The trend of young people looking for auction houses has been increasing ever since the government allowed the special withdrawal of the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) funds, said, industry experts.
In an interview with Sinar Harian, Sharifah Sallina Syed Hashim Al-Djufry, a real estate auction consultant said since January this year, more than 25 young people contacted her to find houses and auction land within a month compared to only about 10 people who did so before that.
“The increase is noticeable, showing awareness among young people who are already working to find a house as their first asset compared to a car.”
“They are also eager to buy auction houses because they have money in hand since the government previously allowed the withdrawal of EPF money,” she said, adding that the EPF money was used to pay the 10% deposit.
Meanwhile, another real estate auction consultant Mohd Haris Sulaiman said he noted the increase in demand for auction houses and land began 5 years ago. He said the surge beginning this year involved young buyers in their 20s to 40s.
Haris has been in the auction real estate industry since 2009 and he said homebuyers usually would choose a house or land in a residential area that was strategic, mature and provided many job opportunities.
“New area openings take a long time to develop, which is why some people like mature or semi-mature areas.”
“For example, 10 years ago, if there was a house in Rawang or Bukit Beruntung, people might have been wary of buying it, but now there is a lot of demand,” he explained.
Another real estate consultant Mohamad Yusuff Mohd Azlan pointed out that these auction assets offer around 20% to 30% cheaper than the current market.
He also said that the trend started with people who successfully bought a house through auction taking it to social media to share their experience and that gave the confidence to young people to bid.
“In addition, there are also many real estate agents, including some who have written books about auction properties.”
“In the past, young people only knew about the existence of houses but did not dare to enter the public auction. Now that they have the knowledge, they dare to bid,” he said.
Apart from industry experts, youths were among those who were interviewed for their views on the auction house.
Harisa Ameera, who is an advertising writer from Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur said she was interested in buying an auction house, but it would depend on the condition and location of the house.
“Because if we get an auction house that is in good condition and the price is cheaper than the market, we don’t need to spend more money to renovate the house. That is already a saving,” she said.
Taha Rusydi Mohd Nazri, who is a bank assistant manager in Kuala Lumpur, said that the price of the offered auction house was lower than the market, which was the main factor that attracted him to buy the property.
He added that houses in strategic areas and with access to other facilities such as public transport, shop buildings and supermarkets were the choice of many.
“We know that auction houses do not only involve old houses because there are also houses that have just been completed but had to be auctioned because the owners were unable to pay the bank loan,” he said.
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