Taman Damai Harmoni, a small landed housing development by General Supreme Sdn. Bhd. (a subsidiary of Airmas Group) in Bukit Mertajam. Strategically located near Jalan Betek, diagonally opposite Harmoni Residensi gated and guarded community by the same company. With direct access to the ever-bustling Jalan Song Ban Kheng, an abundance of essential amenities are easily accessible within a mere minutes’ drive, which includes public schools, banks, markets, popular eateries and others.

This development comprises 26 units of 2-storey terrace and 4 units of bungalow houses.

The project is in planning stage, more details to be available upon official launch.

Project Name: Taman Damai Harmoni
Location : Bukit Mertajam
Property Type : Residential
Total Units: 26 (terrace), 4 (bungalow)
Built-up Size: 1,655 sq.ft. (terrace), 2,830 sq.ft. (bungalow)
Land Tenure : Freehold
Indicative Price : RM1,800,000 (bungalow), RM928,000 (terrace)
Developer: General Supreme Sdn. Bhd.

DISCLAIMER: This article is solely based on research done using publicly available data. This is not an advertisement. Any claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a project or service should be verified with the developer, provider, or party in question.

The Real Estate And Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda) expressed concern over the government’s plan to introduce a 4% flat rate for the stamp duty on memorandum of transfers (MOT) on purchases by foreign individuals and companies in Budget 2024, presented by Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Friday.

In the press statement, Rehda president Datuk NK Tong said the move may discourage homeownership and Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) application for those looking to migrate to Malaysia.

Nonetheless, Tong welcomes the announcement to loosen requirements for the MM2H programme. He said: “We look forward to receiving more information about these requirements, and as one of the stakeholders, Rehda hopes to be included in engagements and discussions pertaining to MM2H.”
Meanwhile, he is wary of the decision to increase the service tax to 8% from 6% on selected industries and sectors, explaining that as a player of an industry that is still finding its post-Covid footing and struggling with increased development costs, he fears that this will directly or indirectly impact the livelihood and income of many stakeholders across multiple industries.

Commenting on the overall Budget 2024, Tong said that the concept of Madani continues to take centre stage in the development of the nation, which is reflected in the latest budget.

“Rehda continues to support the government’s Madani concept, as we have done for the past four decades, through cross-subsidising affordable housing for state governments in one form or another. For the housing industry, the various allocations for the B40 are much needed, [and] will allow more Malaysians to own homes, including RM546 million towards Program Perumahan Rakyat in Johor; RM358 million towards the development of 3,500 residential units under 14 Program Rumah Mesra Rakyat; and RM460 million towards the extremely underprivileged in rural areas to build or repair their homes,” he noted.

He added that the increase in the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme of up to RM10 billion to benefit 40,000 borrowers is also much-welcomed news, which Rehda hopes will help increase homeownership amongst gig economy workers and those without a monthly income statement.

On the other hand, the association views with cautious optimism the announcement to reduce the majority consent for en-bloc sale from 100% to a level consistent with Singapore’s, which stands at 80% to 90%.

“This will better reflect the equity and voice of the people living in strata-titled properties. As Rehda and other stakeholders await more details on the announcement, we believe that should this come into fruition, it will lead towards a reformed urban regeneration landscape that will finally see Malaysia on par with other global nations in terms of urban sustainability,” he noted.

Source: TheEdgeMalaysia.com

Micron Malaysia yesterday has officially announced the opening of its second state-of-the-art smart manufacturing facility in Batu Kawan Industrial Park (BKIP).

It is located on the same site as its first plant in BKIP.

Micron Malaysia vice-president and country manager Amarjit Singh Sandhu said this expansion enables Micron Malaysia to boost production output and further strengthen its assembly and test capabilities.

“This expansion also reflects our unwavering dedication to advancing semiconductor development and manufacturing excellence.

“As a result, this will allow us to supply leading-edge NAND (flash memory), PCDRAM (phase-change random access memory) and solid-state drive (SSD) modules to meet the growing demand for transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence and autonomous or electric vehicles.

“The official opening of our new manufacturing facility in Batu Kawan also strengthens Micron’s global manufacturing footprint, enabling us to deliver quality products to our customers on time, with reduced cycle time and at scale,” Amarjit said in his speech before Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow officiated the new facility today.

The opening ceremony also coincides with Micron’s 45th anniversary this year.

Also present were InvestPenang chief executive officer Datuk Loo Lee Lian, Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) (investment development) deputy chief executive officer Lim Bee Vian and Micron Memory Malaysia director Ramamoorthy Ganapathy Iyer.

Amarjit said Micron previously invested US$1 billion on its facility in Penang and would commit an additional billion, including construction and full equipping of this new facility over the next few years. This expansion aims to increase the factory space to a total of 1.5 million sq ft.

He added that the operations for this new facility will also support Micron’s sustainability aspirations to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, and zero hazardous waste to landfills by 2030.

