Property Hunter Magazine September Issue 2014 | Page 58

/// East Malaysia Property News

Knight Frank Spread Wings Over in Sabah
exciting time for Knight Frank Malaysia. This
opportunity allows us to extend our boundaries
into new frontiers and take our property services
to new levels.”
We’re enthused and honoured to bring
international standards of the property industry
to Sabah. We believe the state will flourish
from our expertise in key service lines namely
Commercial Agency, Investment Sales, Retail
Consultancy & Leasing, Project Marketing,
Residential Agency – Sales & Leasing, Residential
& Commercial Property and Project Management,
Valuation and Research and Consultancy.”
Knight Frank Sabah will be helmed by Ginn Lai
as Associate Director and Stephenie Wong as
Resident Branch Manager. Lai has been working
in the real estate industry for 16 years with global
experience in project marketing, property and
facilities management, commercial and retail
agency, hospitality, and development feasibility
analyses.

Ginn Lai, Associate Director of Knight Frank, Sabah Branch

Knight Frank has launched its new office in Kota
Kinabalu, Sabah and enjoys the distinction of
being the first independent global property
consultancy to enter the East Malaysian real
estate market.
Mr Sarkunan Subramaniam, Managing Director,
Knight Frank Malaysia, says, “This is indeed an

Born and raised in Sabah, Stephenie has had over
6 years of experience in the property sector and
brings with her a solid background in valuations
and estate management. Stephenie has managed
various forms of valuations including hotels,
resorts, golf clubs, islands, arcade malls, offices
and specialises in land development valuation in
Sabah.
Dato’ Peter Yong who is on the board of many of
Sabah’s prominent companies and institutions,
and has vest experience in the local real estate

sector, will serve as advisor at the Knight Frank
Sabah office.
Sabah is quickly gaining regional interest from
major real estate developers and investors.
Performance across tourism, agriculture and
aquaculture, and oil and gas sectors have
been a catalyst for urban and rural property
development, both for domestic demand and the
increasing number of expatriate relocations in
Sabah.
Mr Eric Ooi, Executive Chairman of Knight
Frank Malaysia adds, “With the maturation of
the property market there is much potential
to be tapped in new territories. This is a great
opportunity for Knight Frank Malaysia to bring
professional services of international standards to
developers, tenants, owners and vendors in the
Sabah region.”
Knight Frank LLP is the leading independent
global property consultancy headquartered in
London. Together with its New York-based global
partner, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, they
operate from 335 offices, in 52 countries, across
six continents.
Headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Knight Frank
Malaysia has offices in Penang, Johor and Sabah.
The Company is registered with Board of Valuers,
Appraisers and Estate Agents and is licenced
to undertake property, valuations/consultancy,
estate agency and property management. The
Company is also on the panel of all leading banks
and financial institutions.

Land Prices in Kota Kinabalu Skyrocket With 30,000 Sqft Sold for RM20 Million
A 30,000 sqft piece of land next to the Kota Kinabalu
Chinese Chamber of Commerce building has
reportedly been sold for an astronomical figure of
RM20million. This would account for a land cost of
nearly RM700 per square feet, an almost unheard of
figure and definitely the highest sale record achieved
in Kota Kinabalu so far.
According to sources, a well-known businessman
is planning to build a 20-floor serviced apartment
or SOHO (Small Office Home Office). The land in
question is currently being used as an open-air
private car park. It originally belonged to a West
Malaysian company that has recently agreed to on
a deal to sell the land to a Chinese Datuk who plans
to sell the service apartments or SOHO at RM1,000
per sq ft.
Some people are already aware of this and are
planning to invest in the project once it is launched.
The businessman reckons that the service apartment
and SOHO will receive good response especially as it
will be the first SOHO in KK CBD. Currently, there are
a few SOHO projects under construction.

Subject land in Kampung Air, Kota Kinabalu

58

www.PropertyHunter.com.my

The Chinese Datuk businessman is well-known for
his charity work and support of several edu cation
and cultural activities.

www.PropertyHunter.com.my

59