GEORGETOWN: The government should consider buying all unsold low-cost and low medium-cost houses across the country, including those that are put up for auction, in a bid to address the shortage of affordable housing nationwide.
Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association (Rehda) Penang chairman Datuk Jerry Chan Fook Sing said by doing this, the government could ensure that there was an immediate supply of such housing units.
“The losses would have already been absorbed by the developers and the government can buy properties off the developers from their existing stocks,” he said in an interview recently.
Chan proposed that instead of building houses, Perbadanan PR1MA Malaysia should instead buy from private developers.
“It will cost them considerably less to buy the unsold units than to build new houses,” he added.
Chan, who is also Asas Dunia Bhd chief executive officer, attributed the situation of unsold affordable housing units in Penang — especially in Seberang Prai — to various reasons, including eligible purchasers not having updated their addresses with the state authorities, had purchased properties at other locations, no longer interested or due to inability to secure housing loans.
He called on the government to “pull out all the stops” to assist first-time housebuyers by subsidising purchasers from the onset.
“If banks can take a soft approach in the early years of repayment, it would be a great help,” he said, adding that he hoped the 2015 Budget, to be tabled this week, would offer ways to assist first-time house buyers.
“Otherwise, they will never be able to get a leg-up in life.”
Chan also called on the government to introduce measures to curb land speculation.
“People tend to blame property developers for the cost of properties but do not realise that the biggest issue lies in land cost,” he said.
“There are parties out there who are trying to capitalise on the situation by not buying to build but to speculate. Genuine developers, on the other hand, do not hold on to land for long.
“We hope the government can help by putting a stop to land speculation or else the impact will continue to be felt on our selling prices,” he added.