SINGAPORE, 9 September 2014 – Having successfully delivered nine editions of the well-received realty showcase, PropertyGuru is delighted to present its 10th edition of the Malaysia Property Show with a large turnout of renowned property developers in the region.
Based on the latest Singapore Consumer Sentiment Survey done by PropertyGuru.com.sg in June 2014, Malaysia came in as the top choice of overseas property investment, with more than 21% of the respondents expressing their intents. This is so for a myriad of reasons – its close proximity to Singapore, the favourable exchange rate as well as historical ties.
Over the last few years, the Iskandar region has attracted close to RM 132 billion of foreign investment commitments from countries all over the world, including Singapore, Spain, Japan and USA. Major projects such as the Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios, EduCity, Legoland Malaysia, Iskandar Coastal Highway and the proposed medical hub have also ramped up market activity, increasing the demands of property investments in the area. With the increased connectivity between Singapore and the region provided by the proposed High Speed Rail (HSR) Link and connected transit systems, Iskandar is also positioned to succeed in the same way Shenzhen benefitted from its proximity to economic powerhouse Hong Kong.
In addition to Iskandar, other key Malaysia cities that showcasing residential properties at the Malaysia Property Show include Klang Valley, Penang and Melaka. Across the twoday show, the developers will be highlighting their wide variety of developments as well as opportunities to the Singaporean investors looking at Malaysia property investments.
“It is never too late to invest in Malaysian properties, as Malaysia’s economy recorded GDP growth of 4.7% in 2013, with the economic transformation initiatives attracting over US$444 billion in investments,” said Gerard Kho, Country Manager of PropertyGuru Malaysia. “This gives property investors’ confidence in the potential returns that they will be harvesting in the future.”
Malaysia’s transformation has also received international endorsement from the World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2014, which saw Malaysia’s ranking in the global ease of doing business increase to 6th in 2014, from 8th last year. Further, Malaysia is also ranked 45th out of 132 countries on Deloitte’s Social Progress Index (SPI), ahead of emerging economic powers such as Brazil, Russia, India, China and Turkey, as well as its ASEAN peers Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia and Laos.
Other than highlighting the top investment opportunities in Malaysia, the Malaysia Property Show will also cover some of the hotter investment topics across the Causeway, including the effects of cooling measures on the Malaysian properties and how an investor should navigate through the changes in the property investment landscape. Through a series of exclusive talks and panel discussions, distinguished industry experts from key organisations such as Medini Iskandar Sdn Bhd and the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) will be sharing their expert opinions on these topics, better arming investors with the knowledge for informed investments and to handle these regulatory changes.
“Singaporean investors have remained upbeat over the investment prospects in top urban regions such as Kuala Lumpur and Penang, but they must not forget to do their research to understand the regulations and policy changes in Malaysia. Investors should also start to take a long term investment view and weigh their options before making their commitment,” said Steve Melhuish, Co-founder and CEO of PropertyGuru Group. “The experienced industry leaders we have invited to speak at the Malaysia Property Show will be able to share in-depth their expert opinions and knowledge, educating investors about the region and how they are able to ride the wave of Malaysia property investment.”
The 10th edition of the Malaysia Property Show will take place from 13 September to 14 September 2014, and will be attended by 13 renowned developers, showcasing over 20 featured property projects across key Malaysia cities including Klang Valley, Penang and Melaka.
For more information, visit the event page at http://events.propertyguru.com.sg/mpssept
For more queries or to arrange for an interview, contact:
Harris Lim
Hill+Knowlton Strategies
6319 3329
harris.lim@hkstrategies.com
Rachel Lim
Hill+Knowlton Strategies
6390 3315
rachel.lim@hkstrategies.com
ABOUT PROPERTYGURU GROUP
PropertyGuru Group is Asia’s leading online property portal group used by almost 11 million property buyers, viewing over 91 million property pages and generating over 350,000 enquiries for real estate developer and agent advertisers – every month – across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. The Group has developed and launched 16 mobile applications in four countries and three languages. At the end of 2013, the Group recorded 1,357,946 downloaded mobile apps, resulting in a slew of three MOBEX awards sweep.
Headquartered in Singapore, PropertyGuru was founded in 2006 by two entrepreneurs with a vision to simplify the property search process and help buyers, sellers and investors make better property decisions faster. Taking advantage of Asia’s growing affluence, property demand and online explosion, the company received its first VC investment funding in 2008 and secured approximately $60m investment in 2012 from Deutsche Telekom, South East Asia’s largest digital investment to date. PropertyGuru was also the first to integrate its website with social media, first to launch Singapore’s only dedicated property newspaper – with over 100,000 copies circulated island-wide every month – and it has also developed a property events platform, with approximately 30 shows held annually across four countries, addressing 30,000 potential property buyers on the ground.
PropertyGuru offices in the region include:
• PropertyGuru.com.sg in Singapore
• PropertyGuru.com.my in Malaysia
• DDProperty.com in Thailand
• Rumah.com in Indonesia
ABOUT PROPERTYGURU MALAYSIA
Propertyguru.com.my is the fastest growing property portal in the country with offices in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Johor. The Malaysian portal currently has over 1.5 million visitors viewing almost 11 million property pages monthly.
Listings volume had increased by 60% in 2013 to reach 260,000, closing in on its closest competitor.
Since Q3 2012, PropertyGuru had been taking the lead in the mobile space in Malaysia with the triple launches of PropertyGuru Malaysia’s consumer mobile app on Android and iPhone platforms, as well as the Agent app on Android. Both consumers apps received more than 174,200 downloads by end 2013, with over 32% of property pages on PropertyGuru.com.my viewed using mobile phone or tablet.
ABOUT STEVE MELHUISH
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Steve is an award-winning entrepreneur. In the last two decades, Steve built profitable companies throughout Asia and Europe. In 2006 along with his partner Jani Rautiainen, founded PropertyGuru. Under the auspice of this newly established brand, PropertyGuru provided a one-stop online shop for the listing and sale of residential and commercial properties to individual and institutional buyers and investors. Prior to Steve’s current role, he held executive positions in various venture capital firms including Skype, AOL, Virgin Media, Vodafone, Extreme Media, iPass and Ariadne Capital. Steve’s expertise in leading global teams resulted in a US$500 million turnover for a business unit for Cable & Wireless. In 2007, Steve was awarded the Spirit of Enterprise Award in recognition of his contributions to entrepreneurship in Singapore. Steve is a non-executive director for two other firms, an angel investor and member of the Business Angels Network South East Asia.