Section 14: Property Development

Bahau in Jempol District is the second largest town in the state of Negeri Sembilan, it is classified as a second-tier city. It has been a place where Chinese businessmen gather and develop for many years. After experiencing prosperity, it was hit by two economic storms and its development stagnated.

However, as the government implemented a number of economic revitalization measures, various public facilities and infrastructure are becoming more and more complete, more housing and commercial properties and the extension of industrial chain development, all of which make the urban development of Bahau more fermented and robust.

Bahau New District, propelled by real estate, is a hotspot for home buyers, and a small and beautiful liveable city.

As early as the 1960s and 1970s, Bahau had taken off economically due to the vigorous development of timber and plantation industry; it was once known as the "Little Golden Mountain".

Due to the mid-1980’s economic recession and the regional economic turmoil in the 1990s, economic growth and development in Bahau were stalled.

Ushers in more garden houses Chong Meng Poo chairman of the Bahau Chung Brothers Construction Company, said in an interview that since 1962， Pak Kah Choon Village was the first new district to obtain government approval to implement a housing plan, but the approval was for only 100 houses.

"But at that time there was no complete infrastructure plan, including ditches and road facilities." This 20-acre new development area has become the residential area with the latest order of housing planning in the Chinese New Village.

Following the development of Pak Kah Choon Village, Guanghe Garden hit the market. It was the first approved housing plan at that time. This also initiated the development of housing industry. After that, Bahau has seen more garden residential areas, including the rise of Satellite Garden, ACBE Garden, Sonam, Puanchik, Oriental Garden, Prosperity Garden, Wanchuan Garden, Latin Garden, eventually the tentacles of development have also been extended to the downtown area, namely the commercial area surrounding the Chi Wen School.

Houses and shops in Chu Ward are very popular. New development reduces the area of Chu Ward New Village Chong Meng Poo said that the new development in Chu Ward in the 1990s came even more rapidly, this new housing development gradually reduced the side of the Chu Ward new village.

"The more remote Bahau Gardens and Princess City have also risen one after another, and then expansion and development of the Prince City, which has become a hot spot for housing development in the southern Bahau District."

The shopping area to the north of downtown Bahau is also booming due to the development of the Jiale Commercial Center, the Liya Shopping Center and the Park Shopping Center in the past 10 years, they have taken over and boosted the economic activities in Bahau.

Presently, Chong Meng Poo has chosen to build a 3-storey shop on the main road opposite to the ESSO petrol station, this area has also been developed into a new commercial area. Moreover, the shops in this area are very prosperous and sold out quickly.

Strict bank loan application scrutinisation curbs rush to buy commercial properties Bahau District is rich in natural resources and the small farmers earn quite a bit of income. However, it is difficult to obtain a bank approval for the purchase of commercial buildings due to incomplete loan application documents.

In the second half of last year, although the commercial properties in Bahau District faced the problem of narrowing loan channels, the market demand was still strong.

There is a strange market phenomenon in Bahau, that is, although housing prices in some areas are high, the rent is low, and the return on investment is quite low.

For example, a shop worth about RM700,000 can only earn RM1,500 to RM2,000 in rent, but the rent for a 3-storey street shop in the urban area is relatively high, as high as RM3,500.

Due to the vigorous scrutinisation of banks in reviewing commercial loan applications, about one-third of the applications are rejected, this have more or less curbed the crazy buying boom in the retail housing industry.

Strong demand in the industrial market, developers settling in to seek business opportunities According to market analysis, the market demand for housing and shops in Bahau is still quite strong. Many developers believe that Bahau real estate has broad prospects for development, and has more room for development than the highly competitive first-tier cities. Therefore, more and more developers are attracted to settle in Bahau to find new markets and lay out commercial real estate.

Chong Meng Poo believes that the urban area of Bahau and its surroundings have great potential for development, while the outer suburbs are not yet the best time for development.

The town of Bahau is bordered by Kuala Lumpur in the north, Gemas railway hub in the south which arrives at Singapore directly, Kuala Lumpur International Airport in the west, and Kuantan, Pahang in the east. It has the advantages of a smooth and convenient transportation network, a strategically good location.

He believes that if another large scale real estate project is to be launched, after some time, the commercial properties in some emerging areas of Bahau will be able to usher in an explosive period. This will bring good surprises to home buyers, as in the future there will be more room for value increment.

Carefully build a new business district to lead a new era of real estate Zheng Xiu Yu Shui Industrial Co. Ltd., a rising star in the Bahau real estate industry, launched a commercial real estate project in Bahau with a new concept, bringing about a new atmosphere.

The company boldly promotes new shopping mall properties in the city centre, accurately plan and cooperate with new concepts to create a Contemporary and modern business district, leading the real estate in Bahau District into a new era and forming a new growth point.

Tey Piow Fee, chairman of the company, told "Industry Weekly" that 3 commercial areas are planned for Bahau, these include building 25 units of 3-storey shops at the bus station and a new wholesale market and retail shops.

Development focuses on greening and environmental protection In addition, 21 double-storey and 3-storey shop houses will be developed near Jalan Meihua Judge Court in Chu Ward.

Tey Jock Swee Industry also plans to promote the AURORA Plaza project in Meranti Garden, building 28 units of 3-storey shops and a 4-storey fashion hotel.

"These projects we are developing all focus on greening and environmental protection, with green and natural design as the keynote of development."

There are themed restaurants and boutique shops in the new area, providing returns in dividends to those invested in commercial properties.

Tey Piow Fee, said that the real estate industry has developed vigorously in the past 10 years, which is a new round for Bahau properties to be fully revived and progressed.

