By Siti Rohaizah Zainal
SHAH ALAM, Aug 19 — The Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS) plans to build 10,000 units of affordable houses in the next 10 years, said its chief executive officer Datuk Mahmud Abbas.
He said the effort to ensure people get a chance to own homes is in line with the tabling of the First Selangor Plan (RS-1) by Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari recently.
“In our effort to assist the state government, we aim to build 1,000 units of affordable housing every year, and our 10-year target is to build 10,000 units,” he told SelangorKini.
Mahmud hoped the state government would assist them in the financing aspect to enable more people in Selangor to buy houses.
“We know the state government’s policy is to distribute (affordable) houses valued up to RM500,000 to those who can’t afford to buy homes. But the issue that needs to be looked at is whether the Selangor government also needs to help those who can afford it or vice versa.
“This needs to be given attention and there is a need to collaborate with banks so that those who can really afford to buy but don’t own a house yet can purchase it,” he said.
During RS-1’s tabling on July 27, Amirudin said affordable house ownership in Selangor has to face three primary issues, including the mismatch between supply and demand for the size and type of houses, and difficulties in obtaining financing.
To this, the state government will increase the construction of Rumah Idaman and Rumah Selangorku Harapan affordable homes so as to help the people in owning comfortable homes, as well as explore methods of cooperation with financial institutions, especially banks, to resolve the housing financing issues.
