RECOMMENDATION FOR GEN Y AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING

The lack of adequate number of affordable housing projects in Malaysia has been a problem for a
very long time. Its a positive notion that new projects on developing affordable houses are being
undertaken in the recent times, but the number of affordable houses is still way low compared to
the massive public demand. As economic theory explained, houses price movement is inherent
with the regional demographics such as income, cost of capital, stock prices and population
change.
The Government now trying to help the lower to middle income class people buys a house by
introducing the My First Home Loan Scheme. According to this scheme, people who earn less
than RM 5,000 per month or below can apply for a 100% bank loan for a house instead of paying
the 10% down payment. Unfortunately, the scheme is flawed and requires the eligible ones to
pay RM 2,000 for a house with RM 400,000 price tag. From time to time, the house prices are
rising exponentially and it will become more difficult to the middle and lower income class of
Malaysia, especially the Y Generations to afford a home in a future.
The Tenth Malaysia Plan (RMK10) includes establishing 78,000 affordable housing units, out of
which 38,950 will be under the Peoples Housing Program and 39,050 units will be under the
programs conducted by Ministry of Rural and Regional Development. In 2014 Budget,
Government is providing subsidy of RM 30,000 per unit, which encourage developers to build
more low and medium-cot houses. Developers must also build at least 20% low-cost houses and
20% medium-cost houses in a housing project. The houses can be buying for the first time buyers
with a monthly income of RM 3,000 for a low-cost houses and a maximum of RM 6,000 for a
medium-cost houses.
The Gen Y planning to purchase affordable properties should consider the property markets in
the most potential areas including the ones which are yet to be discovered. There are lots of
strategic locations in the country, where the land price is minimum and yet there are scopes for
developers to construct affordable houses and raise the community value. If more people are
interested to invest in locations adjacent to affordable housing communities, the business will

flourish and prospective home owners can also enjoy the facilities of an advanced residential
area.
Considering the fact that a majority of Malaysias Gen Y is middle and lower class people focus
less on savings, it might be convenient way to afford better homes in the future. When the
Government successfully does their job, it is up to the people to cooperate and ensure that people
from all classes can happily afford their dream homes.
References:
Ministry Of Finance, Malaysia. (2011). Welcome To Skim Rumah Pertamaku. Retrieved from
http://www.srp.com.my/docs/html/faq.html
RMK 10 - Perumahan. (2010, June 10). mStar. Retrieved from
http://www.mstar.com.my/berita/berita-semasa/2010/06/10/rmk10--perumahan/