So far 42 acres reclaimed in IJM’s Penang project
A performing arts centre, a green shopping mall, marina, convention centre, and an IT hub to accommodtae MSC-status offices are among the key components of IJM Land Bhd’s RM4.3bil The Light Waterfront phase 2 project, located next to the Penang Bridge.
IJM Land managing director Datuk Soam Heng Choon said this at a recent press conference to unveil the components of The Light Waterfront phase 2 project.
The project’s construction work would start in 2012 when the ongoing exercise to reclaim 210 acres was completed, he added.
So far, IJM Land has reclaimed 42 acres for phase 1 of The Light Waterfront scheme, comprising 1,177 condominium units and gated-landed residential properties, which has an estimated gross development value of RM1.2bil.
“Out of the 210 acres, 152 acres are for the first, second and third phases of the project.
“The remaining 58 acres are reserved for the group’s future projects.
“It will take about 10 years to complete the second phase project from 2012,” he said.
Soam said the performing arts centre would be housed in an iconic building, equipped with seating for 2,000 people.
“There is a sea-fronting amphitheatre next to the performing arts centre.
“The marina that we are planning will have about 250 berths for yachts to park.
“There will be two four-star hotels, catering to the family and business markets, and a five-star business class hotel linked to a convention centre.
“There will also be a 40-storey IT building to house MSC-status companies. The green mall, which will have about one million sq ft of lettable area, provides street shopping facilities and a green environment,” he said.
The entire Light Waterfront project has an estimated gross development value of RM5.5bil, comprising three phases.
“The final and third phase is a seven-acre seafronting park,” he added.
Soam said the group has sold over 60% of the 416 condominium units launched so far under phase 1.
These properties were sold for between RM650,000 and RM1.8mil each, added Soam.
“We will be launching more residential properties for The Light Waterfront phase 1 towards the end of the year and early 2011,” he said. - By David Tan (The Star)
13 comments
I really love to see the progressive growth of Penang. But doubted their quality. Hope that the amphitheater won't be like our parliament building.
Every month Bocor.
maybe everyear the condo go lower by 1 storey....sinked......
judging at IJM's workmanship nowadays, who knows?
With CP & Mah Sing Lakefront development in line...Penangites! we have plenty of choices.
We start to see customers cancel orders in factory. Not sure it is a good time to launch gigantic project.
"...customers cancel orders in factory". That is terrifying... is that a rumor?
IJM's recent completion of their first "luxury Condo" in Penang, The Platino Luxury Condo was a big disappointment to many who had look up to IJM for quality works. It turn out they used cheap chicken wire fencing for their perimeter wall which should only belong to low cost housing and not a luxury complex like this. After this experience I will not buy what IJM claim any more. They are deceitful. Please read Paltino thread here.http://www.apartment-penang.com/2007/09/ijm-platino-luxury-condo-penang.html?commentPage=2
The economic recovery has slowed, having lost its momentum since middle of the year,
Feedbacks from bankers and lawyers firms reveal that buying activities are at a much slower pace now ...
As new projects are completed within the next couple of years, an oversupply of condominiums is imminent , this will definitely affect the selling price of condos ...
Property investment in the new decade
The times have been good for property investors in the past couple of years. Prices in certain areas, particularly in selected areas of Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya have risen significantly, some as high as 50 percent. And as a result of this rise, practically all property investors had made money. In fact, some people have seen their net worth jump up by 30 or 40 percent because of the price rise. For example, a young colleague who purchased their house two years ago saw the value of their house increase from RM950,000 to RM1.3 million today. Of course, the owner was all smiles when they told me the story.
I am happy for them. As an avid property investor, I have benefitted from the rise myself, so I am certainly not complaining. At the same time, I must admit that I have some reservation about the whole scenario. The price rise has distorted reality to many investors, including my colleague. Because the price climbed up as soon as he bought the property, and remained at a high level even today, his view on property investment is seriously distorted. He thinks that:
1. Prices will go up as soon you buy a property.
2. The gains will be in double digits per annum.
3. This is normal.
4. Prices always go up.
5. It is easy to make money in properties.
6. He is a super genius when it comes to property investment!
Long-term property investors will quickly point out that none of the above are true. That’s right – none! For starters, I can tell you the current situation is exceptional. It wasn’t like this five years ago, and certainly not ten years ago. I can also tell you that times are not going to remain this good forever. Prices do not rise to the sky, and interest rates do not stay low forever. In fact, interest rates has already climbed (or to use the toned down term of ‘normalised’) by 75 basis points already this year.
Why am I so sure of this? Simple; I have seen similar euphoria before (the first in the mid-1980s and then in year 1997 during the Asian Currency Crisis), and the story did not end well on both occasions. Like most bubbles, prices edged up slowly initially. The initial buyers made money and this attracted others to invest into properties as well. And as prices climbed higher and higher, the euphoria got to the levels that some people were rushing to buy because they were scared that the prices will spiral out of their reach if they do not act then. But when the market crashed, as all bubbles eventually do, a lot of people were seriously hit, a lot of money was lost, and that included seeing their properties being auctioned off by the banks.
I see the same story being repeated today. On top of the ever present dangers, there will be massive challenges in this new decade. There will be much turbulence in the coming days, and some of them will be unlike what you and I have seen or experienced before. This may include double-digit interest rates, multiple bank failures, currency crashes and explosion of the derivatives market.
As a result of the new challenges, the investors using the current success formula of buying five properties at one go (by paying the minimum down payment and borrowing to the hilt) will be seriously hammered. They will experience much pain, to put it mildly. Some people will lose their properties, some will lose more than money and yes, some will become ex-millionaires.
But of course, where there is danger, there are also opportunities. This will include a huge number of properties being auctioned and also getting huge discounts from distressed sellers.
http://www.starproperty.my/PropertyGuide/Finance/6537/0/0
Healeth,
Well I have to say i pretty much agree with your views on the economic point of view.
You must be a very experienced investor.
My question: Is Malaysia or Penang property independent of property trends in surrounding countries? or Malaysia/Penang properties are very much influenced by countries like Singapore, maybe to extend of HK and China? Maybe not 100% but certain percentage. Singapore properties experiencing huge gain lately, as well as HK and China. HK and China gov are imposing a lot of restrictions to cool the situation. I.e. China only allows max 3 houses per person. For those rich Chinese (i mean from China), they are looking overseas to invest. My 2 cents.
SC,I agreed with u
Foreignera are only allowed to purchase property >RM500K as per M'sia Treasury requirement.
This is why developers are now targeting high end properties above 1mil. You can hardly find properties below 500k these days, I mean middle high to high end. HK n Singapore property prices continue to skyrocket despite gov measures to cool it down.