EPF's down payment facility reduces housebuyers' burden

SHAH ALAM: The Employees Provident Fund (EPF), which allows members to use their contributions to pay the down payment for a house can help realise the desire of low-income workers to own their own homes.
A contributor, Muhammad Sufian Daud, 31, said the convenience of using the EPF withdrawal from account two to pay the down payment to buy a house, does reduce the burden on low and medium wage workers like him.
For those earning RM3,500 and below, it is difficult to save money to pay the down payment for a house, especially if living in a big city like Kuala Lumpur and Shah Alam due to the high cost of living, he said.
"... the down payment which is usually up to 10% of the price of a house is not a small sum for a house in the city or in the suburbs, especially in Selangor houses are expensive between RM250,000 and above.
"On calculating, a buyer is required to pay RM25,000 as down payment and for medium and low salaried workers, it's a big sum and the facility provided by the EPF comes in very useful," he told Bernama here today.
An engineer at a construction firm, Hussary Ahmad, 30, said he will use the EPF money in future to buy a house as an investment.
"House prices will get more expensive, the demand for houses for rent will always be there. I will purchase a house and rent it out for extra income on retirement.
"This is because the EPF money alone is not enough to cover all expenses," said Hussary who already owns a house.
Meanwhile, a private sector employee, Ahmad Shaherman Shamsuri, 31, said he had no plans to buy or own a new house when he retires.
According to him, houses may be quite expensive by then and he might not be able to afford it.
"However, I would probably do a little renovation to the house I have now to make it comfortable for my children and grandchildren," he said. — Bernama