Interest remains high, but buying still doubtful

Q4 2016 is about to start. How’s Malaysia property market thus far? Specifically how’s KL property market? One word? Subdued. Not much actions they say even though transactions wise I think the numbers are holding up. We will have to wait for the final numbers for 2016 next year to know for sure. What’s real? A few of my friends who has more than one property were still buying. Yes, within 2016 I did sign another SPA for a small apartment. As for many of my younger friends including colleagues, inaction would be an appropriate description. My friend Miichael Yeoh then invited me to speak in My First Home 3.0 seminar and I agreed because I also wanted to gauge the market,especially for first-time buyers.
Today was the seminar. It’s from 9am till 5pm consisting of following speakers. Image. Since these attendees  were willing to wake up early Saturday morning to listen to a few peoplespeak on buying that first home, I am quite sure they are interested. However, when I asked who will be buying this year, only three put up their hands. Haha. I think the rest were shy or still not confident about the state of the property market. More importantly however was the fact that many are interested in buying their first home. In fact many have their own ideas about property investment which shows diversity in the market.
During the break, one participant asked me about potential for agriculture land. On Thursday evening, a friend was telling me about a piece of land for resort in Taiping. Just two days ago, another colleague was also asking me about orchard land. Hey, is this the craze currently? I really have no idea and does not have enough experience to comment. My only real encounter with this was when a few friends and I went up a small hill in Balik Pulau, Penang to view an 11-acre durian farm land. We did not buy and I learnt recently that the price of that piece of land was already three times the price we were offered. Well, life’s like that.
Another participant told me she believes landed will always be scarce and is worth investing in. I told her that I do agree but the prices today would be quite prohibitive for buying and renting and the type of potential returns we are looking at will never be like the few years before. Prices have appreciated so much that one has to be really rich to buy. My friend staying in PJ summed it up best. He said, ‘If I were to sell my current place, there’s no way I can buy back anywhere nearby for lesser.’ The only choice would only for him to sell and move further away. Else, he would not be enjoying the capital appreciation at all.
Today, I learnt that even if interest level is high, it does not necessarily translate to purchases. When I asked if there are anyone looking to buy within 2016, only three put up their hands. Haha. The rest must be too shy. It is also very good to note that many people have their own way of looking at real estate investment and this is definitely healthy. So, what’s your thought on this? Happy following.
written on 24 Sept 2016
Next suggested article:  It’s the duration, not the distance ok.