Property Malaysia

Malaysia Property Exposition (MAPEX ) 2009 Klang Valley

Date: 20 November 2009 - 22 November 2009 (Friday to Sunday)
Venue: Mid Valley Exhibition Centre (MVEC), Mid Valley Megamall.
Opening Hours: 10:00 am - 9:00 pm
Admission: FREE
Organizer: Real Estate & Housing Developer’s Association Malaysia
(REHDA Malaysia)
Telephone: 603-7803 2978
Fax: 603-7803 5285 / 7805 1206
Website: www.rehda.com

This is actually the last of the three expos planned this year for Klang Valley. See you all there!

The latest launch in Taman Tasik Puchong is 330 units of townhouses. Their concept of townhouses is very simple, two single storey units (one above the other) share a common frontage, akin to a double storey terrace home.

There is some renewed interest in this area recently due to news that the interchange to the Maju Expressway will be completing soon. This interchange is located just beyond Amanputra and Bandar Nusaputra, and when ready will provide quick alternative access to Putrajaya and KL. This connection to the interchange has actually been talked about for many years, and there has been positive progress at site in recent months.

But that aside, Taman Tasik Puchong is a leasehold development that is jointly developed by LBS Bina, Permodalan Negeri Selangor and the state government. Some of their earlier phases have been reviewed here:

Taman Tasik Puchong: Venezia
Taman Tasik Puchong: Alam Idaman

At the moment to get to Taman Tasik Puchong, you need to turn off the LDP at the Puchong Utama interchange and drive straight (on the road to Bandar Nusaputra and Amanputra) until you see it just after the landmark George Kent on your right. The current launch is located just behind the complete double storey shoplots.

Town houses are a not common in Malaysia, especially when compared to other types of homes like condos or linkhouses. Least of all in a place like Puchong / Sepang. But speaking to the developer, their idea of developing town houses is for apartment dwellers to upgrade to a landed home, without being too pricy. So what they have now is a 996 and 1,075sq.ft. unit, priced at a very attractive RM169k after discounts (listed price starts at RM200k). While people may have qualms about town houses, it is undeniable that the price is very competitive indeed, especially if you consider that a small landed home in this area can cost anywhere above RM220k.

The design is minimalist and simple. The townhouse is on a 20′ x 60′ footprint. There is not backyard, and the
common driveway is 20′ long. This means you can only park one cark in the driveway, if you park outside you will inevitably block someone else’s driveway.

The lower unit is slightly smaller at 996sq.ft. compared to the upper unit at 1,075sq.ft. All units have 3 bedrooms (actually one of them is a utility room because its much smaller) and 2 baths. The upper unit has a balcony, and a much larger master bedroom. All in all we feel buyers are better off looking at the unit as an apartment instead of a landed unit.

As mentioned, the biggest advantage here is the price. There isn’t many other places (here or elsewhere) to own a non-highrise unit at this price, and the location pretty ok to boot. The developer is offering some incentive packages, and sales have been pretty good so far.

This ISN’T a paid post, just one website that we find really fascinating. If you have a penchant to do some interior decorating to your home, then this would really interest you.

Apartment Therapy

The website covers a lot of areas of interest, but the main thrust (in their own words) is ‘Helping people make their homes more beautiful, organized and healthy by connecting them to a wealth of resources, ideas and community online.’ Because a beautifully designed and decorated home doesn’t mean having to spend money, this website has lots inspiring ideas and pictures.

Definitely something to worth checking out if you’re tired of flipping through this month’s IKEA magazine already.

While the price of houses and apartments in Malaysia (especially in the city) continue to climb up, and condo size start to shrink, things are a lot better compared to Hong Kong.

I recently read this article in CNN that really brought the point about the cramped living conditions on the island.

Chung lives in a 625 square foot (58.06 square meter) flat here with 18 strangers.

The place is sectioned into tiny cubicles made of wooden planks and wire mesh. Everything he has acquired over the years — clothes, dishes, figurines, a tired TV set — is squeezed into this tiny cube, a modernized version of what is known here as a cage home.

Chung is one of the hundreds of people waiting for government help to find home, and at the moment they have to make do with this.

Chung’s cage is a newer yet less-desirable model, we are told. The wire mesh one, which resembles an over-sized rabbit hutch, is apparently more comfortable.

Occupants have less privacy, but the temperatures don’t get as high as in the wooden-mesh variety. A thermometer in Chung’s home reached 34 degrees Celsius (93 degrees Fahrenheit). Sometimes it gets so hot, Chung said, that he wants to die.

Check out the article here with the accompanying video.