Looking for properties within your budget, your desired location and near train stations? Wide Range of Properties Along Transit Lines • within 500m radius of MRT/LRT/KTM stations • potential high capital appreciation • high rental yields Latest Property Market Trends Pre-register today & get a FREE summary report with insights on hot spots in Klang Valley & other interesting property tips! Experts’ Views Feng Shui Get tips from industry professionals such as Consultation Bankers, Lawyers, Valuers & Town Planners, Bring along your floor plan and Economists & many more. enjoy a FREE Feng Shui consultation. Rebates & Giveaways Enjoy up to RM100,000 worth of rebates & giveaways at the expo. Participating Exhibitors: and more! Managing Editor CEO’S FOREWORD Roshan Kaur Sandhu Writers Reena Kaur Bhatt Mira Soyza Time flies when you’re having fun. That Editorial Coordinator adage holds true in describing the year Nur Alia Ahamd Tamezi we’ve had at REA Group – Asia. Senior Graphic Designers Wing Wong Jason Kwong Junior Graphic Designer 2017 was a year of change, leading towards transformation Rechean Soong and growth. Everything we do, is driven by our purpose to make property simple, efficient and stress-free - from product CEO REA Group - Asia innovation to global investments. Henry Ruiz CEO - Singapore & Malaysia Over the last 12 months, we have made significant investments REA Group - Asia to the business in Malaysia. Haresh Khoobchandani General Manager (Marketing) We’ve revamped our website and mobile application to Wong Siew Lai significantly improve the consumer experience and ensure a seamless integration across the web and mobile app. General Manager (Agent Sales) Leon Kong As a digital company at the heart of innovation, we also introduced data services with General Manager (Developer Sales) a specialized team of Statisticians, Economist, Mathematicians, Data Scientists, Data Sean Liew Engineers and Big Data Developers that collect all the relevant property data across General Manager (Data Services) Malaysia - search trends and interest; information you cannot get anywhere else, clean Premendran Pathmanathan them and turn it into information and knowledge that’s relevant to our customers, Group Regional Finance Director within minutes. Esther Monks Today, our data service is used extensively by many blue-chip companies including Head of Media Sales & Ad Ops Sunway Berhad, LBS Bina Group Bhd and Maybank. We also began collaborating with Martin Goh Bank Negara Malaysia on data sharing. Our platform is also being used by the Iskandar Head of Content Regional Development Authority task force to analyse the various data sets in the Gabriel Ong Iskandar property market. Head of iProperty TV Jonathan Ong 2018 promises to be as exciting, if not better. General Manager (Sales & Marketing) We began working towards enhancements such as advanced mapping technology iProperty.com Singapore using lot numbers, radius and draw shapes that will elevate us into a world class data Vincent Sim solutions company and offer our customers and governments solutions to solve the national issue of supply and demand. Head of Marketing & Content, iProperty.com Singapore Throughout the upcoming year, you’ll be updated as we ideate and innovate to help you Leslie Lin achieve your commercial objectives. Data continues to be the electricity of the new economy. It will also thrust us forward. We are excited about the year and what it promises, for us and what we can do for you, our customers. We will also continue to reimagine our other lines of business to help us identify new opportunities and develop new leads for you to grow your business. iProperty.com Malaysia Sdn Bhd (600850-K) The journey towards transformation and growth is truly underway and you are at the Suite 11.01, Level 11 Menara IGB epi centre of this journey. Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra 59200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia I could not be more excited about what’s in store for 2018, and for the opportunity Phone: (603) 2264 6888 to work with you to make it happen. Together, we can change the way Malaysia Fax: (603) 2264 6900 experiences property. Sales enquiries: [email protected] Editorial matters: [email protected] We won’t be perfect, but we will listen to you; we will look to be long-term partners General enquiries: [email protected] with the customers we serve; and we will run our business with humility, integrity and Subscription: [email protected] passion. International Property: [email protected] iProperty.com Malaysia Sdn Bhd (Johor) I would also like to take this opportunity to wish you a very Merry Xmas and an excellent A-2-7, Pusat Komercial Bayu Tasek New Year! Persiaran Southkey 1, Kota Southkey 80150 Johor Bahru, Johor Phone: (607) 300 0013 iProperty.com Malaysia Sdn Bhd (Penang) Bay Avenue D-25-3, Lorong Bayan Indah 2 Bayan Lepas, 11900 Penang Phone: (604) 645 9899 Fax: (604) 611 1599 HARESH KHOOBCHANDANI Disclaimer Although every reasonable care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, neither