It seems that homebuyers, with our widely differing tastes and preferences, simply do not have access to the expected range of real estate options.

3. Sole Ownership & Access

There have been many co-living and co-working establishments that have come into existence recently – and we have lauded co-working spaces as a viable solution to the issue of the high number of unused commercial properties. According to our findings in the ongoing Buyer Sentiment Survey, most prospective homeowners are not keen to share living spaces – or even the ownership and access of properties.

Would you consider co-living arrangements?

46% of respondents stated they would not be willing to consider a co-living arrangement.

As a relatively new concept, co-living has yet to become widely accepted among Malaysians. The results of our Buyer Sentiment Survey show that the largest segment of respondents (46%) are unwilling to share living spaces, while only 23% are amenable to the idea and 31% remain undecided.

Would you consider owning a property on a co-share basis?

47% of respondents would prefer to have sole ownership and access to a property rather than sharing it with other co-owners.

This apparent unwillingness to share also applies to the ownership and access of properties – a sentiment that could limit the concept of timeshares to vacation stays and fractional ownership to the realm of financial investment.

4. New Construction

What kind of property would you prefer to purchase?

57% of respondents prefer hunting for newly launched homes rather than purchasing sub-sale or auctioned properties.

While investors and aspiring landlords may have less concern for the age of the property than the price, or other factors that may affect potential returns, prospective homeowners overwhelmingly tend to seek out new developments. Only 28% of respondents in our Buyer Sentiment Survey reported being willing to purchase sub-sale properties and only 15% would resort to buying properties on auction – the kind of real estate that tends to require further investment in order to render spaces livable.