house buyers and licensed housing
developers even though the SPA is yet
to be signed but the claims must be
filed within the time frames provided
under section 16N of the Housing
Development (Control & Licensing) Act
1966 (the HDA). Check out the link:
www.kpkt.gov.my TTPR.
BNM to Remain Vigilant on Property Market
be sustained, it said. “This will
contribute towards managing
household leverage, especially
among the more vulnerable
groups.”
In addition, BNM will also keep
a close watch on external
borrowings and the debt level
of Malaysia’s business sector
so that the banking system
buffers will be able to withstand
potential losses from companies
prone to financial stress.
Can the developer forfeit such
payment?
Where booking fee or deposit or any
other payment is collected by the
developer before the SPA is signed, the
house buyer would normally have been
asked to sign a document indicating the
house/apartment/condominium he/
she is interested and agreeing to sign
the SPA within a certain time frame,
say 7 or 10 days or upon notice from
the developer. This document may be
in the form of an option letter, letter of
offer, sales proforma, booking form or
another document by whatever name
the developer chooses to call it, all
in an attempt to disguise a collection
prohibited by law.
The amount varies and in some cases it
is as much as 2% of the purchase price
RM10,000 for a RM500,000 house.
When the house buyer decides to
withdraw from the intended purchase,
the developer refuses to refund the
deposit, or was it booking fee, or was
it …?
Chang Kim Loong is the honorary
secretary-general of the National
House Buyers Association: www.hba.
org.my, a non-profit, non-governmental
organisation manned by volunteers. He
is also a NGO councillor at the Subang
Jaya Municipality Council.
In order to deter speculative
activities, mortgage lenders for
all types of properties will be
required to implement thorough
valuation practices, according to
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).
The central bank will also
monitor the commercial
property segment, given a
looming supply glut in the office
market, as well as the strong
demand and rising prices for
retail shops..
“As to the effects of the
measures implemented to
ensure a sustainable property
market, it continues to gain
traction and this should mitigate
material adverse implications
on financial institutions from
exposure to the sector,” BNM
noted in its Financial Stability and
Payment Systems Report.
Non-bank financial institutions
are also required to continuously
enhance their lending practices,
while the stringent lending
standards of banks should
The central bank will also
evaluate changes in lender’s
risk appetite and business
strategies in order to ensure
that such changes are aligned
with BNM