The second phase of development in Iskandar Malaysia (2011 – 2015) is expected to draw strong interest from Singaporean investors.
While interest in the region has been low in the past, there’s been a dramatic reversal in this trend over the last few years, according to David Neubronner, Head of Residential Project Sales at Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL).
“Singaporean interest, until recently, has generally been muted and limited to a handful of developments like Leisure Farm and Horizon Hills. However, the situation has changed quite dramatically recently.”
Nowadays, Iskandar Malaysia is considered to be on par with Johor Bahru, with highways, improved landscaping, the Legoland theme park and educational facilities in Educity.
“For Iskandar to succeed, we need the Singaporeans to agree to play ball,” noted Chris Tan, Managing Partner and Legal Advisor at Chur Associates, which promotes Malaysian properties to foreigners.
“Johor has always been Singapore’s factory. Iskandar Malaysia is like Shenzhen and Hong Kong. Shenzhen is thriving today because of the Hong Kong factor,” added Tan.
Neubronner added that Iskandar Malaysia can be considered a new territory that presents enough opportunities for growth, value and future retirement plans, especially for Singaporeans.
But he is aware of the many positive and negative factors affecting interest in Iskandar and Malaysia in general.
“The rapid price appreciation of Singapore properties over the past 30 months is one of them.”
“With new price levels, Malaysian properties become relatively cheaper. For example, a new semi-detached house in Bukit Timah, Singapore costs S$5 million. A similar house in The Straits View Permas Jaya Johor, 10 minutes drive from CIQ Johor, is S$500,000 or a fraction of what it costs in Singapore.”
Meanwhile, Singapore’s new anti-speculative measures could deter investors from investing in the country’s property market, he said.
“As a consequence of these measures, investors are going overseas, such as London, Australia and Malaysia.”
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