Last year, the Malaysia Property Expo – Klang Valley (Mapex-Klang Valley) captured a total sales of about RM563 Million. This meant buyers who visited the fair bought a total of RM563 million worth of new properties. 2014 was considered a slow year. Seriously, I thought 2015 would be a worse year. Negative sentiment from 2014 is continuing, Ringgit is still weak, GST had just been implemented and oil price has hit a new low. However, if based on the expectations from the Mapex – Klang Valley 2015, it is not so. In fact, the organiser, Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association (REHDA) said that they expect the total sales during these series to total RM1 billion. Yes, in percentage, that’s 78 percent higher for 2015 versus 2014! Venue is Mid-Valley and the event dates are as follows: Mid Valley Exhibition Centre from April 3-5; then Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre (July 31-Aug 2); and, Mid-Valley (Oct 30-Nov 1).
So, is the sentiment better in 2015? I do not think any reader would dare to claim that the sentiment is better in 2015. After all, until today, Goods and Services Tax (GST) remains a negative issue and comments are never ending. Developers also kept reminding everyone that with GST, the property prices that they will sell will definitely be adjusted higher. Even the customs agree that there may be some adjustment upwards even if the percentage is likely to be low. So, the answer is simple, sentiment has not been better but it has become worse due to GST. Oh yeah, secondary is not affected by GST. Read here: Buy secondary. 30-40% cheaper.
Perhaps the better question would be, is demand still strong? I think the answer to this is a firm Yes. However, can demand translate into actual sales? For this question, it really depends on what is on offer. For a newly wedded couple, SOHO may still be applicable but for a family expecting a baby or is looking for an upgrade, then size and price comes into play. Come on, a family of three or four will find anything below 1,000sf to be a little uncomfortable. Thus, are there still new condos with size of about 1,000 or higher which is still ‘properly’ priced? I said ‘properly’ because it depends on the location as well. Even for so-called hotspots, if priced too high today, the developer is likely to struggle. Perhaps after 1 year, the same project would still be offered as ‘limited units available.’
From the above, I think it is likely that the projects on offer in the Mapex-Klang Valley 2015 is attractive. That’s the reason the organiser (REHDA) is quite confident about hitting this new sales number for 2015 versus last year. In fact it was announced that a total of 240 booths have been taken up and there would be up to 20,000 units of residential and commercial units being offering during the show. In fact a total of 50,000 visitors are expected as well. When compared to the baby fairs or even job fairs, this 50,000 is not considered high but for property, 50,000 interested people is a very good sign. Demand is alive and well still, even in 2015. Happy visiting or house hunting.
written on 5 Apr 2015
Next suggested article: Properties in 2015? Tough times.
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