8 reasons why buying a property in Melaka is not for you

Do you know that there are a few primary property markets in Malaysia that Malaysians invest in? They typically include the Klang Valley, Iskandar Malaysia, Penang and Kota Kinabalu. Beyond these few choices, there are also other notable and upcoming choices including Seremban, Ipoh, Kuching, Sandakan and Melaka (Malacca)? I do not go Seremban every year unlike Melaka which I love to visit often. My next trip is on 22nd April 2017. Perhaps I can see some kopiandproperty.my readers there?  Ipoh is my hometown. Kuching is another place I love while Sandakan is my wife’s hometown. (Yes, I own a condo in Sandakan too). Today, let’s focus on Melaka. The reasons why investing in a Melaka property is NOT for you. Read on.
Nothing happens between Melaka and China. Melaka is not known to China. They are only in Iskandar Johor lah. Out of the whole population in China, only 1.14 MILLION visited Melaka last year. (This is BIGGER than the whole population of Melaka) Impression Melaka, which is the first of the Impression series outside China will only be ready in 2018. This is at least one year away and just going to attract a few more million tourists, right? Anyway, China is ONLY investing US$7.3 (RM32 Billion) into the Melaka Gateway. This is a SMALL NUMBER.
You hate Malacca, somehow. Never invest into a place we dislike. Maybe it’s because of the food (which is delicious to me) or maybe because of some its places of interest (I like historical places) or maybe because it’s 1 hour and 40 minutes drive away from Kuala Lumpur. (some people are used to this jam everyday just to get to work). As long as you dislike this little interesting state, please skip and focus on others. We can’t be hating the whole Malaysia, hopefully. 😛 
Too many tourists is not good. 12.74 million tourists visited Melaka for the first 10 months of 2016. That’s too many, right? It’s increasing too. No wonder the number of hotels are mushrooming. That’s also a main reason why it’s not easy to find a parking space. So many tourists would mean that the state’s economic performance is good. In fact 2016 was the year when the state government’s revenue was the highest in history.
Stay in Melaka, work in KL My colleague drives from Seremban to work in Kuala Lumpur everyday. I asked if she’s tired. She said she has gotten used to it. Please NOTE that there’s no way that you would ever ‘get used’ to driving nearly 2 hours toward everyday. Haha. That’s why I do not have a single colleague who drives toward from Malacca everyday. (Perhaps when the High Speed Rail is ready……..)
No one invests in Melaka.  When we google ‘Melaka property’ or even ‘Invest in Melaka’ there are just too many articles to read. This is not a good sign. Normally when there’s nothing to read about the new investment, it’s better because it means no one else will compete with me. There are also many developers building homes in Melaka today. Surely these developers are all not-for-profit companies because no one invests in Melaka. They must be building these new developments for fun. 🙂
Melaka is not well connected.  You can drive into Melaka from Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru or even Singapore ONLY. (Plus other nearer towns or more adventurous drivers) Imagine driving to Melaka from Bangkok, it will not happen, right? Melaka’s airport is under utilised. This meant there are still lots of growth potential. The High Speed Rail is only going to be ready in 2026. That’s too far away. We should only invest when everything is ready. Why invest EARLY? Even the luxury cruises only drop by Melaka and do not make Melaka the main place they anchor. (Well, luxury cruises drop by MANY places….)
No money for investments, yet.  If we are still trying to save enough for an investment, it’s best not to invest into a property in Melaka or any other cities. It’s just not worth it to borrow from the Ah Long or relatives or friends just because we want to invest in a property. Seriously, aim to save enough or perhaps even buy REITS or even some property stocks but not a property when we are still saving for one. Buy a place to stay first, that’s more important.
I dislike property investments. This may be the last reason on the list but this is the most important! If we love to make our money work for us but we do not like property investments, then please skip because there are many other more liquid investments, there are many other more lucrative investments (just don’t get cheated by scams) and there are many other types of investments including even banknotes! Well, I think for this reason, it’s best to skip all the places I mentioned in the beginning and not just Melaka lah.
I am very sure there are lots of other reasons not to think of Melaka when it comes to property investments. However, it’s always good to drop by for some good food, drive around, listen to some property talks, visit some showrooms and property development sites. Nothing happens when nothing happens. Many times however, we should get more information and remember that it’s not that awesome to buy stocks which are overvalued. This is the same for properties. Hotspots are almost usually fully-valued or overpriced. Secondary spots may not look interesting yet. So, where do we invest then? Haha. Knowledge is key to making a calculated risk investment. Happy enjoying Melaka.
written on 4 April 2017
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