Property Malaysia

You’d think most city folks would have earmarked 17-19th March for 3 reasons - the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Sepang, MATTA Fair in PWTC and the ever welcome school holidays.

But there’s another event going on as we speak (or write). The 2006 Home Ownership Campaign, at the KL Convention Centre in KLCC. What? Another one, you say? That’s right. In the past one month, there has been the Malaysian Mega Property Showcase and MAPEX (KL).

It’s on from 10am to 9am, entrance is free.

They’ve the usual corporations participating, you can see the full list here. For more details, check out this page by the organisers, SK Brothers Realty.

The other day, an associate asked us if we had ever reviewed affordable homes under RM150,000 (USD$40,540). We said that there were definitely a few that we have reviewed in recent weeks. So we actually went through the reviews page, and listed down all the projects with units below the price of RM15ok. And we have listed them below.

A few thoughts first.

Apartments
They are all apartments, residential or serviced suites. There are no landed units listed here, but there are many affordable one available out there. The reasons why only apartments are listed here are manifold - they are slightly more popular than small landed homes, they offer services that make them attractive to young buyers, and are more strategically market in the media (when was the last time you saw a full page ad for a 18′ x 65′ house in the newspapers?)

There are plenty of affordable sub-150k landed homes available out there, you just have to know where to look. There are also many, many more apartments available out there, this list is in no way exhaustive.

Location
Interestingly enough, out of the 8 projects reviewed here, they are all within the Puchong - Seri Kembangan - Bukit Jalil growth area. Of course, you wouldn’t expect to see Mont’Kiara or KLCC or Bukit Antarabangsa listed here, but in terms of location, buyers need to be realistic. We’ve reviewed a few others in the Subang / Sunway area, and the prices there are nowhere near RM150k, either.

Okay, here we go:

Bayu Puteri
Currently, one of two condo projects on offer in Bandar Puteri, Puchong, the other being the upmarket Aseana Puteri.

Desa Impiana Condominiums
This is deeper into Puchong, located next to the Desa Impiana Duplex units which have sold quite well. New interchange on LDP will ease peak hour traffic.

Desaminium Park
Massive project in the outskirts Seri Kembangan area.

The Heron Residency
Our first ever review. Recently launched the second tower for sale.

Nilam Puri
Very affordable homes in the relatively new Bandar Bukit Puchong 2 area. Follow up Nilam Terraces will be more upmarket.

Villa Pavilion
Launched quite some time ago, no frills and competitive pricing. Access road out to Bukit Jalil highway will make traffic circulation much easier.

Vistaria, Desa Millenia
Quite quiet recently… quite near the Desa Impiana Condominiums.

Koi Kinrara Suites
Third launch in the area, after Koi Tropika and Koi Legian.

After the Penang Property focus which ran for a few weeks previously, (you can start reading the first installment here), we move now to the Perak Property Focus. This series highlights the new launches that appeared in the Star special pullout on 31st January 2006. We have chosen to highlight the details here for the benefit and reference of interested buyers. In total, there will be about 6 installments,

For others in the series, please see the following:

FEATURED ARTICLES

DAMAIPURI CONDOMINIUM, IPOH

The developer, Orrington Enterprise, is touting this condo as Ipoh’s most luxurious. This first phase of 148 units have been sold out, and now they are launching Phase 2, with 3 blocks of 13-storey towers, offering 187 units in all. It is located on Jalan Chin Hwa, just behind Kampar Road. Location is right in town centre, near to schools like Sam Tet, Ave Maria, Yoke Choy, Main Convent and MGS.

They are also offering 24-hour security, tropical inspired 15,000sq.ft clubhouse and full condo facilities. Buyers have access to a five storey covered carpark structure.

There are 6 choices of layout ranging from 1,294 to 2,038sq.ft. Penthouses are 4,147 and 4,519sq.ft and come with a roof garden.

Gerbang Meru Indah, Jelapang

Touted as Ipoh’s newest and largest integrated township, Gerbang Meru Indah is a 1,500 acre development in Jelapang. The developer is planning a bus terminal, theme parks, commercial areas, industrial lots and government buildings.

The developer Glamour Heights is offering 4 types of units – Double storey semi-D homes at 40’ x 80’, 2 ½ storey terrace and double storey terrace homes (both at 20’ x 60’) and single storey terrace homes.

The project site is next to Bandar Meru Zone II, which is also by the same people.

First there was Koi Tropika. Then there was Koi Legian. Now the same people are developing another condo project in Puchong, Koi Kinrara Suites. While Koi Tropika is a Japanese garden concept, and Koi Legian offers more of a entry level affordable & furnished unit, Koi Kinrara broaches the midrange serviced apartment market (Koi Tropika is also a service apartment, but we feel they are marketing it more as a regular condo).

