Consilz Tan, a fellow with the Center of Market Education, said next year’s budget must move beyond handing out incentives to first-time homebuyers to improving rent-to-own schemes, including PR1MA’s Skim Smart Sewa.
“To make these schemes more accessible and appealing, the government should simplify application procedures, improve transparency, offer competitive interest rates and encourage wider participation from financial institutions,” she told FMT.
“The government should also provide tax incentives, such as tax credit for losses incurred under the Skim Smart Sewa, tax shield on debt financing, and implicit subsidies to the banks to reduce operational costs.”
In the 2024 budget, the government focused on reviving abandoned housing projects, increasing the supply of affordable homes and promoting urban renewal.
A special guarantee fund of RM1 billion was set aside to incentivise developers to revive selected abandoned projects, while RM2.47 billion and RM385 million were allocated for 36 public housing projects and 14 Rumah Mesra Rakyat developments, respectively.
The Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme also received an additional RM10 billion in 2024, benefiting 40,000 borrowers, up from RM5 billion in 2023.
Meanwhile, the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda) hopes the government will maintain its support for first-time homebuyers.
It suggested that first-time homebuyers be allowed to enjoy a tax deduction on interest incurred during the construction period or personal tax relief of RM20,000 on property costing up to RM500,000.
“Homebuyers should also be granted a one-off tax relief amounting to RM30,000 for property priced up to RM500,000,” it added.
Meanwhile, National Housebuyers Association honorary secretary-general Chang Kim Loong said the government should also look into safeguarding the rights of owners whose properties are subjected to redevelopment.
He said the government could reinstate a previous requirement that developers obtain the consent of all affected property owners. The threshold was lowered to 80% during the 2024 budget announcement.
“While HBA supports urban redevelopment, we oppose the current proposal of an 80% consent threshold for such projects, as it infringes on property rights guaranteed by Article 13 of the Federal Constitution.”