Property hot spots

By The EDGE

“The new real estate mantra should be location, timing and branding,” Ho Chin Soon told The Edge Investment Forum on Real Estate 2007.

In terms of location, Ho said the Klang Valley remains the centre of gravity and buyers should concentrate on the first and second-tier growth areas. The first tier is a 15km radius from the centre while the second tier is the next 25km.

“One of the things to look out for when buying property is whether it is easily accessible to highways,” said Ho. For him, Petaling Jaya remained a favourite area for landed properties while the golden triangle and Mont’Kiara are hot spots for highrises.

In his paper titled “Property hot spots: IDR; NCER or Klang Valley? Where in the Klang Valley?” Ho said the IDR is being used as a test bed by the government.

“They have begun to liberalise policies and we will have to wait and see how this takes effect,” he said.

On the NCER, Ho added, Penang is attracting a lot of attention from the Malaysia My Second Home programme and projects like the second bridge and monorail will only augur well for the northern state.

Ho said 2005/2006 was a good time to invest in property but felt the market would remain good for another two to three years. “I am not saying it (the downturn) will happen in 2010 but if the (property) cycle repeats itself, than it will be about another three years… (before it turns),” he explained.

“Currently, I think the market is still stable and it is still a good time to buy,” Ho said, adding these words of caution: “Make sure you buy from a branded developer!”