Lack of government action among reasons for high prices of properties

PropertyGuru's latest survey shows three out of four Malaysians are unhappy with the current property market, citing expensive properties and lack of government action among the main reasons for dissatisfaction.

The survey, conducted in the first half of 2015, noted a significant trend of decreasing satisfaction among buyers or potential buyers.

It also shows a growing consensus that prices of all properties, regardless of size, class or location, are becoming increasingly unaffordable.

"Only 25% of Malaysians felt satisfied with general conditions of the property market – a significant drop from the 32% registered in last year's sentiment survey," PropertyGuru said in a statement today.

The main reasons cited are the perception that properties are overpriced (86%), the rapid increase of prices (61%), a laggard economy (57%) and unpredictable real estate conditions (37%).

Country Manager Sheldon Fernandez said one out of every three respondents cited difficulty in attaining approval for bank loans as a key source of dissatisfaction for them.

Despite the various government schemes to encourage domestic property purchase, 37% of respondents did not apply for such programmes, while another 36% said they did not qualify for such assistance.

Only one out of five respondents applied for the Perumahan Rakyat 1Malaysia (PR1MA) while only 4% applied for the Private Affordable Ownership Housing Scheme (MyHome).

Despite property being exempted from the goods and services tax (GST), the measure implemented in April 2015 has influenced consumer confidence with 60% stating that it impacted their decision to buy property.

Other popular reasons cited included planning for children's education (37%), a hedge against inflation and currency fluctuations (31%) and migration (25%). – Bernama