It is located in the Kinrara side of Bandar Puchong Jaya, just next to the Villa Mas Apartments and Sri Bayu Apartments. From Petaling Jaya, you need to turn left after the Sunway toll on the LDP, after the two turnoffs to the KESAS highway. If you’re coming from Bukit Jalil or Puchong, you need to turn left into Jalan Merbuk after the Telekom building en route to Old Klang Road.

The two things that impressed us initially about Koi Kinrara is that it is a massive development – 1000 units altogether, and that it is priced competitively. Maybe the two are correlated, it is of course something the buyers will take into account when considering this property. There are actually 4 towers in this development, they have opened only Tower B (240 units) first launch this month.

For this current launch, there are three types of units available: 908, 1,056 and 1,405sq.ft. Duplex penthouse at 3,164sq.ft is also available. It comes with a private roof garden. For the typical units, they come in about 20 floors, with 12 units per floor. All three types of layout are quite similar in concept, with a slight difference in the room locations.

The smallest unit type, Type C (908sq.ft) comes with 2 rooms and 2 baths. Kitchen and yard is very small, but it opens out to the dining. The intermediate Type B (1,056sq.ft) has 3 rooms and 2 baths, but with a longer yard (but just as small kitchen). The largest Type A (1,405sq.ft) has proportionately larger spaces, plus a powder room, which is actially a small toilet next to the yard. All units do not have balconies, but have a sort-of lanai concept, with plentiful windows affording a view of the outside. It translates into more living room space, really, and we like it that way.

Quality of finishing is just typical of price range.

As with Koi Tropika, the developer has offered a lot of facilities to make the condominium attractive to buyers and investors. Other than the usual expected fare like security, swimming pool, gym, function rooms, playground, squash courts, shops, they also have features like BBQ pit, koi pond (well, the name is after all…) laundry, sauna and business centre.

Like we said, this is a high density development, and there will be a lot of cars using the narrow roads out of this area, due to the number of condos and existing houses here (including the ones under construction).

Show room is actually at Koi Tropika, not at project site.

GLM Reit Management Bhd’s REIT, called the Tower REIT, will be listing on April 12. The company is a subsidiary of GuocoLand (Malaysia) Bhd is currently looking for more office buildings.

According to a report in the local papers:

• They are in negotiations with several third-party office building owners in the Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya and Damansara areas to acquire their properties. These buildings are worth not less than RM50 million each.

• as part of their strategy for the next two to three years, the company will be focussing on the properties in these three commercial districts.

• The prospectus for Tower Reit, which will cover two commercial buildings in Kuala Lumpur - Menara HLA and HP Towers - is expected to be issued on March 22.

• The company expects a return of of 6% to 7% annually for Tower REIT.

• Proceeds from Tower Reit would be used to repay the purchase of the buildings and also for working capital.

• Menara HLA is a 32-storey office building located in Jalan Kia Peng, while HP Towers is a commercial building with a nine-storey annexe and 21-storey tower at Damansara Heights.

• Tan said the two properties with a total market value of RM362 million, valued by global real estate advisor Knight Frank, were purchased for a total of RM351 million recently.

• HP Towers with a total lettable space of 350,056 sq feet is 88% occupied with Hewlett Packard as the anchor tenant while Menara HLA with 396,820 sq ft lettable space is 85% occupied with Hong Leong Assurance Bhd and HLG Securities Sdn Bhd as the anchor tenants.

• They are confident that the properties would see 20% to 30% increase in rentals starting this year.

• According to the management, the going market rate for commercial properties in the Golden Triangle area should be about RM4.50 per sq foot (psf) to RM5 psf for Menara HLA from RM3.50 in 2003 and RM3.50 psf from RM2.50 for HP Towers. The demand and supply band for the office sector in the Klang Valley is narrowing with the average occupancy rate reaching 83% last year from 75% in 2000 and 95% in 1997.
  They also believe that rental has yet to reach its peak of RM5.60 psf in the Golden Triangle and RM5 in Damansara Heights.

• The management added that GLM Reit would sell the properties for capital gains at the right price.

For the full article you can check it out here.

This project has generated quite a lot of interest since the soft launch some months back. At that time, the sales office was in Taman SEA, and we’ve had visited the site while the show units were under construction.

The location, we must say, is one of the biggest draw for Sering Ukay. We had some difficulty finding info on this project before this (their website had only just been updated recently), the only thing that we had was the huge billboard pointing in its direction along the MRR2 highway. We found the site without much problem, you need to turn off at the Ukay Perdana exit, you’ll see it on your left after less than a mile. With this locale, it’s a quite place, surrounded by low density matured developments. It is near the city centre, you can reach KLCC in less than 10 minutes in good traffic.

