Saturday August 8, 2009
Pace of new property launches picking up
By THEAN LEE CHENG

LAST Saturday’s launch of double-storey linked houses in Glenmarie, Shah Alam had buyers queuing up several days before selling began.

The 133 freehold units, located from across a Perodua service centre, were sold in two hours.

At RM750,000 for an intermediate unit, the offerings from Island & Peninsular Bhd (I&P), known as Temasya Suria, were by no means cheap.

Even as you are reading this today, I&P is selling another series of double-storey housing in Bandar Kinrara, Puchong.
An artist impression of Five Stones, a condominium project in SS2, Petaling Jaya.

Known as Sentosa, the 80 units of double-storey terraced houses are priced between RM462,000 and RM694,000. As with previous week’s launch, buyers were known to have been queuing up several days.

General manager (group marketing and communications) Noor Lida Nazri says both situations reflect the confidence in the market. “Although many invest in different types of assets, there are those who find property to be the most reliable. They are essentially going back to what our forefathers have always believed in,” she says.

More than half of the buyers bought to stay, she says. It has been quite some time since freehold double-storey terraced housing, a staple in Malaysian housing market, has been put on the market and the interest generated is interesting.

Noor Lida says the other reason for the positive response is the financial package they are offering. Buyers pay 10% and their next payment is due when they get their keys. In the interim, the banks will pay the progressive payments and interest. Stamp duty, transfer and legal fees are absorbed by the developer. The fact that Temasya Suria is about 75% complete when they reached the market is also a selling point, Buyers will be able to move in the first half of next year. Its second project in Puchong will take two years to complete.

On Aug 14, Selangor Dredging Bhd (SDB) will be launching what will be Petaling Jaya’s most pricey condominium project in SS2/72. It will be SDB’s branding vehicle.

The last time they had an outing there, it was with Ameera in 2007, which had prices starting from RM380,000 onwards. Although it is building Ameera which will be ready next year, that project is a legacy from Luxor group, the previous land owner.

With this second project, known as Five Stones, SDB managing director Teh Lip Kim has a clean slate to put down her mark. It will be different from Ameera in terms of ambience and landscaping with lots of open space.

The 185-unit freehold project comprises three low, medium and high-rise blocks with prices starting from RM800,000 onwards, a jump of about RM500,000 from its Ameera launch.

Size ranges between 1,700 sq ft and 2,400 sq ft while Ameera comes in smaller packages.

Over the last three months and in the months ahead, developers had, and will continue, to dangle a carrot in terms of financing to get sales moving again from Penang to the Klang Valley. This has been a strong factor in pushing up sales. Most of these developers are among the country’s top players in the sector (see table).

But will sales continue to be buoyant when this carrot is taken away?

Two sources, an analyst who has been tracking the property market, and another from a locally incorporated foreign bank, say “for sure, it is still a buyer’s market”.

Says the bank source: “The attractive financing packages worked out by developers and their banking partners today reduce the price by between 5% and 7% for the buyer. This will eat into their margins. They may have the sales, but profit will slack.

“This trend of dangling the carrot has triggered a lot of forward buying. Many of the buyers may not need a house but because they have the savings, and all these costs are being absorbed by the developer, they enter the market.

“If an apartment costs RM600,000, I need only to pay RM30,000 under a 5/95 scheme where I pay only 5% downpayment and nothing more until I get the keys in three years. It is not far-fetched that the price will increase by 10% if the economy picks up. If it increases to RM660,000, I’d make 100% profit. If the economy does not pick up, with so much forward buying, a time may come when developers will have difficulty selling.”

Every developer is selling at a discount because they have to sell. Because the buyer are billed on a progressive basis, the sales are recognised only a few years later, until the house is built. There is a delayed revenue recognition. Hence, although the pickup rate is positive, profit will be slack because of the carrot they have been dangling since the beginning of this year.

Only when the carrot is taken away and the sale is as good as before, then one can safely say the market is rosy again, he says.

In the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis, the property market only picked up late 2000 and early 2001 and peaked at 2006. The pickup took time.

Between a V and a U-shaped recovery, he would prefer a U, says the bank source.

An analyst who has been tracking the sector says the optimism throws into focus how bad the situation was in the last quarter of 2008.

“Things are looking rosy today because we are starting from a very low base since Q408.”

As the year comes to an end, he says, developers will end their financing schemes because they eat into their margins.

“We will continue to see sales but this may be less compared to what we saw the last few months. Hopefully, the good run seen in June and July will continue into the coming months in what has been an erratic year,” he says.

