PM: A comfy roof for all is govt priority
‘We have allocated RM6bil to help Malaysians own homes nationwide’
KUALA LUMPUR: Helping Malaysians own comfortable homes is among the Government’s top priorities, says the Prime Minister.
“The People’s Housing Project (PPR) is very important for the Government and we have allocated RM6bil for the project nationwide.
“To date, 83,759 units have been completed while another 25,000 units are on the way,” said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
Najib was speaking before handing over keys to new residents of PPR Sri Aman in Kepong and the launch of the Youth Transit Housing Kuala Lumpur.
He said the two projects were examples of how urban housing issues were being addressed by the Government, particularly for those in the B40 (bottom 40% household income group) and M40 (middle 40%) income brackets.
Among those present were Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Tan Sri Noh Omar and former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
Najib said 2,010 Youth Transit Housing units would be ready by 2020. These units would be similar to studio apartments and suitable for young working adults and young married couples, he said.
Najib said rentals would be 30% lower compared to market rate.
A 400sq ft, one-bedroom studio unit will be rented out at RM400 per month while 550sq ft two-bedroom units will be rented out for RM550 per month.
Najib said the unique feature of the project was a forced saving element for tenants.
“From the monthly rental paid, RM250 will be kept aside so that when the maximum tenancy period of five years ends, tenants would get back their savings of RM15,000,” he said.
This is aimed at helping the M40 groups, where households earn less than RM10,000 each, he said.
There would be 1,244 such units in Kepong and another 766 in Batu.
For Budget 2017, Najib announced that 10,000 Youth Transit Housing units would be built in major cities around the country.
Noh said the Youth Transit Housing Kuala Lumpur project was part of the Government’s efforts to help youths save money to buy a house after the five-year rental period.
Meanwhile, 1,000 out of the 1,600 units available for PPR Sri Aman would be allocated to Kuala Lumpur City Hall to rehouse squatters.
Another 200 units are sold under the rent-to-own scheme for RM35,000 to those who cannot afford conventional housing loans.
Noh said the remaining 400 units would be allocated for Youth Transit Housing.
This was in addition to the 2,010 units of the Youth Transit Housing Kuala Lumpur, which is still being built, said Noh.