Ignore millennials at own peril, developers told

KUALA LUMPUR: Trends show millennials who are just starting their careers are opting for townships on the outskirts of big cities due to the affordability.

Savills head of world research, Yolande Barnes, said the new township must be well-connected to the big city, possess sufficient amenities and be equipped with reliable infrastructure for daily commuting.

“We see more neighbourhoods opening up on the outskirt of big cities. This movement is a result of millennials searching for housing,” she said.

She said the dispersal was happening due to the millennials’ inability to compete in major cities’ housing market, prompting them to live in new townships.

Savills Southeast Asia chief executive officer Christopher Marriott said millennials preferred to live in an affordable and “liveable” community.

“They can’t live in the city centre due to the high cost of living. They will thus live in areas that have access to transport, retail and food and beverages but in a smaller community,” he said, adding that high speed Internet access was also important.

Marriott said developers should meet everybody’s distinctive lifestyle across different segments of the community.

“Developers have to re-think how each segment of the population wants to live. Millennials are not only the occupiers or buyers but an entire segment.”

Savills Malaysia executive chairman Datuk Christopher Boyd said the new township development for millennials should be acknowledged, citing that it was an important component for a neighbourhood.

“However, the community must be linked by public transport. It should be a place for people to congregate,” he said.

Axis REIT Managers Bhd head of investment Siva Shanker said developers needed to have a bigger spread of demographic segments to fill their townships.

“They need other segments to occupy their property projects, as millennials may buy only a fraction of the township,” he said.