DEVELOPERS should refer to the Local Government and Housing Ministry before embarking on new projects to avoid a glut of unsold properties, Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani said.

There are 130,000 unsold properties throughout the country most of which were studio and serviced apartments, he said.

“It is a good idea for developers to get more information on where the oversupply is.

“Across the country, there are 130,000 properties that involve studio or serviced apartments, which have a lot of oversupply.

“Developers who want to know where the oversupply is, (the information is) available at the ministry,” he told reporters at the Finance Ministry complex in Putrajaya today.

Last month, the Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents and Property Consultants in the Private Sector Malaysia (Peps) said the property market overhang was due in part to developers using “wasteful” building practices while buyers also created “false demands”.

In addition to these two factors, lack of market research on construction feasibility and coordination among local authorities when granting approvals are also factors.

Another reason is delays in gazetting devilment plants, which lead to uncontrolled development as well as rising costs. – December 29, 2017.