KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 — Malaysia’s property market registered a substantial increase in the Rental Demand Index in the fourth quarter of 2021 (Q4 2021), at 30.53 per cent quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) and 57.91 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y), said PropertyGuru Malaysia.

The online property website said the Rental Demand Index, which represents the proportion of interested property renters based on enquiries for rental units listed on PropertyGuru.com.my, is expected to grow further in the current quarter as consumers shift their focus from buying to renting.

PropertyGuru.com.my and iProperty.com.my country manager for Malaysia Shylendra Nathan said the increasing demand for rental properties could be an indication of shifting priorities among home seekers who faced difficulties securing loans as banks continue to be conservative about loan approvals.

As such, he noted that potential house buyers are temporarily putting their purchasing plans on hold to ride out this period of economic volatility.

"Instead, they are opting to rent houses to satisfy their upgrading needs or pursue their desired lifestyle improvements, while rebuilding confidence towards making large property purchases,” he said in a statement today.

According to PropertyGuru’s Malaysia Property Market Report (MPMR) for Q1 2022,  the property market continued on a gradual trend of improvements.

The Sale Price Index, which measures the confidence of sellers via asking prices listed on PropertyGuru.com.my, continued to inch upwards by 0.14 per cent y-o-y, despite a slight dip of 0.19 per cent q-o-q in Q4 2021.

"Following the liberalisation of movement controls and economic activity in Q4 2021, we saw an uptick in the overall property market activity in Malaysia,” said Shylendra.

PropertyGuru Malaysia also believed that the market would remain cautiously optimistic about continued improvements in the general market environment as the year progresses, on the back of better economic conditions and higher vaccination rates.

Meanwhile, the Sale Supply Index, which provides a view of supply trends through the volume of newly launched and resale property listings on PropertyGuru.com.my, reflects some of this confidence.

In Q4 2021, supply moved up by 13.54 per cent q-o-q following the negative growth in the previous quarter, and grew by 22 per cent y-o-y compared with the 5.3 per cent y-o-y growth in the preceding quarter. 

Shylendra said buyers’ confidence might be impacted with little direct incentives for the property market in Budget 2022 and the expiry of the Home Ownership Campaign on Dec 31, 2021, just as the market begins to find its footing.

"As such, expectations of a quick property market rebound this year have now been moderated.

"Instead, we can expect improvements to occur at a gradual, steady, and measured pace. In the meantime, the rental market will grow as demand increases among those who opt to put off purchasing plans during this period of economic uncertainty,” he added. — Bernama