Ipoh Property Boom? I seriously do not think so, not yet.

An article about Ipoh property boom in a local daily piqued my interest. It was about the Ipoh property boom. It said that many people are buying homes in Ipoh and this is leading to a property boom. Frankly, I would say, not yet lar. There’s no sustainable factor that I can see at this moment. One example, Greater KL properties, it’s booming because that’s where all the economic activities are. If you want a better career, you work in KL.  Iskandar properties, it’s right beside Singapore and the missing ingredient are just more linkts.  Kota Kinabalu properties, if you do not know, the KK airport is much more busier than Penang International Airport and KK has Kota Kinabalu Mountain and one of the best resorts facing the South China Sea.  Penang properties has the support of the manufacturing hubs, not just within Penang but in mainland and recent few years booming tourism.  Ipoh??
First of all, for those who are new to kopiandproperty.my please read all my Ipoh articles. I love Ipoh, pro-Ipoh and would definitely retire in Ipoh. However, property boom in Ipoh is definitely not yet happening. Current buying are still sporadic and most of it because of some of the sons and daughters wanting a place to stay when they are home to Ipoh etc. Besides that, many younger population also wanted to buy a place because they are old enough and may not want to stay with the parents. There are also many home owners who leave their house empty because they can afford to do it.
There are more launchings, that’s for sure, especially the high rises. However, do look at the take up rate. It’s still considered slow. My cousin sister bought a landed property from a developer who told her, ‘this is last day and I have only a few rows, you better buy now.’ That same few rows of properties are still in the market today, few months after she bought. Ipoh is also growing more ‘trendy’. There are actually lots more of the nicely decorated cafes serving coffee, cakes compared to even Penang today.
A few examples were quoted about new and upcoming projects and a special mention of The Haven Lakeside which was completed last year. The Haven is indeed a very good quality project. However, do you know how hard the developer had to work just so that the project become a reality? In terms of quality and the environment I rate it first class yet, sales were slow! The following were also mentioned:  The Suites in Times Square Ipoh along Jalan Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, Upper East@Tiger Lane along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, The Octagon in Ipoh city centre, SE7EN along Jalan Tun Ismail, Casa Bintang Residence along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, The Majestic in Ipoh city centre, The Signature in Greentown Ipoh and Royal Garden along Jalan Raja Dr Nazrin Shah as well as Treetops located off Jalan Raja Dr Nazrin Shah.
For some of the names listed above, please go online and check, when some of them started it’s launch. Not all enjoyed brisk sales right from the beginning. Some are still selling today, even after years on the market.  Landed is however a little more different, especially if the developer is a well-known one. There are many that I know which are enjoying good sales. In fact my friend who worked in Abu Dhabi bought a huge unit in Taman Seri Botani recently saying it’s for family. Some of the landed ones include:  Hua Yang Bhd’s Greenview Residence in Bercham, Kaizen’s Dorset Place, Kaizen’s Golfview Residence. Bandar Seri Botani by Taiko Properties, Tiara Lake Park by Total Investment and Taman Silibin Ria by Upaya Emas Sdn Bhd. There’s even a retirement village by Total Investment called GreenAcres.
I did however told my mum, if the neighbour on our left or right or back wants to sell, tell me. I will see if somehow I can afford it. Well, I think not just me but a lot of the Ipohans may be telling this to their mums. That’s a partial reason why Ipoh properties are now more popular. Booming is however a word I would reserve for later, if the airport works better and the proposed entertainment projects start or the train services are enhanced even further etc.
written on 6 Sept 2014
Next suggested article: Ipoh airport gets Malindo too! Awesome.