We hope the government will continue to improve incentives that will spur house-buying activities. For many years, property development has been an economic engine and it must be given the support to continue to bolster growth. Despite the gradual reopening of economic activities after months of lockdown, it will still take many months for consumer sentiment to be restored to pre-pandemic levels, and the property development sector to see recovery. 

We had welcomed the reintroduction of the HOC last year, and we hope that it will continue well until the end of 2022 instead of this year-end. It has been a significant selling point for many house buyers and crucial in helping property developers in clearing inventories, which were planned years in advance.

We would like to see the reinstatement of/further improvements to the previous MM2H programme guidelines. While we understand the government’s objectives, the new and more stringent guidelines appear less appealing, which may hinder new participation and renewal. 

We also hope the government will extend the waiver of the 5% (or higher) RPGT for the disposal of residential property that is expected to expire at the end of this year. This will provide financial relief to people offloading their homes in the secondary market as they potentially look for a new replacement house from a property developer.

Source: The Edge, City & Country