Malaysia Property | Lush Dream Home

KL Metro eyes China, Vietnam for resort business

Posted on 28 Oct 2009 | Comments Off

Kuala Lumpur Metro Group (KL Metro) is eyeing China and Vietnam to expand its resort development business, said managing director Low Tak Fatt.

‘We are still in negotiations with the local parties there. Once the project is firmed up, we will make an announcement,’ he told a media conference here yesterday.

It is understood that if the negotiations were successful, it would be KL Metro’s first venture outside Malaysia. At the press conference, Mr Low announced the completion of the company’s second water homes project, the Legend International Water Homes in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan.

The first was the Legend Water Chalets. The resort will be managed by Legend Group of Hotels and Resorts.

Mr Low said a soft opening for the Legend International Water Homes was scheduled this Sunday and an official opening at mid-2010. ‘Most of the buyers are from Hong Kong, UK, Singapore, United Arab Emirates and Macau. They are mostly private investors who buy the units and lease them back to us for a certain period,’ he said. Continue reading →

M’sia to draft property gains tax exemption order

Posted on 27 Oct 2009 | Comments Off

The Finance Ministry is expected to come up with an exemption order on the Real Property Gains Tax (RPGT) this week to clear the confusion surrounding the RPGT proposal.

Under the 2010 Budget, the government proposed a fixed tax rate of 5 per cent imposed on gains from the disposal of real property effective Jan 1 next year. However, based on the Finance Bill, disposal within two years of acquisition will be taxed 30 per cent, 20 per cent in the third year and 15 per cent in the fourth year while disposal within five years and beyond will still be subjected to 5 per cent.

‘As far as the Act is concerned, the rate is still there, which is 5 per cent to 30 per cent. Exemption order has yet to be gazetted but it is coming out very soon, maybe around this week,’ Finance Ministry’s Under Secretary, Tax Analysis Division, Siti Halimah Ismail, said yesterday.

She was speaking to reporters after the 2010 Post Budget Dialogue, jointly organised by the Malaysian Economic Association and University of Malaya’s Faculty of Economics and Administration, and supported by Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Bhd.

Gains from the disposal of property are subject to tax under the Real Property Gains Tax Act 1976 to curb speculative activities in the property sector. However, the RPGT was exempted in 2007 to help the property sector. Continue reading →