In an effort to improve the accessibility while stimulating the affordable housing development in Penang, the state government has introduced several new measures to ease the current market situation.
Increase in household income ceiling
With the hope that more applicants will be able to obtain bank loans, the household income ceiling for the application of affordable housing has been revised as below:
New category of affordable housing
Taking into consideration those who earned RM6,000.00, the state government has also introduced a new category of affordable housing, namely units priced at RM150,000.00. These units are also sized at a minimum of 750 sq.ft., but without finishing (unlike the RM200,000.00 units).
Widen the pool of eligible buyers
In order to stimulate the sale of affordable housing units so that it is viable to be executed with at least 60% take up rate, it has been decided to enlarge the pool of eligible buyers to include those who already own a property. But the applicants must met the following criteria:
- The property that he/she currently owned must not exceed the price of the affordable housing unit intended to be purchased.
- The property currently owned has to be purchased after 2008.
30% of the affordable housing may be sold to the open market
In order to stimulate the development of affordable housing, it has also been decided that 30% of the units in any particular 100% affordable housing project may be sold to the open market, with the following condition:
- The units are to be sold at 10% above the controlled price in South West, SPU, SPT and SPS districts.
- The units are to be sold at 20% above the controlled price in North East district.
- The purchaser has to be a registered voter in Penang
- The purchaser can only purchase one such affordable housing unit
- The said unit cannot be sold within 5 years from the date of vacant possession.
The developers for this new open market category will have to contribute to the Penang State Government the top up in price, not in cash but in kind, namely in actual affordable housing units in the said particular project, which will enable the State government to have its own affordable housing stock, which can be allocated to those who are on their list.
* Click here for a complete list of affordable housing in Penang *