For Immediate Release

• 44% of survey respondents were looking to purchase a property before the announcement of MCO.
• Property purchasing interest was not adversely affected by the MCO as the number of home seekers looking to buy properties after the announcement of the MCO increased slightly to 45%.
• 90% of property seeking respondents named easy entry options such as zero down payment, developer discounts and subsidized legal costs as the top factors that will ease their purchase decision.

KUALA LUMPUR, 14th July 2020 — iProperty.com.my, Malaysia’s No. 1 property portal, has announced the results of its latest consumer survey. The survey aims to understand consumers in Malaysia on their property seeking journey during the Movement Control Order (MCO) period and how it has affected them. The survey also analyses the purchasing desire of homebuyers before, during and after MCO. The survey was conducted between 11th May – 1st June 2020.

44% of survey respondents were looking to purchase a property before the announcement of MCO

The property portal reveals that 44% of the survey respondents are looking to purchase a property before the announcement of the Movement Control Order (MCO). Out of these property seekers, 28% stopped actively looking after the MCO was announced on 16th March 2020. However, more than one third of the property seekers who stopped actively searching (38%) stated that they are either waiting for prices to drop or are still open to good property deals.

The top two factors which influence a property seeker when evaluating an online listing is validation of a property’s valuation (pricing trends for similar properties) and listing content which gives a very clear understanding of the property’s space and layout.

Property seeking interest was not adversely affected by the MCO as the number of home seekers looking to buy properties after the announcement of the MCO increased to 45%

According to the survey results, in spite of the unprecedented situation caused by COVID-19, property seeking trends among Malaysians remained encouraging. Interestingly, the survey results reveal that 24% of the respondents who were not looking to buy a property before the MCO are now looking to purchase after the MCO announcement. A majority of these new entrants are either looking at current market conditions as an opportunity to purchase their first homes; to upgrade their existing homes or to invest in property, while the minority mentioned that they are downsizing or moving to more convenient locations.

With these new entrants the percentage of respondents who are actively looking for a property increased to 45% post MCO announcement. On top of this, another 10% of respondents, who are not actively looking for a property post MCO, are open to the right property deals. Taking into account this group, the percentage of respondents who are interested to purchase a property after the MCO announcement tops 55%.

Nevertheless, 92% of the people who are actively seeking for a property state that they have a lower readiness to transact (49% are waiting for prices to drop while 43% are still looking but more cautious about making any financial commitments).

90% of property seeking respondents named easy entry options as the top factor that will ease their transaction decision

The survey further reveals that 90% of respondents answered that the factors which will help ease their transaction decisions are easy entry options such as zero down payment, developer discounts and subsidized legal costs. In addition to easy entry points, the survey also reveals that 81% of respondents are looking for trustworthy and reliable developers/ agents.

Also, 89% of property seekers are receptive to the idea of virtual viewings. 75% state that it will help them decide whether or not to view a property in person while the remaining 14% says it is enough for them to decide whether to buy/rent a property.

On the same note, 83% of all respondents want to get updates on good property deals (new properties on promotion, or sub sale properties at good prices), while 54% of respondents are interested in market insights and data, to help them better understand the current state of the property market.

This positive consumer survey highlights the timeliness of the reintroduction of the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC) under the government’s recent Economic Recovery Plan (PENJANA) package. The HOC initiative which features significant stamp duty holidays would help alleviate the financial burden of aspiring home buyers.

Commenting on the consumer survey, Wong Siew Lai, General Manager of Marketing and Communications, iProperty.com.my said, “The findings from this consumer survey revealed something very encouraging on Malaysian property seekers purchasing desires despite the unprecedented situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, volume of demand did not change significantly and people are still looking for properties. Property seekers are spending more time researching and evaluating their property options online. The market may be much more receptive to property deals and solutions that help them discover those deals, as well as online content that helps them better understand the current market conditions. If they discover the right deal, many opportunistic property seekers are willing to invest even beyond their original budgets.”

FOOTNOTES:

1) The survey was conducted by iProperty.com.my between 11 May – 1 June 2020 

2) Respondent generation groups:

• Gen Z, under 1% of respondents
• Gen Y, 67% of respondents
• Gen X, 32% of respondents

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About REA Group & iProperty.com.my

REA Group in Asia operates digital real estate sites, experiences and events which deliver the most comprehensive set of related property services and project marketing across South East Asia, including Malaysia (iProperty.com.my), and Thailand (thinkofliving.com and Prakard), and the Greater China Region, including Mainland China (myfun.com) and Hong Kong (squarefoot.com.hk and SMARTExpo).

Headquartered in Australia, REA Group is a multinational digital advertising company specialising in property.  Listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX:REA) we operate Australia’s leading residential, commercial and share property websites realestate.com.au, realcommercial.com.au and flatmates.com.au. REA Group is also a substantial partner in 99 Group which operates the 99.co and iProperty.com.sg businesses in Singapore and rumah123.com in Indonesia. REA Group also has significant shareholdings in Move, Inc through realtor.com in North America and Elara Technologies through proptiger.com, maakan.com and housing.com in India.

iProperty.com.my is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and employs over 200 employees. With more than 3 million visits each month, iProperty.com.my is the market-leading property portal, offering a search experience in both English and Bahasa Malaysia. iProperty.com.my also provides consumer solutions such as LoanCare – a home loan eligibility indicator, News & Lifestyle channel – content to enhance consumers’ property journey, events – to connect property seekers with agents and developers offline, and much more.

For news related to REA Group and iProperty.com.my, visit www.iproperty.com.my/newsroom and discover residential property demand and trends, tech and product updates and more.