KUCHING: Now is the time to purchase properties, said Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (Sheda) Kuching branch chairman Datuk Sim Kiang Chiok.
“Interest rates are now at a historic low and buying a house will save the purchasers much interest cost. This may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will not repeat itself again.
“The federal government with its National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) has continued with the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) where stamp duties are waived and developers are giving at least ten percent off from the approved selling price.
“The real property gains tax (RPGT) is waived during HOC period until the middle of this year. I hope the government will extend this lifeline until the end of pandemic or when we have achieved 80 percent vaccination to achieve herd immunity,” he added.
Sim revealed that the HOC campaign was doing better this year compared to the previous year.
“We are upbeat with the HOC campaign; it is showing better results than the initial HOC. Strata title is more popular than landed and this could be because there are much more strata properties than landed properties in the market.
“In the last six months, Kuching-Samarahan has certified over 550 units compared to over 460 units in the same period for HOC in 2019.
“The tripartite relationships between the developers, purchasers and banks are very important for the demand of houses to be satisfied,” he added.
Sim also said strata properties in prime areas were becoming more popular with demands from millennials and pensioners.
