Trends in residential property transactions in H1 2021
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Loading... - Alex Pinyin
- 01 Feb 2022
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When the first movement control order (MCO) came into effect in early 2020, property transaction volumes dropped by 41.65% compared with the same pre-pandemic period the year before.
The number of transactions then increased by 51.33% in the second half of that year, owing to pent-up demand and the easing of economic activity.
Then, with the return of the MCO in January last year, the volume of property transactions in the first half of 2021 (H1 2021) dropped 30.69% from the second half of 2020.
Despite the uncertainties brought about by Covid-19, most of the top 10 transacted locations for residential properties have remained the same as the pre-pandemic period, albeit in different rankings.
As of the first half of last year, Ipoh leads with the most residential transactions (527). The township was second overall in 2020 with 889 transactions behind Sungai Petani (1,022), which has seen its ranking drop to sixth in the first half of 2021.
Klang has taken the second spot this half in nationwide rankings but has been the most transacted area in Selangor since 2019.
Cheras, the most transacted area in Kuala Lumpur and also a suburb of the Hulu Langat district, ranked fourth in Selangor within the same half of last year.
Skudai remains the top transacted area in Johor, while Penang’s cities are absent from the list despite being a key state often mentioned in market reports.
Notably, five – including Cheras – of the top 10 transacted residential areas in H1 2021 are in Selangor, making it the most transacted state in Malaysia.
Selangor accounted for 26% of residential property transactions in the country for that period, followed by Johor (14.4%) and Kedah (17.7%), respectively.
Buyer preferences and profiles
Only 24% of property purchases in the first half of 2021 were for high-rise buildings, as opposed to 30% in H1 2020 and 28% in H1 2019.
The decline in high-rise transactions suggests the prolonged effects of the MCO and work-from-home policies saw more buyers opting for landed properties as space and health concerns took precedence.
That said, more transaction data for the rest of 2021 is required before definitive conclusions can be made. If such preferences are proven, then the next question is whether this inclination will remain in the endemic era. Read More…
