Second Penang bridge expected to open in February

The second Penang bridge, which is now 99.9% completed, is expected to be opened to the public in February, said Works Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof.

“Only the construction of two toll plazas in Batu Kawan – one at the Bandar Cassia interchange and the other at the interchange connecting to the North-South Expressway (NSE) – is yet to be completed.

“Upon completion, the 28-booth toll plaza in Bandar Cassia will be the largest in the country,” he told a press conference at the China Harbour Engineering Co Ltd (M) Sdn Bhd office in Batu Maung here.

Currently, the Sungai Besi toll plaza is the largest one in the country with over 18 lanes.

The Bandar Cassia toll plaza (PB2X Toll Plaza) will be managed by Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd. NSE operator PLUS Expressway Bhd will operate the other one (PLUS Toll Plaza).

“The PB2X Toll Plaza is meant for motorists who are not using the NSE, especially the locals who want to commute to the island from the Batu Kawan area. After the construction is done, we have to integrate the system with other highways such as the NSE,” Fadillah said.

He added that the bridge would be opened to the public only after it met requirements set by the Malaysian Highway Authority.

On talk that toll rates would be increased next year, he said they were subject to review every three to five years and added that the toll rates for the bridge were still at the negotiation stage.

“We have a total of 29 tolled highways in the country and the concession agreements vary.

“For example, the NSE is due to be reviewed in 2016,” he said, adding that a few highway tolls would be reviewed next year and the incremental rate would depend on the Federal Government, which would take into account its financial position and the people’s economic situation.

The second Penang bridge, spanning 24km with 16.9km over the sea, is expected to ease at least 25% of traffic congestion on Penang Bridge.

Source: StarProperty.my

New rules may burden Penang homeowners looking to sell

GEORGE TOWN: Owners of affordable and low-cost homes in Penang will find it tougher to sell their properties as the state government plans to enforce strict rules to curb property speculation.

From Feb 1 next year, owners of affordable homes (bought for below RM400,000 on the island and RM250,000 on the mainland) would be barred from reselling their properties in the first five years of ownership.

Meanwhile, owners of public housing (low and low-medium cost units) bought for RM72,500 or less cannot sell their units for 10 years.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said affordable and public housing owners who wished to sell their units during the moratorium would have to appeal to the state government, and if given the green light, could only sell to qualified “listed buyers” who were registered with the state housing department.

Lim said in a statement that the new rulings would cover past and future purchases.

The new regulations also stipulate that foreigners can only buy property valued at RM1mil or more, and the threshold is increased to RM2mil if it is a landed property on the island.

A three per cent levy would be imposed on properties bought by foreigners, but an exemption would be made if the property is for industrial use, or “promotes employment, education and human talent”, said Lim.

“A two per cent levy will be imposed on the seller, for all properties sold within three years from the date of the Sales & Purchase Agree­ment signed from Feb 1, 2014. Property bought with the SPA signed before Feb 1, 2014, will not be subject to this levy.

“This two per cent levy is not app­licable to affordable housing,” he said.

He said the new housing rules were announced during the tabling of the 2014 state budget at the state assembly sitting but was refined for clarity and certainty during the last Penang state exco meeting.

Meanwhile, Penang Real Estate Housing Developers Association (Rehda) chairman Datuk Jerry Chan said the new rules would limit the pool of property buyers as owners could only sell their units to “qualified buyers” registered with the state housing department.

He said the state government should clarify if this new restriction applied to private property as the change was too drastic.

“It is also not right to impose the new rule on past purchases as these restrictions were not there when purchasers bought the property at that time.

“The new rule will have an impact on the selling price of the property because of the reduced number of purchasers. Changes will have to be undertaken progressively to see the impact,” he said.

Source:  StarProperty.my

Hunza plans 3 projects with GDV of RM1.4b over 4 years

Copied from The Sun Daily which were posted on 28 August 2013 - 08:25pm.

