Budget 2019 set to facilitate first-time homebuyers — Voon

KUCHING: Parti Keadilan Rakyat ( PKR) Women national vicechairperson Voon Shiak Ni has described the National Budget 2019 as ‘a thoughtful budget’ because it provides more avenues to help the people own their first houses.

According to her, it underlines home ownership as many men’s first wish as they step into society.

“Everyone works hard to earn a living and to own a home. Over the past five to 10 years, it has been getting more and more difficult for the young people to buy houses as they’re too expensive.

“Recently with the tightened regulations in securing bank loans, owning a house has become an impossibility for the young people aged between 30 to 35 – the prime age range to start a family,” she said in her comments about the national budget, tabled by Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng in Parliament yesterday.

Voon was glad to see that efforts and thoughts had been put in Pakatan Harapan ( PH) budget to open up more avenues and financial assistance to enable more people own their first homes.

The PH budget is allocating RM668 million for the People’s Housing Programme (PPR) to help those from the lower-income group own housing units.

Bank Negara Malaysia has allocated RM1 billion to fund some housing loans for those earning not more than RM2,300 per month to buy a house priced up to RM150,000.

PH budget also approved alternative source of financing via ‘property crowd-funding’ as a way to assist first-time homebuyers acquire their first housing unit, she said.

The buyer would purchase the house with an upfront amount of 20 per cent from the price of the property – the remaining 80 per cent would be fulfilled via potential investors, who would fund the acquisition in exchange for potential appreciation in value of the property over a period of time.

The reduction and waiving of stamp duty for the first RM300,000 for first-time homebuyers for units priced between RM300,000 and RM500,000, and also the waiving of stamp duty for unsold properties priced below RM1 million, are additional measures to help to reduce the costs of purchasing a house, added Voon.

“In addition, the PH government has also relaxed the period for loan repayments by civil servants for another five years. It is good that some new measures are introduced by the new PH government to open up more avenues for the people to seek financial assistance to own their first homes and for negotiations to be done with the parties concerned — for example, for the developers to reduce the price of houses by at least 10 per cent, starting next year.”

Additionally, Voon was glad to see to see that more funds would be channelled to the education sector, with the focus given on upgrading schools and repair works on dilapidated schools – also one of the areas that the PH government is expected to address.

“I would say that the PH budget is a thoughtful budget and a peoplecentric one. It is a budget crafted after listening carefully to (those on) the ground and being acted upon,” said Voon, who is also the federal Ministry of Housing and Local Government’s special officer for Sarawak.