The project is situated on 130-acre hillside plot, and they have done some massive earthworks and guniting to maximize the land for development. Even with all the massive hill-slopes, terracing, retaining walls and soil nailing, the site is still quite hilly and imposing when you first see. Not as imposing as The Peak at Taman TAR, but still quite a sight nonetheless.

Well, it is obvious with all the infrastructure works carried out to make the site suitable, it costs money. And usually with projects like these, the cost of such is usually factored into the price of the house borne by the purchaser. Maybe for a massive housing project like this the cost is thinly spread out over many units, it is still an additional cost. Second thing, some people we know have qualms about staying in hillside places where there is a 20 feet staggered retaining walls somewhere behind your house.

Having said that, Sering Ukay looks promising. At this point in time, there are two parcels for sale for this first phase. The first parcel is right at the entrance of the project, right in front of an imposing hill, with the aforementioned retaining walls and guniting. The second parcel is adjacently located beside the hill, a little further in. There are two types of units available, arranged in alternating rows of houses.

Both units (A1and A2) are actually similar, with A2 having an additional half storey lower floor, somewhat similar to the 3 ½ homes in Damansara Legenda. Because the land slopes down to the left, this extra half storey is partially open out, with a yard like any other house. The r.c. porch roof is stylized, gives the façade a different look. The driveway is large enough to fit 2 large cars side by side.

The rest of the house is pretty much what you would expect for a 22’ x 75’ home, with 3+1 bedrooms. For the 2 ½ storey unit (4+1 rooms), the staircase down is near the staircase up. This poses a problem, the living room is left to be quite small, both is perception and in actual square footage. The lower floor is actually quite small too, an additional 400sq.ft. of space for a small room, a maid’s room, 2 baths, and yard. Not much else.

There is a narrow void area in the living area, making the family area on the second floor slightly smaller. The master and 2nd rooms also have this fixed glass at the void area. Quite impractical. It’ll most probably be blocked off with wardrobes or curtains.

We obviously like the smaller unit, as it represents a better value for money, between the two. We found the extra floor a tad unnecessary, the space too small even to make a decent AV room. The actual sales also reflect this preference.

The finishing and fittings provide are quite average, considering the price bracket of the houses.

These units are quite expensive in our opinion, starting at RM450k to RM1.5mil. Although one may argue that it has excellent location, its freehold, and southern facing units have a good view.

We would have preferred to have an overall site plan to study, however the developer did not have this info. We also couldn’t find out if there were any commercial areas, facilities, amenities, etc in the project, and where they were located (if any). In short, they could only tell us about these two parcels, nothing else. Something they can improve on.

Sales are very good, most units available have been snapped up. But the developer is slowly opening up more and more rows for booking. The site is huge, even after deducting the slopes and terrace areas due to the hilly nature. Buyers can look forward to many launches in the few years.

The developer has completed 8 Ampang Hilir and Lanson Place Ambassador Row, both in the Ampang area. The parent company has many properties is Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong. Currently, they are also marketing the Meritz service apartment in the KLCC area, review available here.

We’ve updated the projects review page again, you can view here, or click on the “Project Reviews” tab above anytime.

December and January were quite a slow month for new launches, things are picking up again after the long Chinese New Year break.

On the review page, we’ve added a Penang section, listing down the properties on the state.

It’s gonna be another interesting week coming up next, we’ve got some interesting reviews and articles lined up. Keep those mails and feedback coming…

Right after Aman Kiara and Hijauan Kiara, Dato’ Alan Tong Kok Mau’s Bukit Kiara Properties (BKP) have now launched the Verve Suites, another upmarket innovative product in the Mont’Kiara area.

For our write-up on the Dato’ Alan, you are advised to read our review of Hijauan Kiara last week. Since Verve Suites is located right next to the earlier Hijauan Kiara, most of the comments on the location and accessibility are also applicable here. Anyway at the risk of repeating ourselves, here is a paraphrase of that posting:

Most people who are familiar with the Mont’Kiara condo scene will be familiar with Hijauan Kiara. This is the second project for Bukit Kiara Properties (BKP), the first being Aman Kiara. This is actually just across the road from here, it is a gated and guarded community of 19 bungalows and 12 units of duplex condovillas, it was completed 9 months ahead of schedule and has since sold out.

