Plans to raise property tax rates for foreign home buyers in Johor at the end of the year appear not to deter Singaporeans from buying units at the Afiniti Residences in Medini Iskandar Malaysia.
It is a joint venture between Khazanah Nasional and Temasek Holdings.
Singaporeans made up 25 percent of the buyers.
All 147 units were snapped up during Saturday’s launch.
Malaysians accounted for 72 percent of the buyers, while the remaining units were snapped up by Chinese, Indian, and Indonesian nationals.
The Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) said it is working with the state government to provide market feedback about the proposed tax increase and is seeking assurance that it will not burden both local and foreign property owners or dampen the market.
It added that while the progress of Iskandar Malaysia is on track, it is too early to comment if the proposed tax hike will impact developments in the region.
A spokesman for IRDA said: “For the first quarter of 2013, Iskandar Malaysia registered cumulative committed investments of RM111.37 billion from 2006 until 31 March 2013, which is an increase of RM5.06 billion since the end of December 2012.
“Of the total cumulative committed investments, RM44.82 billion, or 40.2 per cent, represents investments that have been realised.”
Kevin Goh, associate director at CBRE Malaysia, said: “The central and state governments have been promoting Iskandar Malaysia. A lot of Singaporeans and big corporations have come here to invest, develop, and buy land. Within the next two to three years, Iskandar Malaysia is still a good place to invest in.”
Source : Channel NewsAsia – 9 June 2013