Friday, December 28, 2007

New property hot spots in the Klang Valley

NUMEROUS new property launches have been unveiled in the Klang Valley this year with developers scrambling to show off their highend condominiums bearing none other than the alluring address of the Kuala Lumpur city centre (KLCC) or its vicinity.

The growing list of projects in and around KLCC includes the likes of Hampshire Residences, Park Seven, Troika, Idaman Residence, Suria Stonor and My Habitat to name a few.

For those eyeing these exclusive properties, they must be prepared to fork out a hefty sum.

For instance, Hampshire Residences which is located off Jalan Ampang along Persiaran Hampshire, is priced at between RM600 and RM700 psf.

Suria Stonor, a project by Glomac Bhd, starts from RM600 psf for its standard units with the penthouses going for RM840 psf onwards.

The average price per sq ft for Idaman Residence is RM720.

Projects nearer to KLCC such as The Binjai already tops RM1,000 psf.

Why is it that the KLCC area commands such a high price? Why does a project in Jalan Ipoh, which is still very much within the city, for instance, offer such a huge discount to the KLCC prices? Jalan Ipoh, after all, is KL, as is KLCC.

These were among the questions directed at Ho Chin Soon of Ho Chin Soon Research Sdn Bhd, at the recent two-day seminar FinEx 2005, organised by The Financial Planning Association Malaysia, held at at the Mid Valley Convention Centre.

Ho’s response: "Location is a crucial factor that determines the price of the property.

For example, a unit that fronts the KLCC park without any obstructions to the view will have a high price tag attached with it.

At the end of the day, price is very sensitive and it has a positive relationship with the location of the development."

Ho, who spoke on "Growth Corridors in the Klang Valley", provided suggestions about plausible development corridors that he said are poised for rapid growth in the Klang Valley.

He sees the current growth corridors of Sungai Buloh-Damansara and Puchong-Seri Kembangan being developed soon and that new growth corridors would emerge.

And where would these be? Ho identifi ed the next hot spots in Klang North and Klang South.

Klang North would include areas such as Kapar, Meru, Shah Alam and Klang while Klang South refers to Port Klang and West Port

Why these areas?

Growth corridors are very dependent on accessibility, explained Ho, drawing attention to the Guthrie Corridor as among the latest highways that helped to open up the Klang area.

The growing attractiveness of Klang and Shah Alam has not gone unnoticed.

More and more developers have bought into land in these areas and they include established players, the likes of SP Setia, TA Properties and YNH Property Bhd.

"There is no doubt the next hot spots may be Klang North and Klang South; the centre of gravity for the Klang Valley is not expected to move southwards. Instead, it will ‘hover’ around Petaling Jaya State New Town," added Ho.

Another speaker at the seminar was P B Nehru of City Valuers & Consultants Sdn Bhd, who spoke about property as an investment.

He said properties being bought for investment purposes should be analysed differently from those being purchased for owner occupation.

"Different properties in different locations provide different rates of growth and return. If one wants to maximise total return from a property investment, one must have detailed and intimate knowledge of the entire property market and not just the individual property that one is interested in," said Nehr

Nehru identified a list of critical factors which he called the 10 commandments of property investment that must be investigated and analysed if one wishes to maximise his total returns from any property investment.

Top of the list is rental yield and rate of capital value growth .

He has analysed the Klang Valley property market from 1997 to 2005 for areas with leading capital value growth rate per annum.

Of the 15 The growing attractiveness of Klang and Shah Alam has not gone unnoticed.

More and more developers have bought into land in these areas and they include established players, the likes of SP Setia, TA Properties and YNH Property Bhd.

"There is no doubt the next hot spots may be Klang North and Klang South; the centre of gravity for the Klang Valley is not expected to move southwards. Instead, it will ‘hover’ around Petaling Jaya State New Town," added Ho.

Another speaker at the seminar was P B Nehru of City Valuers & Consultants Sdn Bhd, who spoke about property as an investment.

He said properties being bought for investment purposes should be analysed differently from those being purchased for owner occupation.

"Different properties in different locations provide different rates of growth and return. If one wants to maximise total return from a property investment, one must have detailed and intimate knowledge of the entire property market and not just the individual property that one is interested in," said Nehru.

Nehru identified a list of critical factors which he called the 10 commandments of property investment that must be investigated and analysed if one wishes to maximise his total returns from any property investment.

Top of the list is rental yield and rate of capital value growth.

He has analysed the Klang Valley property market from 1997 to 2005 for areas with leading capital value growth rate per annum.

Of the 15 key areas studied, the 3-storey shop-offi ces in Bangsar Baru scored the highest percentage of capital value growth rate of 6.25% per annum.

The 4-storey shopoffi ces in Desa Hartamas, meanwhile, recorded 5.75% capital growth per annum. Bungalow lots in Damansara Heights, on the other hand, enjoyed capital growth rates of 4.8% per annum.

"Location is an important criteria for any property. But more importantly, correct location, correct property and correct valuation are the key factors to successful investments," said Nehru.

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