Upholding excellence in the property industry
FIABCI, the French acronym for “Federation Internationale des Administrateurs de BienConselis Immobiliers” which translates as International Real Estate Federation, is a worldwide business network whose membership is open to all professionals involved in the property industry.
Founded in 1951 and headquartered in Paris, the organisation spans five continents with a presence in 70 countries and a membership of over 71 national associations.
It provides access and opportunities for real estate professionals and property owners to share information and contacts on the local, national and international levels.
The FIABCI international community of experts comprises 40 different professions that include architects, brokers, developer associations, academicians, public authorities, investors, financial institutions and business service providers.
FIABCI was accorded the Special Consultative Status at the UN-Habitat, a United Nations programme working towards a better urban future by promoting socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all.
It is also a member of the International Ethnics Standards Coalition.
Some of the world-class events that FIABCI organises are iReal Young Professionals’ Camp, World Property and Urban Forum, MIPIM Cannes, MIPIM UK, PropTech and MAPIC.
On the local front is FIABCI Malaysia, founded by the late Datuk Yaakob Hitam in 1975 to foster goodwill and understanding with international organisations and promote progress in developments through better systems.
It leads the Malaysian property industry by instilling exceptional standards and foster nation building through development that secures quality living for all Malaysians.
FIABCI Malaysia has eight principal members — Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA), Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM), Real Estate & Housing Developers’ Association (REHDA), Sabah Housing and Real Estate Developers Association (SHAREDA), Malaysian Shopping Malls Association (PPKM), The Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM), Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents and Property Consultants in the Private Sector Malaysia (PEPS), and Sarawak Housing & Real Estate Developer’s Association (SHEDA).
The organisation has had 15 previous presidents in its 43 years of establishment. Taking over the helm as the 16th president this year is Sr Michael Geh.
Man with a mission
Geh started his foray into the property industry more than 25 years ago after completing his Bachelor of Business, where he majored in valuation and land economics, at Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia.
A Malaysian Registered Valuer and Real Estate Agent and a Chartered Valuation Surveyor, his principal business activities include independent assets, plant and machinery valuations, market feasibility studies and real estate consultancy and transactions.
Professionally, he is a member of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors UK and The Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia. Additionally, he has a Certification in Business Valuation Practice ICVS and is a member of IACVA the International Association of Consultants, Valuators And Analyst (Canada).
Today, he is a senior partner of Raine & Horne International Zaki & Partners Sdn Bhd.
Geh has extensive regional and international interaction with FIABCI, over 15 years to be exact, having been FIABCI Malaysia’s vice-president and international board member prior to this.
He had also been awarded FIABCI’s prestigious International Real Estate Consultant Designation, FIREC.
“My experiences with FIABCI all these years would provide me with the professionalism needed to lead FIABCI Malaysia,” he said, adding that taking over such an important role is no easy task.
His vision as the new president of FIABCI Malaysia is to build further on the organisation’s national and international foundation ties with its principal members and international chapters.
“I want to bring the organisation to the next level by making it current, relevant and future-proof for the industry. FIABCI is an international real estate federation so we will maximise our international affiliations to learn and understand the current property environment in the region.
“These international links and their expertise will prove beneficial in the development of the industry within our own shores,” he elaborated.
Geh wants to connect local and international members, and share international best practices and experiences between the various chapters in the organisation.
“My intention is to bring FIABCI Malaysia together with FIABCI’s regional family, namely strong chapters like Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, India and Australia, as well as other FIABCI global chapters.”
Property trend
Where the property industry is concerned, no one is as well versed about it as Geh, who constantly has his ears on the ground and his eyes on the numbers.
He believed that the property market in Malaysia has reached a mature stage where supply is plentiful. However domestic demand for residential property is not strong enough to match the supply.
“There is only strong demand in urban Malaysia with the hotspots of development mostly in urban districts like Klang Valley, Penang, Johor Bahru, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and Kuantan.”
The main issue lies in the affordability of these properties with studies showing that a majority of Malaysians can only afford houses that are priced below RM500,000.
“This has proven to be a major challenge to the industry. The fact that most of the properties are out of the reach of Malaysians meant only one thing, the housing sector has becomes sluggish.
“I believe that the sluggishness will continue for the rest of this year and into next year. This has spurred developers to come up with attractive deals and looking at the international market to boost sales,” he said.
Geh added that there are a lot of excellent property projects in Malaysia that have caught international attention, with the foreign buyers mostly coming from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Korea, United Kingdom and Europe.
“There are two types of buyers’ profile — parents who have sent their children here to study and those opting to have their retirement homes here.
“Recent developments in medical insurance in Korea and Japan also meant that the Koreans and Japanese can retire here and still seek medical care here using their insurance coverage.”
International buyers prefer properties at urban locations, cities, seaside and those in close proximity to international airports, mainly in the Klang Valley, Penang, Kota Kinabalu, Johor and Iskandar in Johor Bahru.
To capture the international market, he said developers should be more demanddriven. Currently, local developers have formed partnerships with their international counterparts and real estate agents in order to better understand the demands of potential clients.
Waves of Disruption
Geh foresees four Waves of Disruption hitting the Malaysian property industry in the near future.
“The first wave is the residential sector with changes brought about in tandem with the growth of Airbnb. Online short-term lodging services have already created massive changes to the sector besides broadly challenging the hospitality industry.”
He said the second wave is the office category in the form of co-working and shared office spaces such as WeWork coming in strong to redefine the sector.
The third wave, he predicted, will hit the industrial property sector where spaces are maximised through warehouse space sharing and manufacturing facility sharing.
“The fourth wave will be where online trading portals such as alibaba.com encroaching into actual shopping malls. I can foresee these sites purchasing and occupying their own malls in Malaysia, especially in places like Klang Valley and other major cities.
“These portals will transform the whole mall landscape by operating the malls on the own and bringing in their own vendors. The malls will be the main viewing and collection centres for online shoppers.”
He said the waves of disruption were inevitable and would strongly challenge the property and real estate industry, which would have no choice but to adapt in order to survive.
“All stakeholders must reinvent themselves and learn how to ride out these waves by leveraging and using it to their advantage. A global mindset is an essential professional trait towards achieving this.
“Join international organisations such as FIABCI which inculcates global mindsets and best practices to get that extra edge in dealing with the future.
“FIABCI would help to expose them to the global stage and map out new opportunities to stay relevant and drive competitive advantages,” he concluded.