the publisher, editor nor CEO, Singapore & Malaysia their employees and agents can be held liable for any errors, inaccuracies and/or omissions, howsoever. We shall not be responsible for any loss or REA Group - Asia damage, whether direct or indirect, incidental or consequential arising from or in connection with the contents of this publication and shall not accept any liability in relation thereto. The views by our contributors expressed here are their personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect iProperty.com’s views. Unless otherwise noted, all artwork and ad designs printed in iProperty.com Magazine are the sole property of iProperty.com Malaysia Sdn Bhd, and may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of the publisher. 4 PB Managing Editor’s note Contents What a year it has been! There were 4 CEO’S FOREWORD iPROPERTYiQ.COM many ‘ never saw it coming’ events in 5 27 AREA WATCH Malaysia and globally from leadership MANAGING Ipoh: Cheapest capital to live in changes, scandals and natural EDITOR’S NOTE at RM177 PSF disasters. This December issue provides you with a flavour of just some of the new COVER STORY property developments in the Klang 8 Redefined living at Arca@Klang SPECIAL FOCUS Valley. Our cover story JAG Land Sdn 33 Klang: An affordable haven 14 GAMUDA Bhd is excited to provide the Klang for landed properties below RM300,000 community with a revolutionary Making a good town product – its debut integrated strata development. In our Area Watch section, Reena INDUSTRY UPDATE iTHINK Kaur Bhatt explores the secondary 19 Property related takeaways 41 Here’s why UBER is the peanut homebuyers for terrace homes in the from Budget 2018 butter to my jelly past year and latest data reveals that Ipoh is the cheapest city to live in Malaysia with RM177 psf. Read more EXPERT’S VIEW POINTS OF INTEREST on page 28. 20 Budget 2018 makes progress, 44 Malaysians’ guide to the latest A special section ‘Out of Bounds’ but we still have work to do Property Stamp Duty features Nerida Conisbee, REA Group Chief Economist who shares her 48 “No hidden charges”, she said – Spotting a rental scam! view on whether one should invest in regional Australia and Nigel Dalton, iTHINK 50 Senior Housing: Build what matters Chief Inventor at REA Group who 24 I’m jaded about the budget’s housing initiatives, are you? ponders how technological innovation will influence the consumer landscape SAFETY CHECKLIST in the near future. 54 Surviving terror attacks in Malaysia Our recent iPropertyiQ data reveals that the affordable heaven for landed properties below RM300,000 in Malaysia is in Klang! Mira Soyza INDUSTRY UPDATE analyses this further on page 34. 57 JPPH REPORT I am extremely thankful for all of Stratified properties overhang you, our readers. Your involvement worsens in H1 2017 in social media by liking photos and sharing our posts are what keep us motivated. COFFEE WITH CHARLES Happy Holidays, Merry Xmas and a 58 Unsold units up by 40%. splendid New Year! Should we be worried? 8 14 Roshan Kaur Sandhu Contents 59 HAPPENINGS OUT OF BOUNDS 64 5 ways technology will change by 2020 66 Should you invest in regional Australia? 68 House and land package vs apartments REGULARS 70 HOUSE BUYERS’ ASSOCIATION Rising property prices – paper gains means nothing 73 MASTER PAW How to improve the Feng Shui of your home 68 EVENTS AGENT’S ADVICE 74 Putting Iskandar Malaysia on 91 Damansara Perdana: Strategic the world stage location with steady appreciation 78 Hats off to a fabulous Mingling Night! 82 AGENT’S VIEWS 92 Chester Group: The exception REGULARS that proves the rule 80 DATO’ JOEY YAP Assessing your home using Feng Shui AAA 2017 SPECIAL 94 Agent Advertising Awards (AAA) 2017 Winners INTERNATIONAL SECTION 82 FEATURES 84 104 Types of housing in Singapore SUPERSTAR AGENTS 84 SINGAPORE NEWS 88 INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS CONSUMER AWARENESS Mortgage Reducing Term 106 5 tips for styling your front Assurance (MRTA) – Why should verandah you consider it? 109 CLASSIFIEDS 88 120 SUBSCRIPTION Redefined living at ARCA@Klang JAG Land Sdn Bhd, a wholly own subsidiary of JAG Berhad, is excited to provide the Klang community with a revolutionary product – its debut integrated strata development promises an iconic commercial address, functional and practical residential layouts complete with fabulous on-site facilities. 1 - REENA KAUR BHATT freehold integrated comprises 238 units of sky bungalows will serve to fulfil the latent demand development comprising of and sky semi-Ds. These are exclusively from millennial homebuyers and Aresidential, office and retail designed for those who appreciate new start-up business owners. The components spread across 3.33 modern urban living, excellent development’s vicinity is a very mature acres of land along Jalan Sungai Jati connectivity and easy access to the neighbourhood which consists mostly in Taman Sentosa, Klang, ARCA is all city centre as well as luscious green of landed residential homes and low- geared up to introduce a new lifestyle spaces.