Executive Summary skandar Malaysia has come a long way since its inception in 2006 and is poised for greater heights. The region has attracted RM111.4 billion of committed investments as of the fi rst quarter of 2013 with 40% of the investments already realised. The development has also reached its tipping point with the completion of catalyst projects that will drive economic and population growth. In addition, the rapid transit link between Singapore and Johor due to be completed by 2018 will boost connectivity between the two countries. Property developers and investors are rushing in to acquire landbank and properties at new benchmark prices. The entry of heavyweight foreign investors such as Temasek, Ascendas, CapitaLand, China’s Country Garden and Australia’s Walker Corp is a testament of Iskandar Malaysia’s booming prospects. Political risk has since been removed with the ruling coalition maintaining control of both the federal and Johor state governments in the recent general election. Warming bilateral ties between the Malaysia and Singapore governments is expected to underpin the success of Iskandar Malaysia, which is seen as the hinterland for Singapore, not unlike the Shenzhen-Hong Kong model. Despite concerns that the authorities may impose more restrictions on foreigners buying properties in Johor, we believe the deep discounts on Johor properties are too attractive to be ignored. Furthermore, given Singapore’s scarce land supply and rising land prices, there is a strong business case for lower-end operations to be relocated to Johor, where large contiguous parcels of land are still available on the cheap and with ready infrastructure. Iskandar Malaysia may still lack a critical mass at this point, but the strong pipeline of projects by master developers such as UEM Land, Iskandar Waterfront and Iskandar Investment Berhad will likely help the special economic zone achieve its vision to be a thriving, sustainable metropolis and a choice location to live, work and play.
Posted on: Mon, 09 Dec 2013 13:09:35 +0000
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