And regarding Dato’ Alan Tong and his son NK Tong,

BKP is led by Dato’ Alan Tong Kok Mau and his son NK Tong. Most of you would know Dato’ Alan to be the Malaysian ‘Condo King’ having built Sunrise to one of the most prestigious names in Mont’Kiara. Currently, in his own company BKP, he is targeting the niche luxury market in the same stomping ground. Our associates who have worked with Dato’ Alan before speak very highly of him, a very caring, innovative and driven person.

For this project, the developer Bayland Sdn. Bhd. and BKP will be managing the place.

The difference about the Verve Suites from the Hijauan Kiara and most of the other projects around here is that it is a serviced apartment on a commercial title. And the developer has opted for the studio apartment concept. Studio means that they are targeting young working professionals who do not want the traditional 1000sq.ft. large apartment with 2 or 3 rooms (and thereby offering a different product from the competition). So what they have is one bedroom only, with the usual domestic units – living, kitchen, bath. We’ll go into the unit design later.

Four towers. One soul.

They have Vox Tower, Viva Tower, Vogue Tower and Vibe Tower. Up to 33 floors, set on a 3 storeys shopping centre. There is also an adjoining shopping block, giving more retail space. Parking is in the basement.

And the common facilities is the big marketing point for the Verve Suites. There is a huge 55,000sqft Vertigo Lounge, which acts as a lobby / clubhouse / living room / recreation area for residents and their guests. Since studio units do not have much space for entertaining guests, this common area serves that purpose. Not only that, they have a sky gym (offering a full glass panoramic view of Mont’Kiara), theaterette, pool tables, business centre, Jacuzzi and steam rooms, F&B outlets, and much more. The entire Vertigo Lounge is lavishly designed to impress, with water features, split level decks and the works, to make up for the lack of space in your living unit. BKP have definitely left no stone unturned to make this THE top drawer choice, and we were duly impressed.

On the podium level at the base of the towers, there are the usual facilities like large swimming pools, gym, tennis and badminton courts, playground, all surrounded by lush landscaping. Somehow, these things have come to be expected accessories of any luxury condo in the city already.

Each of the 4 towers have 8 units per floor, which is may not be very exclusive, but bear in mind this is mainly because the units are small. There are 4 unit types available, from 633 to 861sq.ft. As we mentioned, the units are single-roomed, with the exception of one type with a small guest room. Another type has a study, which may be converted to a bedroom. All the units come fully furnished, with one of 4 different interior decoration themes with fancy names (I forget their names). You pretty only have to buy a TV, your utensils, and clothes and you can practically move in.

They have incorporate some nifty ideas to make the place compact. Part of the kitchen is concealed behind a sliding wall. Some units also have a sliding door to enter the bedroom, and from the bedroom to enter the bath, you just have to slide open one of the built in wardrobes. A little like a secret room. Nice touch. The shower is sunken just like in Hijauan Kiara.

With this new addition to the overcrowded and jaded Mont’Kiara /Sri Hartamas luxury condo market, it adds a different dimension and creativity to it. They are actually targeting a different niche from the rest - the hip, mobile, young working professionals and the investors looking to rent out the the former group. I doubt there will be too many older couples and family units looking to buy. Serviced apartments may not be appealing to some quarters, especially one that is intergrated with a shopping centre, but with the facilities and add-on feature BKP is offering, they are really sweetening the deal.

You are encouraged to check out the following reviews of the other developments in the vicinity.

Changkat View
Hartamas Regency 2
Kiara 1888
Kensington Park
Kiaraville
Kiaramas Ayuria
Hijauan Kiara
The Verve Suites
Tiffani by i-ZEN
Boulevard Tower, Solaris Dutamas
Mont’Kiara Meridin

Ah, the name Putra Heights. One of the crown jewels of Sime UEP in the USJ / Puchong / Shah Alam area. Strangely it has yet to be featured in Property Malaysia, but as they say, ‘better late than never‘. D’Passion is one of the last portions of land to be developed in Putra Heights. There is still one more parcel of high-end homes along the North South Highway, but the launch date is still not set in stone yet.

Sime UEP, as you know, is one of the biggest and most successful property developers in Malaysia, turning ex-estate and jungle land into mass affordable housing all across Subang, Ara Damansara and Klang. Now with USJ almost fully developed, they have reached the two frontiers known as the Damansara Puchong Highway (LDP), and more importantly the North South Expressway.

So beyond the highway, they started Putra Heights more than 6 years ago. Now, it is almost fully developed and has become and sort of a middle ground between Puchong, USJ and Shah Alam.

When we first viewed the first few phases (P9-13) it was quite far in from the main road, but now the latest phases are even further in, deep into the further reaches of the old Seafield estate.

