KOTA KINABALU, Sept 17 — The Housing and Urban Development Board (LPPB) will be formulating a new policy on the ceiling price for houses in Sabah following the price increase of construction materials and transportation.
Its chairman, Datuk Masiung Banah, does not rule out the possibility of a slight increase in the price of LPPB’s properties as it was influenced by the increase in the price of imported materials other than the cost of wages and the spike in land prices.
“A new guideline will be created to study the balance of raw material prices and property values, including affordable housing,” he said after witnessing the draw for the affordable housing project phase 1A of Kampung Sook, at the Sook District Office today.
Also present were Assistant Community Development and People’s Wellbeing minister cum Tulid assemblywoman Floia Ng, LPPB General Manager Rosemary Aping as well as Assistant Sook District Officer Paul Isidore.
The project involved a total of 56 units of double storey terrace houses which were sold at RM47,000 a unit.
According to Masiung, the drastic increase in the price of raw materials such as cement, sand, iron, timber and machinery throughout the country is clearly a contributing factor to the increase in the price of houses and shops sold.
He stressed that the increase in ceiling prices for all forms of property not only involved housing agencies in Sabah, but had also affected the whole country.
The Kuamut assemblyman pointed out that if LPPB maintains the old selling price, it means that the contractor will have to reduce the size of houses and shops to balance the cost of profit.
“If this happens the buyers will bear the burden of high monthly installments and loans in the long run. If this year, we are selling affordable houses, namely double storey terrace houses at RM47,000 a unit, the price will no longer be suitable next year,” he said. — Borneo Post Online
