Property portal, iProperty.com.my’s latest consumer survey shows that 44 percent of the respondents were looking to purchase a property before the announcement of the Movement Restriction Order (MCO). 28 percent had stopped actively looking after the MCO, however one third of the respondents had also stopped actively searching as they wait for the prices to drop or for good property deals to come by.
According to the portal, the top two factors which influence a property seeker when evaluating an online listing is validation of a property’s valuation and listing content which gives a very clear understanding of the property’s space and layout.
However, despite the unprecedented situation caused by the outbreak, the survey also highlights that the property seeking trends among Malaysians remained encouraging. 24 percent of the respondents who were not looking to buy a property before the MCO are now looking to purchase after MCO announcement.
“A majority of these new entrants are either looking at current market conditions as an opportunity to purchase their first homes, to upgrade their existing homes or to invest in property, while the minority mentioned that they are downsizing or moving to more convenient locations,” the portal stated, which saw the percentage of respondents looking for a property increase to 45 percent post MCO announcement.
Furthermore, 90 percent of respondents stated that the factors which will help ease their transaction decisions are easy entry options such as zero down payment, developer discounts and subsidised legal costs.
89 percent of property seekers are also receptive to the idea of virtual viewings while 75 percent state that it will help them decide whether or not to view a property in person while the remaining 14 percent says it is enough for them to decide whether to buy or rent a property.
This positive consumer survey also highlights the timeliness of the reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) under the government’s recent Economic Recovery Plan (PENJANA) package. The HOC initiative which features significant stamp duty holidays would help alleviate the financial burden of aspiring home buyers.
“The findings from this consumer survey revealed something very encouraging on Malaysian property seekers purchasing desires despite the unprecedented
situation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Overall, volume of demand did not change significantly and people are still looking for properties. Property seekers are spending more time researching and evaluating their property options online,” said Wong Siew Lai, general manager of Marketing and Communications, iProperty.com.my
The market may be much more receptive to property deals and solutions that help them discover those deals, as well as online content that helps them better understand the current market conditions. If they discover the right deal, many opportunistic property seekers are willing to invest even beyond their original budgets,” added Wong.
