Country Heights: Relax foreign quota ruling

SERI KEMBANGAN: Country Heights Holdings Bhd (CHHB) is calling on the Selangor state government to relax the foreign quota imposition, which does not allow foreign buyers to purchase property under RM2 million.
The ruling, which came effect last year, has impacted an already slowing property market.
It states that foreign buyers are not allowed to buy properties priced below RM2 million, with foreign buyers ownership capped at 10%.
During a press conference after CHHB's AGM here yesterday, CEO Dianna Lee said the company is hoping the state government will address the issue adding that a letter had been submitted to the relevant authorities.
"We appeal to the state government to review this quota, (even though) we've buyers we're stuck with this," she noted.
Foreign buyers are expected to make up 40-50% of CHHB's high-end properties that are priced above RM1 million.
Lee expects the company to register lower growth this year, if the foreign quota ruling remains.
"If you look at our previous achievement, it's through the on-going property sales and disposal of existing inventories, but this plan would be very difficult to materialise compared with last year due to even more tightening, and the state said we cannot sell to foreigners and locals can't get loans..., we are really caught in the middle," she said.
Last year, CHHB reported a higher net profit of RM37.85 million compared with RM36.02 million in 2013.
Commenting on its first quarter net loss of RM5.35 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2015, Lee stressed that this was mainly due to lower contribution from the hotel and healthcare divisions. She said property development is still doing well. Property development was the largest revenue contribution to the company at 66%.
Lee also expects the hospitality segment will improve after Ramadan, but she is still cautious on foreign tourist arrivals.
CHHB has a total of nine on-going projects, with a gross development value of RM1.5 billion. Its unbilled sales stands at RM55 million.
It has a total undeveloped landbank of over 5,000 acres in Selangor, Sarawak, Kedah, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan.