Are Malaysia High-End Property Prices Rising?

Based on recent statistics, prices of high-end properties in Kuala Lumpur have definitely risen! Not too long ago, people were grousing about how "ridiculous" it was that high-end residential properties around the vicinity of Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC Twin Tower) being sold at RM1,000 per sq feet! Guess what....a recent "low profile" launch of another high-end residential condominium near KLCC was priced at average RM1,600 per sq feet! At say 3,000 sq feet, each unit will cost around RM4.8 million!! This project was owned by a prominent Malaysian investor, Chua Ma Yu. Apparently 92% of the buyers are local, and only 8% owned by foreigners. This is contrary to the common believes that only foreigners were buying these high-end properties! Best of all the sales were done without advertising but merely through word-of-mouth! It was also reported that units were 100% sold!

Another project (Sunway Palazzio condominium) recently launched in Sri Hartamas was priced at RM846 per sq feet. This sets a benchmark for the area. The smallest unit would sell for RM2.5 million!

In Bangsar (an expatriate favourite area), one recent project (One Menerung condominium) was priced at RM700 per sq feet, which was also a record for the area!

The bad news....Malaysia is still considered a laggard in valuation compared to the regional peers such as Bangkok and Singapore!