Sime UEP first popularized the concept of a lot of alternating designs and facades to give a depth of choice to buyers. It’s applied here too, with only 165 units, there are no less than 5 different designs to choose from. Every block has a mixture of different designs, so it kind of breaks the monotony of a standard façade. Sime UEP are also famous for their unconventional design of the internal layout, but this time its not so obvious here.

D’Passion (P43) is set out on a narrow strip of land, with 4 rows of houses and 16 blocks in all. Right in the middle is a large playground and park. If you’re familiar with the area, D’Passion is located on Jalan Putra Mahkota 7/2C, 7/2D, 7/2E 7/2F and 7/2F.

As mentioned earlier, there are 5 unit types, one of which is an end unit and another is a corner unit design. For 24’ x 75’ land size, its quite sizeable, and you can opt to have a larger build-up of 2,500sq.ft. or smaller buid-up but with bigger yard and lawn. Well, only marginally bigger. All units come with a courtyard at the entrance, and have 3+1 bedrooms. The rest of it is pretty much what you will get with a normal linkhomes.

To gauge the quality of the finishing and workmanship, you are advised to visit the existing phases, if you have the opportunity. In our opinion, it’s at an average level, not too fantastic, not too shabby. Prices for the typical units range from RM316k to RM369k. End lots, which have a bigger plot size, are priced at RM452k to RM468k. Corner units are from RM541k to RM660k.

For every unit you buy you have a choice to upgrade to a better finishes package (for a limited time only). This comes at premium, ranging from 38k to 55k depending on which unit type. Basically what you’re getting is marble tiles instead of porcelain tiles for the ground floor, homogeneous tiles instead of ceramic tiles at the terrace, porch and driveway, powder coated aluminium frame glass window and sliding door instead of natural anodized aluminium, more power outlets, security alarm and automatic gate system. Please check sales people for the details.

Sime UEP is an award winning developer with a good mind for large townships. Some people will complain about the jam going into USJ in the mornings (its pretty slow), but there are choices of routes if you’re going elsewhere (plus the tolls). Obviously, for the last few phases of a matured freehold township, you would have to pay a premium, and this is reflected in D’Passion’s pricing.

By the way, there is a small footnote next to the site plan, which says: “Units with premium house numbers (i.e. 3, 8, 9, 10, 18, 28, 33 & 38) are loaded with an additional RM500 per unit.” Hmmm… does 12A and 2A come cheaper, then?

This is the final instalment in ongoing series highlighting currently launched properties in Penang that appeared in the special pullout in the Star on 29th January 2006. This series of postings are for the benefit and reference of interested buyers.

For others in the series, please see the following:

Penang Property Focus Part 1: Harbour Place and Taman Sri Bayan
Penang Property Focus Part 2: Putra Marine Resort and the CEO
Penang Property Focus Part 3: Bandar Laguna Merbuk and Taman Seri Pantai
Penang Property Focus Part 4: Alila and Bayu Mutiara
Penang Property Focus Part 5: The Mayfair Penang and D’Residence Bayan Mutiara

FEATURED ARTICLES

Bandar Baru Air Putih

This is a re-launch of a stalled project taken over by Prudent Legacy (a subsidiary of MBSB) with help from JKP Sdn. Bhd. and the Belleview Group. Double Storey Terrace Homes (20’ x 70’) are going for RM250,888 and Double Storey Semi Detached are priced from RM350,888.

The developer is working with Malaysia Building Society Bhd to provide special financing packages for interested buyers.

Other than that there isn’t much information provided by the developers.

Taman Seri Bayan

These projects are all around Bukit Tambun in Seberang Perai. It’s a little misleading, there is another Taman Sri Bayan which is in Bayan Baru Penang. And there is also another small town called Tambun near Ipoh.

The developer is also marketing other developments which have been launched earlier:

Taman Seri Bayan is the latest project launched in January 2006, offering 120 units of double storey terrace houses and 2 units of semi-D starting from RM168,000. It is surrounded by existing neighbourhood with shops and facilities.

Taman Tambun Emas has 108 units of double storey terrace houses and 6 units of semi-D and 2 bungalows starting from RM175,000. This was launched last year, and construction is almost 80%.

Also launched last year was the Phase 2 of Taman Seri Tambun, offering 2 ½ storey luxury terrace houses. This would set you back RM205,000.

As for upcoming projects, there are more to look forward to:

Palm Villas is 147 unit of 3-storey courtyard terrace houses, and 2 duplex units in a gated community. This will be launched in June 2006.

Taman Mesra Impian has 3-storey terraced houses in Jalan Raja Uda, Butterworth.

Juru Heights is a large mixed development near the Auto-City in Juru. Keep a lookout for more news on this one.