SUNWAY SEES GOOD FOREIGN TAKE-UP
Healthy influx of investors from China and Thailand, says general manager
SUNWAY Onsen Suites, a centrally-located serviced apartment development by Sunway Group in Ipoh, is expecting higher take-up by China, Thailand and Singapore investors.
Sunway City Ipoh general manager Wong Wan Hooi said based on track record of previous developments in the city, the foreign take-up rate was slightly above five per cent, but it was expected to be higher for Sunway Onsen Suites.
“We see a healthy influx of investors from China, Thailand and other countries. We see the foreign take-up rate growing healthily,” he said.
Wong said Perak had allowed some relaxation on foreigners’ purchase guidelines.
“While ‘Malaysia My Second Home’ is still ongoing, the government has allowed certain threshold for foreigners to buy local properties, whereby a 10 per cent levy is to be paid to the state government, which, I believe, is a smart move,” he said.
Conceptualised as the first serviced suite in Asia that integrates
natural hot springs within its development, Sunway Onsen Suites comprises three tower blocks, with gross development value (GDV) exceeding RM400 million.
The first tower, comprising 252 serviced suites, will be launched in the first quarter, with completion slated three years after the launch.
The serviced suites consist of studio, two-bedroom and threebedroom variations, ranging from 592 to 1,184 sq ft. There are also six units of luxurious Onsen Villas, which start at 2,712 sq ft. The starting price is RM391,000.
The highlight of the development is a courtyard surrounded by facilities, including a natural hotspring pool, or “onsen”, infinity swimming pool, multipurpose hall, gymnasium, sauna rooms and a podium garden.
The development will have a dedicated entrance for residents and a grand lobby with a green natural streetscape.
Wong said Sunway Onsen Suites would be integrated within the Sunway City Ipoh township, located on a 12.5ha site that includes the proposed Lost World Mall, a medical centre, assisted living homes for the aged and an institution of higher learning.
These developments will be part of Sunway’s targeted investment of RM4 billion in Perak in the next 15 to 20 years, which will support the state’s socio-economic growth.
“We have completed about 70 per cent of the (RM542.7ha) development and have invested RM700 million, to-date. To complement the current facilities we have 1,400 units of residences, Sunway College Ipoh, a 174-room Lost World of Tambun Hotel and Lost World of Tambun theme park in Sunway City Ipoh.
Wong said in tandem with Ipoh’s rising reputation as an international tourism destination and one of the best places to retire in the world, 7.6 million domestic tourists visited Perak last year, according to the Statistics Department. It is also one of the states with the highest tourist arrivals in Malaysia.
It recorded an increase in the arrivals of day-trip visitors from 9.58 million to 12.47 million in 2017, compared with the year before.