KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) has revived 704 sick and abandoned private housing projects through the Task Force on Sick and Abandoned Private Housing Projects (TFS) as of June this year.
Minister Nga Kor Ming stated that the recovery involved 82,101 housing units with a gross development value of RM58.94 billion.
“KPKT will continue to implement improvements to reduce problematic projects and aim for zero abandoned housing projects by 2030.
“We are also refining Act 118 to strengthen control measures as early prevention and long-term action to ensure there are no more sick and abandoned private housing projects. This includes enforcing travel bans for blacklisted developers or board members,“ he said during a question-and-answer session in Dewan Negara today.
He was responding to a question from Senator Datuk Dr. Ahmad Azam Hamzah, who inquired about the effectiveness of existing policies and laws in addressing abandoned buildings and projects, as well as the Ministry’s proposed improvements and methods to address the issues.
Nga informed that a new account will be introduced to replace the Housing Development Account (HDA) to ensure more transparent control over fund disbursements by developers.
He added that KPKT will provide specific definitions and legal provisions to clearly outline the roles and responsibilities of liquidators who take over abandoned private housing projects.
“The Ministry is also proposing to implement a ‘Corporate Guarantee’ for Special Purpose Vehicle-oriented developments, ensuring that the parent company is accountable for the developments undertaken by its subsidiaries.
“This method is based on the actual value of a housing project and is proposed as an alternative way to monitor the financial flow of private housing projects until the closure of the HDA account,“ he said.
Nga highlighted that amendments to the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966 (Act 118) will ensure a balance between the rights of buyers and developers.
In response to Senator Mohd Hasbie Muda’s question regarding the number of applications and approvals for the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme (SJKP) in 2023, Nga replied that 57,752 loan applications have been approved as of June this year.
He noted that the total value of these loans, which have been approved since the implementation of SJKP in 2008, amounts to RM12.78 billion.
He added that in 2023 alone, 23,569 applications were approved, with a loan value of RM5.9 billion.
“The MADANI government remains focused and committed to implementing and improving various initiatives to ensure that every citizen has access to quality and affordable housing,“ he concluded.
