With the ringgit plumbing record lows against a basket of weighted currencies, especially the Singapore dollar, there is no better time for Singaporeans to invest in Malaysian properties, says founder and CEO of MoneySmart.sg, Vinod Nair.<\/p>\n
“The confluence of a strongly regulated Singapore property market where prices are still not tapering to significant lower levels, and a much cheaper ringgit, is in effect payday for Singaporeans and Singapore residents with limited funds [who] now be able to buy luxury properties in key Malaysian cities like Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya and Penang,” he told Bernama today.<\/p>\n
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SINGAPORE (Sept 2):\u00a0With the ringgit plumbing record lows against\u00a0a basket of weighted currencies, especially the Singapore dollar, there is no better time for Singaporeans to invest\u00a0in\u00a0Malaysian properties, says\u00a0founder and CEO of MoneySmart.sg, Vinod Nair.<\/p>\n
“The confluence of a strongly regulated Singapore property market where prices\u00a0are still not tapering to significant lower levels, and a much cheaper\u00a0ringgit, is in effect payday for Singaporeans and Singapore residents with\u00a0limited funds [who]\u00a0now be able to buy luxury properties in key\u00a0Malaysian cities like Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya and Penang,” he told Bernama today.<\/p>\n
Vinod said the topline property categories to consider would be\u00a0luxury condominium developments in Kuala Lumpur’s\u00a0central business district<\/a> and\u00a0landed property in posh enclaves such as Bangsar<\/a> and Damansara Heights<\/a>.<\/p>\n When asked about properties in Iskandar Malaysia, where Singaporeans make up a\u00a0big chunk of investment there, he said he expects “the Iskandar master\u00a0developer and private developers taking further steps to draw overseas buyers\u00a0with much more deregulated measures and friendlier tax laws”.<\/p>\n He added that foreign direct investment is\u00a0a powerful tool for Malaysians\u00a0to hedge against the ringgit.<\/p>\n “If the cost of buying Malaysian property is reaching record lows, then an\u00a0eventual currency correction — which will eventually happen —\u00a0may slow down\u00a0property sales.<\/p>\n “Iskandar Malaysia does have a lot of unsold developer units so now is the\u00a0perfect time to offload inventory.<\/p>\n “Ultimately for Iskandar and all of Malaysia, now is the time to review the\u00a0capital gains tax — maybe a reduction or a temporary reprieve might be an Following the weakening ringgit, some investors have expressed concern\u00a0about\u00a0their investments in Iskandar Malaysia.<\/p>\n However, Vinod says Malaysia is still an attractive investment destination\u00a0for property buyers.<\/p>\n “For those already invested, the best advice would be to wait out\u00a0this bad period. I don’t envision the federal government of Malaysia rolling out\u00a0capital measures like cash injections or pegging the ringgit, so really this is\u00a0an exercise in patience for existing investors.”<\/p>\n On whether the recent Bersih rally in Kuala Lumpur would affect investment levels,\u00a0he\u00a0said: “The recent Bersih event over the weekend, as it has always been\u00a0historically, was a peaceful, non-violent protest of the federal government’s\u00a0policies.<\/p>\n “I believe the only direct immediate effect would be on tourism and tourist\u00a0arrivals. In the long run, the movement is really a domestic rally to improve on\u00a0transparency and reduce corruption. This is a positive light on Malaysians\u00a0wanting a better country for themselves,” he added.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n *theedgeproperty<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With the ringgit plumbing record lows against a basket of weighted currencies, especially the Singapore dollar, there is no better time for Singaporeans to invest in Malaysian properties, says founder and CEO of MoneySmart.sg, Vinod Nair. “The confluence of a strongly regulated Singapore property market where prices are still not tapering to significant lower levels, …<\/p>\n
\nexcellent idea to attract buyers,” he said.<\/p>\n