Rehda calls for data-driven housing reforms

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s affordable housing policies are struggling to keep pace with demographic shifts and market realities, according to the Rehda Institute, which called for a data-driven approach to reform quota requirements and pricing mechanisms.
Speaking at the institute’s research workshop titled Beyond Housing Quotas: Designing a Future Without Limits, research and education director Malathi Thevendran highlighted how outdated assumptions continue to drive policy, creating inefficiencies and contributing to unsold and abandoned housing units.
“Most of the studies that we have done over the years, including affordable housing and abandoned housing, have revealed to us a consistent challenge and issue.
“To date, we have still got unsold completed units of about 27,000, contributing literally 16.4 billion ringgit.
“Coupled with that, we have abandoned housing today, which still stands at about 30,000,” she said, pointing to the magnitude of idle capital tied up in underutilised properties.
Malathi traced the origin of Malaysia’s Bumiputera quota, noting that the 30% allocation in private housing projects was introduced in 1981 on recommendations from the IMF and World Bank.
“Bumiputera now make up 70% of the population. Income categories have also shifted. Yet, the quota policy has remained almost unchanged for 44 years.”
She emphasised that homeownership trends have evolved alongside household incomes and demographics, with Malaysia achieving a homeownership rate of 77%.
“A large portion of middle-income Malaysians still find ownership a challenge, not because of quotas, but because affordability itself has changed,” she added.
Malathi also pointed to the financial strain created by price-controlled units.
She explained that in many states, the floor price for affordable housing is far below construction cost.
“We must ask ourselves: can any developer realistically build a proper, safe and compliant home at RM42,000?
“The cross-subsidy model is pushing up the market price of non-subsidised units. Buyers are paying for the gap.”
She noted that while states maintain different quota percentages, price caps, discounts, and even minimum unit sizes, this variation has created inefficiencies and mismatches between supply and demand, particularly between urban and non-urban areas.
Addressing land and abandoned projects, Malathi said: “If idle state land sits unused for years, why not release it for social housing?”
She urged reinstating automatic release mechanisms, noting Selangor’s 2011–2019 framework that gradually released unsold Bumiputera units.
“Without release mechanisms, unsold quota units lock up capital and restrict cash flow,” she added.
Malathi also addressed the broader challenge of shared responsibility.
“Yet, only developers are expected to absorb every cost and deliver every social obligation.
“Housing cannot be sustainable if the burden is one-sided,” Malathi said, stressing the need for collaboration between government, financial institutions and other stakeholders.
Rehda Institute chairman Datuk Jeffrey Ng Tiong concluded the session by stressing the need for policies that reflect current market conditions.
“Quotas are here to stay. This session was never about removing them, but we must adjust them to reflect market forces. One-size-fits-all does not work,” he said.
Ng also underscored the importance of data in policy formulation.
“Data collection is crucial, but equally important is analysis and sharing. Without that, there can be no meaningful policy decisions.”
He highlighted that housing affordability should be measured by net disposable income rather than gross income, and reiterated that social housing is a shared responsibility.
“Social housing cannot fall solely on developers. Every stakeholder must hold each other’s hand to get the job done,” he said.
The conference also reflected on international experiences.
Malathi noted that countries such as Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam have combined mandatory and voluntary approaches with strong monitoring systems, tax incentives and government ownership of social housing to ensure equitable access.
“When you study all of this in terms of incentive, every single country provides some form of incentives to make it socially viable,” she said.
She emphasised that enforcement and diligent monitoring are critical to prevent misuse and ensure units reach those who need them.
The Rehda Institute’s findings call for flexible, data-driven housing policies that address unsold and abandoned units while sharing responsibility among all stakeholders.
Malathi and Ng stressed that evidence-based strategies are key to balancing social equity with commercial viability.