KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s decision to extend the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) 2019 for another six months until Dec 31, 2019 will help assist more first-time house buyers to own a house, the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda) said.
Its president Datuk Soam Heng Choon, in a statement, said Rehda is also encouraged by Bank Negara Malaysia’s decision to expand the eligibility criteria for its RM1 billion Fund for Affordable Homes to include household income of up to RM4,360 from RM2,300, while house price is set at RM300,000.
“This will enable more people from the bottom 40 per cent of the household income group (B40) to benefit from it,” he said when commenting on the 2020 Budget tabled by Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng yesterday.
The HOC provides at least a 10 per cent discount for qualified properties that will be matched with stamp duty exemptions.
On the lowering of the threshold for foreign buyers of high-rise properties to RM600,000, Soam said even though it is limited to a one-year period in 2020 and specified only for urban areas, it could assist in alleviating the unsold units issue.
“We call upon the federal government to ensure the support from state governments in implementing the threshold limit for this period, as states have the final say,” he said.
On the proposed revision of the Real Property Gain Tax (RPGT) imposed on disposal of properties after five years onwards for assets acquired before Jan 1, 2013, he said it will lessen the burden of house owners who are planning to sell their houses.
The government will enhance RPGT treatment by revising the base year for asset acquisition at Jan 1, 2013 for assets acquired before Jan 1, 2013, as compared to the previous base year of Jan 1, 2000.
In a separate statement, Titijaya Land Bhd said the government’s plan to introduce the Rent To Own (RTO) scheme with the collaboration of financial institutions will help people who have difficulty to come up with the 10 per cent deposit when purchasing a house.
“Waiving the stamp duty for ownership transfer between developer and bank, as well as between buyer and bank is also a good move to rejuvenate the property industry’s performance.
“We are encouraged by the new developments and shall wait for further details to be announced so that we can work towards our common goals together with the government and the nation,” said Titijaya Land. – Bernama
