Upbeat Mood At Puchong Kinrara

Most developers are holding back their launches due to the escalating costs of construction. But over at Puchong Kinrara Development Sdn Bhd, the mood is upbeat. Last weekend, the company officially launched the third phase of its Mutiara Bukit Jalil development in Kuala Lumpur, and received good response. Buyers from as far as Sarawak, Penang, Kelantan and Terengganu came to see the show unit, says Puchong Kinrara Development managing director Justin Ong.

"The response was overwhelming as we had close to 2,000 walk-in customers on Sunday alone. Over the weekend, we managed to sell 40 units," he says. The 57-acre freehold Mutiara Bukit Jalil consists of six phases; its first three phases have a gross development value of RM250 million. The third phase comprises 184 units of 3-storey terraced homes, with built-ups of 3,600 sq ft, and tagged from RM668,888. A soft launch was held seven weeks ago, offering 99 units of which 67 were sold. This means 107 units have been sold so far. The target is to sell the remainder within the next six weeks. The first phase, consisting of 114 units of 3-storey terraced homes with built-ups of 2,600 sq ft, was launched in January 2005, and priced from RM388,000.

The homes have since been completed and handed over in May 2007, with 70% already occupied. The homes in the second phase, launched in February 2006, have improved designs, with built-ups of 2,900 sq ft, and tagged from RM423,000. They are currently being handed over to the owners. According to Ong, units in phases one and two have recently been sold in the secondary market for about RM460,000 and RM530,000 respectively. The whole development is fenced up, with 24-hour security. The houses in the third phase are developed based on the concept of "family homes", where extended families with parents and grandparents can stay under one roof. "We are not talking about single income households anymore. We are catering for larger families and there are at least two or three income earners per household.

Another draw is the easy accesibility to the Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Putrajaya, Sunway and Mid Valley Megamall," says Ong. Purchasers in the earlier phases have expressed interest in phase three. "They loved the designs and are keen to sell their houses to buy our phase three homes," he adds. Each home comes equipped with a security alarm system and eight air conditioners. Also, fully integrated designer kitchens are also being offered for a limited time.

Phase three is targeted to be completed by June 2010. "We are sensitive to the needs of our purchasers. We are aware that purchasers usually have to fork out a lot of money to renovate their homes. We want our customers to appreciate our designs so that they need not have to renovate," says Ong. For example, he says, laminated timber has replaced timber strips for the flooring in phase three houses. These strips are more durable.

Ong says given the current uncertain market environment, there are two groups of buyers on the scene - those who think it is the perfect time to buy now, and those who adopt a "wait and see" approach. "Now is the time to buy, really. Property prices are expected to increase by at least 25% to 35% next year. By then, buyers could probably only afford smaller houses due to the higher costs of materials and land," says the lawyer-cum-developer. Mutiara Bukit Jalil will keep Puchong Kinrara Development busy for the next four years. However, the developer is looking at several plots of land in the Klang Valley for future developments.

Source: The Edge Daily, 04 August 2008