KUCHING: The Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (Sheda) Kuching Branch hopes that one of the measures in the state’s upcoming post pandemic recovery plan would include assistance in end-financing for purchasers from Sarawakian financial institutions, such as incentives by the state government to help first time home buyers.
According to Sheda Kuching Branch chairman Datuk Sim Kiang Chiok, the tripartite relationship of the purchaser, developer and the bank are important to ensure that housing demand can be met.
“It has been a year since our first lockdown under the Movement Control Order (MCO) 1.0 and in my opinion, the property sector is being affected by the various lockdowns.
“During MCO1.0, we were not able to operate, our showrooms, construction sites, law firms, land and survey office were closed, and banks were partially operating.
“No sales could be carried out. After the release of MCO 1.0, we have to operate under strict SOP which have slowed down our productivity that increased our cost of operation.
“With the various subsequent lockdowns, our business turnover is smaller but with the same overheads,” he explained to The Borneo Post when contacted.
Sim said they were grateful that the federal government came to the rescue with cash handouts, wage subsidies and the six months carpet bank moratorium. These initiatives, in turn, have saved many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and small businesses.
He then hoped the state government would continue with the Bantuan Khas Sarawakku Sayang (BKSS) assistance in helping to reduced and delayed collection of assessment rates, utilities, cash assistance to the Bottom 40 per cent (B40) and small micro traders.
“Reduce compliance cost of doing business in our state, ensure we can get our foreign workers into our state to assist in the 3D jobs of the various sectors, roll out our vaccination as schedule to complete by August this year, open our border as soon as it is safe.
“We have lost much in the tourism sector as our border is closed and much hardship is felt in this industry.
“In the development sector, we seek assistance in the end-financing for our purchasers from our Sarawakian financial institutions and incentives by our state government to help first time home buyer .
“The tripartite relationship of the purchaser, developer and the bank are important to ensure that housing demand can be met.”
Meanwhile, with MCO 2.0 implemented in almost all states recently, the lockdown has continued to affect businesses here in terms of confidence and outlook.
“However there are businesses such supermarket, e-commerce, logistics, second hand cars are striving while tourism, retails are suffering due to lock downs and closed border.
“In construction, plantation, manufacturing, services are allowed to operate under the MCO2.0 but in Sarawak we are facing shortage of workers especially in the 3D jobs of these sectors due to closed borders.”
To recap, Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz revealed earlier this year that the government expects the country to lose RM600 million daily due to MCO2.0, compared to RM2.4 billion daily in March until May 2020.
“However our SME and micro business must still be helped to ensure that unemployment rate could be controlled and business failure reduced.
“The federal government must continue with cash handout,wage subsidies and carpet bank moratorium to assist us to prevent and protect our economy from collateral damage of the pandemic. With the roll out of the vaccine, this has restored some confidence of the future that we have a ‘get out of jail card ‘ from this pandemic.”
Source: https://www.theborneopost.com/2021/03/22/assistance-needed-in-end-financing-for-purchasers/