With the house price growth far outstripping the increase in salary, many Malaysians are forced to remain as renters, according to a survey by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) recently.
The survey showed that 76% of Malaysians earn less than RM5,000 per month and, with that salary, they cannot afford to acquire a house priced at over RM300,000 – ruling out homes within urban centres where most of them are working, reported The Sun Daily.
Nurul Farhana Bakar, 29, is among those who sees no sign of being able to acquire her own home in the near future.
“My husband and I have been renting this flat in Cheras since we got married in 2017. The rent is RM550 a month but after accounting for the monthly car instalment and other expenses, there is little left,” she told The Sun Daily.
Nurul, who works as an administrative assistant in Kuala Lumpur, shared that she cannot afford the deposit of 10% for a house.
The more affordable homes available, on the other hand, are located too far away from the city.
“When we rented the flat, we wanted easy access to public transport. Our priority then was to buy a car first, so now we are still focused on servicing the car loan,” she said.
Nurul revealed that she and her husband focus on the Klang Valley or the suburbs close to it when looking for an affordable home.
“Anywhere else is too far,” she said.
The couple, however, realised that prices of properties closer to the city are much higher, making it harder for them to save up the 10% down payment.
“Even if we get a house now, our monthly instalments on the home loan would likely be about RM1,000, which is a lot of money,” said Nurul.
She added that relying on Employees Provident Fund (EPF) savings to purchase a house is also difficult since it would entail paying the 10% first, “then withdraw the money from our EPF account later”.
That would just bring them back to the starting line.
Nurathiqah Fadzil, 30, has also been renting right after she got married in 2019.
“My income is not stable, and my baby is my priority now. Raising a child is not cheap,” said the freelance videographer as quoted by The Sun Daily.
“Buying a house is not part of the plan now but we’re hoping to save up enough for one.”
For marketing officer Dalvinder Kaur, the COVID-19 pandemic has turned her hopes of purchasing her own home into despair.
Dalvinder had hoped to secure a 100% loan at a low interest rate to acquire a house, but obtaining approval for the loan was “quite a hassle”.
Her plans crumbled when her employer started to stagger salary payments.
“Now, I have to put those plans on hold. It’s difficult when your employer pays only half of your salary early in the month and the balance at the end of the month,” she said as quoted by The Sun Daily.
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