KUALA LUMPUR – Ipoh has garnered 19.5% of searches on iProperty.com.my between January and November 2022, beating prime locations such as Petaling Jaya, Cheras and Shah Alam to emerge as the most-searched area by homebuyers in Malaysia.
Areas outside of Klang Valley are also gaining traction among potential homebuyers and investors during the period, iProperty said in a statement today.
The three new entrants which made it into iProperty.com.my’s annual top list are Kuching, which ranked sixth with 7.6% of searches, Port Dickson (seventh spot with 7.4% of searches) and Seremban (10th spot with 6.4% of searches).
“Affordability and work flexibility could be the primary drivers for more property seekers looking for houses outside of Klang Valley,” it said.
Nonetheless, iProperty said prime locations such as Petaling Jaya (second place, 13.7% searches), Cheras (third place, 11.6% searches), Shah Alam (ninth place, 6.9% searches) and Johor Bahru (fourth place, 10.3% searches) continued to be in the top 10 list since 2018.
PropertyGuru Malaysia, which owns PropertyGuru.com.my and iProperty.com.my, country manager Sheldon Fernandez said in 2022 more people were considering residential properties in areas located outside the Klang Valley.
“This year, we have three never-seen-before locations (Kuching, Port Dickson and Seremban) that made it into iProperty.com.my’s annual list, showing that the pandemic has prompted many consumers to rethink where and how they live and work,” he said.
He added that the remote work trend has also enabled consumers to prioritise better living environments to raise children, proximity to family members, and better mental health.
“Looking ahead to 2023, it would be interesting to see if residential properties beyond the usually-popular prime cities will continue to gain traction among homebuyers,” he said. – Bernama, December 20, 2022
