Property Hunter Magazine September Issue 2014 | Page 62

/// East Malaysia Property News

Senior Lifestyle Given a Boost With Exclusive Retirement Resort
“Our project will not only provide social support,
but also have in place programs to encourage
interaction and activity participation.
Residents have the freedom of being as active or
inactive as they want to be.
“Cleaning and maintenance service is optional to
allow for dispensing with the need for domestic
helpers while the unique care and on-line medical
record keeping systems allow residents the peace
of mind that care is readily accessible if required,”
he added.

SARAWAK

Meanwhile, company chairman John Chin
observed that thanks to the miracle of modern
medicine, most people now live a relatively long
life and are experiencing that savings alone is not
enough to sustain them for the rest of their lives.

PROPERTY NEWS

Keep track of the latest property and real estate news
plus reviews in the property market in Sarawak

Malaysia’s ever-aging population and increasing
numbers give rise to one question: How will
retirees manage to live on their own when the
time comes?

How to Distinguish Between Good and Bad Property Agents
hiccups and you need their
help, they are nowhere to be
found.
Some agents have obviously
mastered the skills of
playing a vanishing act. They
disappear after pocketing
their commission, leaving you
alone to deal with difficult
tenants, late payments,
neighbors’ complaints, etc.
After selling a property
exclusively by a property
agent, another agent would
probably come and say,
“What? Only RMXXX,XXX? I
could have easily sold thirty
to fifty thousand higher for
you!”

someone whom you can
truly trust is beyond money.

There are many agents
and owners in this market
who will do anything to sell
properties at the top price.

But how can you tell the
good from the bad ones?

Be aware that these
transactions almost always
come with special conditions
— that is worth taking the
risk. But even without any
condition, to bag that extra
tens of thousands from
another offer.
The peace of mind from
engaging the service of

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We all want to find a good
property agent to represent
us when we are renting,
leasing, buying or selling our
properties.

Say ‘NO’ to a bad agent or
illegal agent
Bad property agents share
similar attributes. Like bad
boyfriends, they are a big
disappointment.
It is not uncommon to see
them glorifying their past
performance or exaggerating
their experience in the
industry. But when there are

www.PropertyHunter.com.my

Don’t pick an agent out of
convenience. Don’t use
anyone just because the
person is a relative or an
acquaintance. Don’t use
anyone without strong
recommendations from a
reliable source.

unreasonable offer just to
close the deal;
• Your agent always refers
you to contact someone
else when there is any
undesirable task; or
• Your agent presses you to
do something that you don’t
feel comfortable with.
Qualities of good agents
Always look out for the
following qualities in property
agents:
1. Passion: Possess a burning
fire of enthusiasm even after
many years in the industry.

Forget about agents who
don’t put your interests first.
It’s time you looked for a new
one when:

2. Experience/knowledge:
Know current market trends,
project details, market prices,
etc.

• Your agent knows no better
than you about most of your
property questions;

3. Negotiation skills: Act
calmly and patiently. Target
win-win for both parties.

• Your agent keeps marketing
to you specific projects
that don’t meet your
requirements;

4. Honesty: Never oversell.
Tell both pros and cons
and let you make your own
decision.

• Your agent asks you
to compromise on an

5. Trustworthiness: Build
trust by keeping their word.

Deliver what they promise.
6. Reputation: It is easy to
speak highly of themselves,
but it is far better if former
clients speak highly of them.
A long-term relationship
As an investor, it worth
spending the time to find
an agent that you can trust,
someone that you can work
with in the long run.
When you are building your
property portfolio, your
agent can be your assistant
or advisor to secure the
good deals. When you need
someone to manag e your
properties, your agent is
your indispensable partner
to ensure that things run
smoothly.
Good property agents
understand the fact that
building a long-term
relationship is far more
valuable than getting the
highest commission from
a single deal. It is also the
close partnership with clients
that helps them ride though
all the ups and downs in a
property cycle.

“Unlike the West, not only do we have to consider
the taboo of a retirement home, ours is not a
welfare system as the case with Australia or New
Zealand.

Such was the notion that gave way to Eden on
the Park, a pilot integrated retirement resort that
comes with luxury apartments, villas and agedcare facilities.

Sustainability of such facilities is a question.

Eden-on-the-Park is the first Integrated Senior
Lifestyle and Care Residence Resort facility in
Malaysia.
It is the leading Integrated Senior Lifestyle brand
developed on the 3R concept – Rest, Recreation
and Rejuvenation and built around the 5S
principles of Security, Safety, Support, Service and
Sustainability.
The Integrated Senior Lifestyle and Care
Residence Resort are based on proven models in
Australian and New Zealand.
The facilities are designed to be age-friendly with
amenities to encourage community living and
social interaction for the active and healthy while
also providing specialist nursing care for those
who need it in an adjacent property within the
same neighbourhood.
The resort is going to be built by Sarawak
Construction (1963) Sdn Bhd while aged-care
facilities will be provided by Optimum-Eden
Healthcare Sdn Bhd as a joint venture between
Australia’s Melbourne-based Optimum Aged Care
Systems and Eden on the Park.
Project managing director Victor Fong told The
Borneo Post that due to demographic changes
and increasing mobility, social norms have
changed in such a way that an increasing amount
of those above 50 years old experience the
‘empty nest’ syndrome.

“As more parents find themselves having to live
alone – devoid of the care and support of the
enlarged family – the need for such facilities for
the elderly has become more acute.
“We plan to revisit and re-address this cultural
norm by studying what is available in more
modern societies and adapting it to suit the
cultural practises and non-welfare regime of our
country,” said Fong.
Eden on the Park sits on a 3.24 hectare (eightacre) site about 10 minutes away from the
Kuching International Airport.
It is a two-minute drive from the Sarawak General
Hospital Specialist Centre and 10-minute walk
from the Sarawak Club Golf Resort.
The project boasts of 104 luxury apartments with
14 units of exclusive single storey villas for active
senior living.

“Eden on the Park’s unique financial architecture
helps to address this issue as it enables the
residents a carefree existence without the worry
of long term maintenance commitments,” Chin
highlighted.
“The physical design also allows for downsizing
and the flexibility of subletting part of the unit,
if necessary.”  The site itself has a four acre
reforested tropical rain forest with jogging tracks,
an aesthetic lake, hobbyist garden, outdoor art
studio and facilities designed to international
standards in compliance with the Malaysian
Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act.
“To add on to age-care facilities, Eden on the Park
is also setting up the Eden Training Academy to
train care givers for the community. The company
is mindful of the fact that there is a shortage of
qualified and trained care givers in the community
capable of looking after not just senior citizens
but also people, due to a result of either illness or
accidents, end up needing long term care,” said
Fong.
Eden-on-the-Park is the Entry Point Project 17
(EPP17) for retirement village category under the
National Key Economic Area (NKEA) Healthcare
Sector and is keen to explore possibilities with
potential partners to develop the senior lifestyle
and aged care industry locally and within the
Asian region.

A separate care residence is also available with
72 suite rooms with a capacity of 143 beds for
assisted living and acute care.
Fong further enthused that correct branding
is vital to alter existing mind-sets and kick-start
the industry locally, hence introducing the ‘3R’
concept of ‘Rest-Recreation-Rejuvenation’ for the
project.
“We believe that state-of-the-art security systems
and a design which is ‘aged’ friendly, easily
accessible and able to respond to emergency
situation is key.

We plan to revisit and readdress this cultural norm by
studying what is available in
more modern societies and
adapting it to suit the cultural
practises and non-welfare
regime of our country

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