Malaysians most bullish on property market in Southeast Asia

Two-thirds see market as booming.

The ranking came as part of an overall consumer survey from ASEAN Confidential, a grassroots research service from the Financial Times. The report revealed that consumers expected property prices in Southeast Asia to increase in the next six months. A survey of more than 5,000 consumers across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam reveals that 73% of respondents expect property prices to rise considerably by the end of the year.

Consumers in Malaysia are the most bullish, with two-thirds saying that the property market is booming, whilst Kuala Lumpur is most popular, with 36% of consumers planning to buy houses or condominiums in the city. Up-and-coming areas such as George Town in Penang and Johor Bahru, both currently in the midst of an infrastructure boom, are expected to experience solid price appreciation.

Tourist hotspots are also hot on the property appreciation track, with 60% of consumers expecting prices to rise by more than 20% in Denpasar, the capital of tropical paradise Bali.

Liz Chong, head of research for ASEAN Confidential, said: “Strong economic growth, asset price appreciation, buoyant equity markets, and inflows driven by quantitative easing are fuelling positive consumer sentiment across Southeast Asia. In addition, plans to spend billions on infrastructure projects are propelling property purchases and more generally, consumer sentiment across the region.

The optimistic outlook is mirrored in Thailand and the Philippines, where 81% and 73% of consumers polled expect prices to rise, respectively. In Thailand, respondents prefer Bangkok for house buying, similarly, Manila is preferred for property purchases across the Philippines, with 54% of Filipinos planning to purchase property in the city.