faliq said local and foreign investors from the Middle East, Europe, Singapore and Hong Kong have approached the company to take up individual units and buy en bloc.

The projects are designed to attract foreign investors, in line with the company’s plan to build its brand and venture overseas to build townships and mixed developments.

Faliq had said in March that it plans to launch 18 new projects this year worth RM1.6 billion and achieve a turnover of RM1 billion for fiscal 2011.

But the company is most likely to surpass RM2 billion, being the value of new launches, with the three residential projects.

By Business Times

Saturday, July 2, 2011


LBS to launch high-end RM3.5bil D’Island Residence in September

LBS Bina Group Bhd, which is working towards developing more premier property projects, will launch D’Island Residence in September.

Located on 175 acres in Puchong, the development will comprise 237 super-link houses, 298 semi-detached homes, 148 bungalows and 352 high-end condominiums as well as two blocks of commercial units.

Managing director Datuk Lim Hock San says the project, with a gross development value (GDV) of RM3.5bil, will also feature a commercial hub.

It is expected to take five to seven years to complete, he says.

Lim says D’Island Residence will be developed based on the tagline Island Retreat, Urban Charm and will promote modern lifestyle living.

It will have a clubhouse and adopt environment-friendly features like rainwater harvesting system and light-emitting diode street lights.

At the soft launch of D’Island Residence in April, 71 super-link houses worth RM83.4mil were sold. The latest launch today will feature 74 semi-detached houses priced from RM2.38mil.

Lim says the development is projected to contribute 30% to 40% to the group’s revenue and earnings over the next few years.

“We are transforming LBS to move up the value chain to focus on higher priced products,” Lim explains.

Houses priced above RM350,000 will constitute 60% of those that will be built by LBS this year. For the past five years, abouts 90% of the company’s sales came from medium-low to medium-cost homes.

Lim says LBS will adopt more green technology and designs in its projects.

As part of its long-term initiative to focus on high-end residential property market, Lim says LBS will launch a re-branding exercise later this month.

LBS has engaged alpha245, the brand communications subsidiary of Leo Burnett, to provide professional advice and guidance on the exercise, Lim says.

“LBS is also improving on customer experience and the quality of its products,” Lim adds.

Known for building affordable homes, the company plans to focus on medium-high to high-end market segment to earn better profit margins.

Lim says LBS is targeting sales to hit RM650mil this year from RM422mil last year.

He expects sales to reach RM800mil in 2012 and RM950mil in 2013.

As at May 31, the company has unbilled sales of RM527mil, which will be realised over the next two years.

Lim says LBS will continue to build affordable homes priced below RM350,000, albeit on a smaller scale.

The company has been building affordable homes at Bandar Saujana Putra, its flagship development spanning over 835 acres in Selangor.

The self-integrated township was launched in February 2003 and has a GDV of RM3bil. Sales of RM850mil have been recorded so far.

LBS has handed over about 5,000 units of various types of properties in the township.

By The Star

 


Seri Maya Condominium, Jalan Jelatek

Seri Maya is a condominium comprising of lowrise and highrise apartments with a total units of 1400 apartment approximately. There are 2 lap pools, 3 gymansiums, 3 children playgrounds and 24hr security. It is located 4km away from KLCC, close to amenities, particularly the Putra LRT Station (the LRT to KLCC & PJ) is situated right opposite Seri Maya. 90% of the occupants are expatriates.

In view of the current economy slowdown, Seri Maya has become an alternative dwellings for KLCC expatriates. There are a lot of tenants (expatriates) migrated from KLCC condo to Seri Maya - reasons being, Seri Maya is easily accessible to KLCC via LRT, expats community, safe living environment, more greens and much more affordable!