“To ensure meaningful and sustainable participation of bumiputra, the Bumiputra Property Trust Foundation (BPTF) will provide opportunities for bumiputra ownership of prime commercial properties in major towns. The BPTF will establish a fund to enable ownership of prime commercial properties in the Klang Valley, through a group ownership scheme,” according to Budget 2011.
The proposal is similar to one made in Budget 2006, where it was stated that the Yayasan Amanah Hartanah Bumiputra would be created, to be chaired by the Prime Minister, with an initial capital of RM2bil. This body then set up a subsidiary called Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputra Bhd, which has since changed its name to Pelaburan Hartanah Bhd (PHB). PHB has a joint venture with Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) to develop a RM1.4bil Lot G integrated development in Kuala Lumpur Sentral.
PHB chief executive Kamalul Arifin Othman also said in reports last year that he expected PHB’s revenue to grow 17% to RM70mil in 2009, driven by rental income from properties it had bought, which include four buildings in the Klang Valley. The buildings that PHB has bought include Menara Bumiputra-Commerce in Kuala Lumpur from CIMB Group for RM460mil and CP Tower in Petaling Jaya, from CIMB-Mapletree Management Sdn Bhd for RM200mil, it had been reported.
Budget 2011 however, did not include any incentives for the real estate investment trust (REIT) sector, which disappointed players in the sector. It had been earlier speculated that the Government could be looking to reduce or remove entirely the withholding tax for REIT investors.
By The Star
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