Johor’s property demand soaring

The Johor-Sin­ga­pore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) has sparked a surge in property demand in Johor, says state executive councillor Datuk Mohd Jafni Md Shukor (pic).

The housing and local gov­ern­ment committee chairman said more than 3,000 overhang pro­perties were snapped up in the past year alone.

“In the first quarter of last year, we had about 13,000 overhang properties, mostly serviced apartments priced at RM500,000 and above.

“However, as of the first quarter of this year, the number has dropped to only about 10,000, indi­cating a significant spike in sales,” he said in an interview.

Mohd Jafni said the rising demand for properties began soon after talks of the special ­economic zone started circulating among investors.

“The rising demand did not just start when the special economic zone was launched. It began when Malaysia and Singapore started hinting at the initiative.

“It has helped to boost investor confidence in Johor, encouraging them to buy more properties for their future plans,” he said.

Mohd Jafni added that landed properties are also being snapped up quickly, with only about 3% of them remaining unsold at the moment.

“Demand for landed properties, including those under RM500,000, has always been high, but the JS-SEZ has boosted it further,” he said.

He said while the rising property sales are a good sign, they also pose a new challenge for the state and federal governments.

“The encouraging demand has prompted some developers, especially those in Johor Baru and Iskandar Puteri, to develop more high-rise properties.

“This poses a new challenge as we need to ensure that there are ample clinics, schools and other public facilities to cater to the needs of the people.

“We are looking at strategic ways to address the issue,” Mohd Jafni said.