Chow said this latest smart manufacturing facility is an expansion of Micron’s site in Batu Kawan reflecting Micron’s confidence in the capability of the state ecosystem to bolster the development of leading-edge technologies.

“Hence, this encourages us to further preserve and strengthen Penang’s semiconductor leadership.

“As Micron marks its 45th anniversary this year, I am pleased to note that we are also celebrating five years of Micron’s presence here in Penang.

“This expansion also underscores Penang’s appeal as a hub for cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing.

“As we advance in this digital era, where technology plays a central role in economic growth, we eagerly anticipate continued collaboration with industry leaders such as Micron to promote innovation, sustainability, and collective prosperity,” he said.

Chow also thanked Mida and InvestPenang for their concerted efforts in enabling strategic investments that accelerate national competitiveness, attract investments, and create jobs of the future.

He also extended his appreciation to other state agencies for their role in ensuring business continuity and seamless operations in Penang.

Chow also congratulated Micron on this remarkable achievement and looked forward to a continued partnership with the company as the state strives to be an inspiration for the nation, fostering innovation, sustainability, and shared prosperity.

Source: Buletin Mutiara

In the newly announced Budget 2024 Madani, themed “Madani Economy: Empowering the People” the government has allocated a total of RM393.8 billion, reflecting a slight increase from the previous budget of RM388.1 billion set in February 2023.

The government looks committed to driving the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP) mission, earmarking up to 10% of the total NIMP investment (RM95 billion) for this purpose, starting with an initial fund of RM200 million in 2024.

Sick and abandoned projects 

This year, the government has mobilised a special task force under the Local Government Development Ministry (KPKT) to solve the problem of late, sick and abandoned private housing projects. As of August, 256 sick housing projects comprising 28,000 housing units have been restored, involving a gross development value of RM23.37 billion.

On top of that, a “special guarantee fund” amounting to RM1 billion is allocated to incentivise reputable developers to revive selected abandoned projects.

Public housing 

1) RM2.47 billion has been allocated for public housing projects (PPRs) in 2024, out of which RM546 million is allocated to sustain 36 PPRs, including a new project in Kluang, Johor. There are 15 more PPRs targeted for completion in the coming year, benefiting 5,100 residents.

2) RM385 million is allocated for the construction of 14 affordable housing projects (Program Rumah Mesra Rakyat), involving 3,500 housing units.

3) RM460 million is allocated to aid 65,000 underprivileged individuals for building new or repairing worn-out house units in rural areas

4) RM100 million is allocated to maintain low- and medium-cost stratified public and private housing nationwide. This will cover repair works on water tanks, roofs, wiring systems and security such as installation of CCTV.

5) RM100 million is allocated to upgrading the infrastructure and community facilities in Chinese New Villages.

6) RM2.4 billion is earmarked to construct, improve and maintain the housing facilities for civil servants, teachers, hospitals, and the police, army and fire brigade forces under the The Special Task Force on Agency Reform (STAR).

7) Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) is set to manage Pelaburan Hartanah Bhd, supported by the government’s strategic land injection for housing projects in Kuala Lumpur.

Senior living care facilities 

Private nursing homes approved by the Ministry of Health will receive an industrial building allowance equivalent to 10% of the total construction expenses for either building new facilities or making modifications and improvements.

Stamp duties on property transactions 

1) Currently, the stamp duty for transfer of properties between parents and children, and grandparents and grandchildren, is fully exempted for the first RM1 million and given a 50% discount (subject to an valorem duty rate) for the balance above RM1 million.

In 2024, a fixed stamp duty fee of RM10 will be introduced to replace the previous variable rate for real estate transfer documents. This change will apply to cases where beneficiaries are relinquishing their rights to eligible beneficiaries in accordance with a will, Faraid, or the Distribution Act 1958.

2) As a move in controlling property price, the government plans to impose a 4% flat rate stamp duty on memorandum of transfers on purchases by foreign individuals and companies except for permanent residents.

Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme 

In 2023, the scheme received RM5 billion in funding to assist up to 20,000 borrowers with no fixed income from the gig economy in obtaining loans.

Come 2024, an allocation of RM10 billion will be provided to expand the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme, benefiting 40,000 borrowers in this category.

En-bloc sale 

To facilitate the redevelopment of strata schemes, the residents’ approval threshold for en-bloc sales will be reduced from 100% to a level consistent with international practices, as seen in Singapore. This change aims to promote urban renewal and encourage the redevelopment of old buildings in cities.

Easing conditions of MM2H 

The government has decided to ease the current conditions for Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) applications to boost the arrival of foreign tourists and investors into Malaysia.

Source: EdgeProp.my

About Lucerne Residences

The final phase of residential development by Ideal Property Group at Ideal Vision Park in Bayan Lepas. It is just a short drive to Penang International Airport, 10 minutes walking distance to Straits International School. The project will see two blocks of 36-storey skyscrapers featuring a European living concept. It offers 480 residential units with a 5-storey parking podium.

Find out more about Lucerne Residences