KUCHING: Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers Association (SHEDA) has called on the state government to hold a dialogue with the private sector on the plight of key stakeholders who have been left out of BKSS 9.0.
“This is to minimise the risk of abandoned projects as well as stoppage in supply of affordable housing by the private sector for reasons beyond their control,” said its president, Augustine C.H Wong.
SHEDA, he said, supports the call by the Sarawak Business Federation (SBF) for the state government to consider the plight of private contractors and developers.
Wong said the sudden manifold price increase of construction materials and other inputs, has put developers in a tight situation.
“This is especially true for private developers and contractors who are constructing affordable housing where selling prices are capped,” he said.
He added that the rolling out of Sarawakku Sayang Special Aid (BKSS) 9.0 is commendable as it will facilitate the viability of government contractors to carry on with existing projects and thus minimise the number of ‘sick projects’ in Sarawak.
“To ensure there is a constant supply of affordable housing in Sarawak, there is a need to look at the capping of selling prices so that they commensurate with existing building costs, as developers are not able to undertake projects at a financial loss,” he added.
He said commercial bankers will not be willing to grant bridging finance to any private contractors or developers to undertake loss-making ventures.
“Although abandoned housing projects by private developers are not many in Sarawak, it is about time the Sarawak government reviews the mechanism to assist private developers who cannot increase the prices of affordable houses while doing their level best to complete such houses even under the current challenging circumstances,” he added.