GEORGE TOWN (Aug 28, 2013): Hunza Properties Bhd plans to launch three projects with a combined gross development value (GDV) of RM1.4 billion over the next four years, said its executive chairman Datuk Khor Teng Tong.
He said the three projects – which will be Hunza's focus for the coming years – include an integrated development on 14.9ha in Juru worth RM700 million in GDV; Alila II, a high-rise green building project (RM500 million GDV) and Bandar Putra Bertam in Kepala Batas (RM200 million GDV).
"The planning ratio at Juru is expected to be 75% for high-rise residential and 25% for commercial (held by Hunza)," he told reporters after announcing the group's financial results ended June 30, 2013 here today.
He said the integrated development in Juru would feature a four-star hotel, hypermarket and recreational facilities covering about 500,000 sq ft (about 46,451 sq m), which will be owned and managed by Hunza.
The group plans to submit the proposal to the relevant authorities by September or October this year, he added.
Khor said the hotel with about 300 rooms is expected to be another revenue stream for the group after its premier lifestyle shopping mall Gurney Paragon Mall, which opened on July 23 this year.
On Alila II, Khor said the project, comprising two tower blocks of high-end condominiums sited on the Alila in Tanjung Bungah, is likely to be launched soon as it is currently awaiting final approval from the relevant authorities.
For the RM200 million GDV in Kepala Batas, he said it would be the remaining phases after the 128 double-storey semi-detached houses of Phase 3 launched in May 2012 are completed and fully sold.
"Phase 3, featuring 173 double-storey terrace houses launched in the third quarter of financial year 2013, has to date achieved more than 50% sales," he added.
On Hunza's multi-billion ringgit integrated development in Bayan Baru, Khor said the group hopes to start the project in 2016 with earthworks for the low-cost units for the resettlement of the squatters in progress.
Asked to comment on the possibility of increasing the real property gains tax (RPGT) to stabilise the prices of houses, Khor said: "I don't agree that the government always changes its policies."
"More houses should instead be built if supply was short to stabilise the prices, while changing the policies would affect the industry's growth," he said. – Bernama

新闻由东方日报提供

全国房地产掀涨潮

（吉隆坡8日讯）随着燃油涨价，建材价格和运输费也水涨船高，加上内政部展开非法外劳大逮捕行动，加剧建筑业人手短缺，预料国内房地产再酝酿新一波的涨潮，新一季的房屋价格将调涨10至15％。

运输费和建筑材料如洋灰丶混凝土丶沙石价格，将随着RON95汽油和柴油每公升调涨20仙之後涨价，房价涨潮相信很快会感受到。

大马房地产发展商公会副主席兼霹州分会主席拿督李友显接受《东方日报》访问时表示，由於汽油调涨後，建筑材料和运输费价格一定受牵动，因此，预料全马各地的房价会起价10至15％，而霹州房产涨幅则估计在10％左右。

他披露，基於石油是洋灰的主要制作成份，所以汽油起价将波及洋灰的价格。一旦洋灰起价，将进一步影响其他建筑材料的价格，因为洋灰是建材的基石，而砖块丶混凝土等都是以洋灰制作的。

他说，油价调涨也导致运输服务涨价10％，预测接下来，发展商承担的建筑成本将涨15％。

「好的地段越来越少，大家都在抢购，也导致地价越来越昂贵，尤其是靠近市中心的地段更是『一地难求』，所以地价也将影响房产价格的涨潮。」

而大马房地产发展商公会主席拿督斯里任广财指出，人口稠密的中马一带如吉隆坡等市中心的房价，尽管将会有一定的增长，惟其涨幅不会与其他区域有所差距。

他认为，市中心的人口稠密，人们对房屋产的需求量依然比起其他地点来得高，因此其市场料将不受涨价而受到多大冲击。

涨价视发展商决定

他补充，在油价丶建材及运输费高涨之馀，如今建筑发展商也面临外劳短缺问题，而被迫以高价聘请劳工，以确保工程如期完成，这也是房屋产涨价的因素之一。

不过，大马房地产发展商公会柔佛州分会理事拿督张润安则说，虽然油价上涨，但相信不会影响房屋的涨幅，发展商能够承担。

他说，房屋价格是否会因为油价上涨而跟着涨价，就像白糖涨价5仙，咖啡茶水是否要上涨10仙的原理一样。「有些人的利润本来是30％，因为汽油涨价导致利润变成28％，是否要调涨2％要视发展商而定。」

Swimming Pool & Shop House

Posting photos for the construction of the swimming pool and the shop house for my fellow neighbours that are working abroad.

Bungalow price Increased by RM100K.

Hellow my fellow neighbours and friends,
Good news !!!
I just being notified that the bungalow price has been increased by RM100K at least by the developer.
This means that the remaining units of bungalow for type A (Arden) new price tag is RM800K and above. With this information, bungalow type B (Bago), type C ( Cacela ), type D (Dove), type J ( Java ) will follow to increase the price tag by RM100K.

As for my Semi-D neighbours and friends, surely the price for subsale semi-d also follow the increase of RM100K. This brings the semi-d subsale price from RM630K to RM700K minimum.

Do stay tune and follow this site for more updates. I am sure when the 2nd link Penang bridge open for public in September '13, there will be another round of price increase.

Club House & Swimming Pool on track

Recent check on the site found that the club house construction and swimming pool is on track.
Below are the contruction photo of the club house and swimming pool.

Club House and Swimming Pool of Taman Cendana Indah

Types of Bungalow in Taman Cendana Indah

Below are some of the types of bungalows found in Taman Cendana Indah.
I believe I may have miss out a few more.

ARDEN

BAGO

CACELA

DOVE



VC4 Bungalows obtained CCC (OC)

Congratulation to my fellow bungalow neighbours ! CCC was obtained back in early 2013. Not too sure how many of you have collected your keys. I have not seen any renovation work started yet.