Saturday October 10, 2009

Selangor Dredging’s Five Stones to set new standards in condominium living

By THEAN LEE CHENG

THOSE looking to buy a condominium or service apartment around Petaling Jaya maybe hard pressed in the next several months ... or maybe not.

For those looking for something exclusive, property developer Selangor Dredging Bhd will be launching the last two blocks of its Five Stones project in the first quarter of next year. Prices begin from RM490 per sq ft, compared with RM450 per sq ft when the five-block project was first launched in August.

The first phase, which comprises a 38-storey block, a four-storey block and a 15-storey block, is today 90% sold. The entire project will have 377 units.
The loft unit in The Tropics.

Its managing director Teh Lip Kim says the two blocks will have a total of 192 units with built-up of 2,000 sq ft in Block E (36-storey high) and 2,900 sq ft in Block D (25-storey).

Teh says the company will have a private launch before Chinese New Year next year, which falls in February.

The 25-storey villa block will differ slightly from the previous launch. It will have a lanai and a broad passage – what Teh calls a breezeway – between the entrance and the living area.

“The old traditional houses have very good cross ventilation and we are going to incorporate this. Besides these two extra features, in terms of design, the unit remains about the same,” she says.

She says Five Stones will be setting a new benchmark for condominiums in Petaling Jaya.
Chan Ai Cheng ... ‘The company (Selangor Dredging) is essentially targeting families, the owner-occupier market, which is why the built-up is pretty large.’

“Most of the developments come with a pool and some facilities. With Five Stones, there is a one-acre park, a pool, basketball and badminton courts. Residents will be able to enjoy the facilities and the park without having to leave the safety and security of the community,” she says.

The company is also offering a 10/90 scheme where buyers pay 10% and the stamp duty for the loan documentation subject to bank approval. Installment begins three years later for the remaining 90%. The interest has already been factored into the price of the unit. Those who are paying cash will have a 3% rebate, she says. When the project was first launched, its smallest unit, at 1,700sq ft, was sold for about RM800,000.

Selangor Dredging also developed Ameera, which is situated next to Five Stones. Ameera was launched three years ago at RM290 per sq ft. That project is now 100% sold, with the last unit going at RM410 per sq ft.

“SS2 is undervalued when compared with Mont’Kiara, Kuala Lumpur, and Bandar Utama in Petaling Jaya. SS2 is an established area and very central, like Mont’Kiara,” she says.

S.K. Brothers Realty (M) Sdn Bhd general manager Chan Ai Cheng says RM490 per sq ft seems a bit steep but for those who want the location and a project of that category, they do not have much of a choice.

Says Chan: “If you want something new and in that location, that is the only thing at the moment. There are the Ken I, II and III developments, with the best being Ken II. Developers are improving their offerings. The company (Selangor Dredging) is essentially targeting families, the owner-occupier market, which is why the built-up is pretty large. Their audience are those who are already in the Petaling Jaya, or specifically in a double-storey landed unit in SS2, and who now wants the security of such an environment,” she says.

The SS2 market is different from the Damansara Perdana market, which is predominantly a tenant market, she says. There is also no gated and guarded projects in SS2, which appeals to home buyers today, she says.

“The main thing is access. On that same road, there is Ameera, Five Stones, Ken III and Jasmine Towers. There will also be a mall development there with double-storey housing on the other side of the road. This means residents in that area will have to go through housing area to get to their destination if congestion builds up,” says Chan.

Another source from a real estate agency says it is difficult to talk about pricing because the project has not been built. “There is nothing to compare it with at the moment but it will be high-density for that location once it is completed,” he says.

Besides Five Stones, other developments in that area include Casa Suites and The Tropics, both by Dijaya Corp Bhd. Casa Suites is already completed and a unit with a built-up of 675 sq ft is currently going for about RM330,000. There are units with built-up of nearly 700 sq ft and about 800 sq ft available. The larger units, however are priced close to RM400,000.

On a per square foot basis, this works out to more than RM450 per sq ft. When it was first launched, the units were priced at RM198,000 or RM280 per sq ft. Casa Suites is located in Damansara Intan, between Ken II and Tropicana Mall.

Alternatively, if buyers are not in a hurry, there is The Tropics, which is currently being constructed above Tropicana Mall. The project will be completed in the first quarter of next year. Like Casa Suites, the built-up of the units begin from about 600 sq ft.

Dijaya Corp will also be offering Casa Damansara 3 in the first quarter of next year. Casa Damansara 3 will comprise 200 units with a built-up of between 1,100 and 1,200 sq ft with three bedrooms. The project will be located behind Tropicana Mall. Prices have not been confirmed yet.

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