PUTRAJAYA: To address the long waiting list of affordable houses, Hartabumi.com founder and chief executive officer Radzi Tajuddin said the government should explore alternatives in the sub-sale property market, providing the Bottom 40 per cent (B40) and Middle 40 per cent (M40) with options to rent or purchase a house.
“The 1Malaysia People’s Housing Programme (PR1MA) aims to build 500,000 units, but there are 1.5 million interested buyers. The government can be the facilitator between these people and those in sub-sale properties.”
Comfortable homes with decent facilities are required to provide a conducive environment for child development. The affordable housing schemes are reportedly designed with the comfort and wellbeing of buyers in mind.
Universiti Sains Malaysia health campus criminologist and psychologist Dr Geshina Ayu Mat Saat said a safe and loving home would nurture children’s positive behavioural and moral development.
“The comfort (being safe and protected from harm and potential harm, including violence, neglect, abuse and exploitation) of a home, together with appropriate parenting styles, is important to reduce the risks of children being involved in anti-social behaviours.”
She said children from big households with limited space tended to stay out of their homes longer, thus the parenting style in such homes was important to prevent them from becoming delinquents. --Additional reporting by Nursyahirah Marzuki