"The population increase in the surrounding reclamation areas has driven market demand for houses."

Meranti garden becomes a prosperous hot spot Tey Su Sien sales manager of Tey Jock Swee Industrial Co., Ltd., pointed out that the fashionable hotel developed in front of Meranti Garden provides convenient accommodation for tourists, especially businessmen and salesmen, they can choose here as a resting point.

If you want to go to Kuantan from Seremban, you can take a rest here and continue your journey. Therefore, the hotel industry has become more and more prosperous in recent years.

The company built a modern public market and a vegetable wholesale market in the city block. The public market is double-storey and well-equipped, providing consumers in Bahau a new consumption experience.

Upon completion, 70% of the shops have been occupied and in business, this has suddenly become a thriving hotspot in Bahau.

Bahau market slows down in 2014 The slowdown of the housing sales market, and developers have adopted a "conservative strategy" and sporadically implemented small-scale housing development plans to avoid slow demand .

According to market reports, in recent years, few consumers from other cities have come to buy houses in Bahau District, and generally they can only be "sold domestically".

Malaysia's economy will face greater challenges in 2016 In 2016, the price of original products was low, and the implementation of the new indigenous quota system and Stringent lending by banks was a blow to developers. Developers did not dare to spend money to promote housing projects rashly.

Causes of housing market slowdown 1. Banks adopt Stringent lending rules to prevent bad debts.

2. To implement a large-scale housing construction plan, the government stipulates that 50% of the housing must be reserved for the aboriginals.

Although the economy is slowing down, land prices are still high, and no one has seen people sell land at low prices, especially the lots that developers negotiated at high prices earlier. It is impossible to build houses at low prices. In addition, the price of building materials has soared, and it is impossible for houses and shophouses to respond Lower the price.

The swiftlet house is a "hotel" built by swiftlet farmers or swiftlet house investors for swiftlets to roost, nest, mate and breed in groups. In Southeast Asia, the swiftlet nesting industry is called swiftlet farming. Bahau is a farming town surrounded by rubber and oil palm plantations and forest, which has the suitable natural environment for swiftlet to bleed.

The 1997 Asian financial crisis hit all industries hard, hence many shop lots in Bahau could not be rented out. In 1998, there was an influx of Chinese Indonesians who brought swiftlet farming technology to Malaysia. At that time, 6 out of the 10 shop lots on Bahau Street were turned into swiftlet houses. Later on, swiftlet farmers looked for land in the suburbs of Bahau to build more swiftlet houses. There were different types of swiftlet houses, double storey, 3-storey and 4-storey. Every morning and late evening, one could see flocks and flocks of swiftlets soaring in the air.

From 2000 to 2011, the swiftlet farming industry was booming. Swiftlet houses were built all over in Bahau. The interested parties hoped to get benefits out of it. Even saw mills had to operate round the clock to ensure enough supply of the boards for the swiftlet houses.

At that time, the number of swiftlet houses in Bahau had reached more than 600, mostly located in Bahau area, Mahsan New Village, Rompin and Ladang Geddes. As demand for swiftlet nests had increased and its price was sky high, Bahau had the most swiftlet houses and highest yield in Negeri Sembilan.

Swiftlet farming was a very lucrative business but the failure rate was also high. In 2011, the blood swiftlet fraud controversy in China, coupled with the haze attack in the country that affected the ecological environment. As a result, the number of swiftlets declined drastically, which in turn affected the production of bird's nests.

The swiftlet farming industry, which was once popular, seemed very profitable. In fact, the performance of some investment is extremely unsatisfactory. The failure rate went as high as 70%. The owners who had already invested a large sum of money in the industry refused to inject more money to maintain the swiftlet houses. They left the business to grow slowly or without growth. Some of them converted their unsuccessful swiftlet houses back to shop houses. In Bahau, the upsurge of swiftlet houses has gradually faded.

In February 2013, IOI New Township made its debut in the Bahau region, marking a new beginning with the opening of a new road from “500 Acre” to Rompin. This brand-new route was like a map leading to the future, symbolizing the fresh start of the New Township.

On June 19, 2017, IOI New Township held a grand opening ceremony presided over by the President of IOI Group, Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng 丹斯里李深静. This was a historic event attended by distinguished guests, including the Chief Minister of Negeri Sembilan, Dato' Seri Mohamad Hasan, and the State Assemblyman for Bahau, YB 周世扬

Previously, XiGua Wan was a traffic bottleneck, but with the opening of the new road connecting Rompin, everything changed. This new road not only made the roads in XiGua Wan smoother but also added traffic lights, injecting new vitality into the former traffic congestion hotspot, greatly benefiting drivers in terms of convenience.

KFC, the renowned fast-food restaurant, has become a must-visit for residents and tourists in IOI New Township. It offers convenient parking facilities and a tranquil environment, making it a new favorite among food enthusiasts. Similarly, TESCO department store has also attracted a large number of customers, providing ample sheltered parking lots to ensure that customers can shop without being exposed to harsh sunlight or rain.

The New Township also focuses on meeting residents' housing needs, with several affordable housing options emerging against the backdrop of a sizeable Lake. This community, surrounded by serene waters and lush trees, offers residents a beautiful living environment. The premium residential areas are tailored for those seeking a higher quality of life, adding a touch of refinement to the city's development.

Well-developed infrastructure and smooth roads, adorned with trees and bamboo along the sides, showcase the developer’s meticulous care for its customers. IOI New Township has become a pivotal center of development in the Bahau region, and its achievements will forever be recorded in the river of history.