Am I old fashioned or not? Still having to believe that Freehold property is the best investment to get in Malaysia.
Well, not anymore.
Buying a property is about three things: location, location, location. It is always true to make this the most important point when looking out for a property, despite it being a leasehold property or a freehold property.
Unfortunately, our forefathers who are good in procuring properties throughout the years still teach our sons to get freehold property instead, which in one way or another could be foolish if the sons are without prior property knowledge will get caught in (i) not getting a property, a first house for that matter, (ii) too pricey to even get one that is freehold, (iii) if it were a freehold, the area might be just too remote to travel using public transport, and so forth.
A true investment of property needless to say would be based on the appreciation value that one could fetch. Same story that goes to leasehold property around PJ area, like 50-year-old Old Town, Section 14, Tropicana, or even the booming Kota Damansara for that matter. It all boils down to the three keys which I have furnished you: location, location, location.
I think the reluctance in acquiring a leasehold property is largely driven by the perceptions and the lessons learnt from dealing with hostile local authorities, i.e. the land office/ PTG, and local councils, such as MPPJ, DBKL when it comes to transfer and lease renewal. With these two tactical queries addressed and resolved by our
rakyat representatives, a.k.a. government, I think it would be easier to convince our fellow Malaysians that leasehold property is not such a bad idea afterall if the location is just right.
But then again, even our so-called bumiputera (native locals, kononnya) are looking for freehold themselves. When I asked them the reasons, the common denominators heard are,
"ada harga kalau nak jual", "senang nak transfer", "boleh jual kat non-bumi". Unbelievable! That's what I call people with vision and enterprising spirit of anak Malaysia when it comes to property.
Should leasehold property have the qualities of the freehold, in terms of the two factors: flexi renewal period and easy to transfer; many will opt for any propery on sale in Malaysia, especially the hot spots in Klang Valleys. If these factors are not properly address, risk takers will still go for good location products, but many still sceptical about leasehold property will go after freehold for ease-of-mind reason.
Best still, if the leasehold property could convert its title to a freehold property, wouldn't it be great?