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PETALING JAYA: Almost half the members of the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association have unsold completed residential units as of June.

According to an industry survey carried out by the association, the vast majority of these unsold homes are lots reserved for Bumiputera buyers.

Rehda president Ho Hon Sang said 33% of these Bumiputera lots remain unsold even after three years since they were completed.

"I believe this is an issue the industry needs to address,"he said at Wisma Rehda here today.

The survey showed that in the first half of 2024, 47% of unsold Bumiputera lots fall under the price range of RM500,000 to RM700,000, while those priced between RM300,000 and RM500,000 are the second highest at 29%.

Besides the lots reserved for Bumiputera buyers, Ho said, Rehda members cited low demand and end-financing loans being rejected by banks as the main reasons for the glut of unsold houses.

He said the average rate of rejected property loan applications was 31%.

“That means if you have 100 loan applications, it is likely that there will be 31 cases where the loans will be rejected.

"Maybe these 31 units need to be resold to other parties, or interested buyers need to find more supporting documents or evidence to support their loans,"he said.

The survey also noted that 69% of respondents faced construction challenges in the first half of 2024, citing the high price of building materials as having had a critical impact on business operations.

“(The price of) sand increased by about 15%, while glass went up by 15% and concrete 13%. (These increases) comprise more than 10% of the (total price) increase compared with a year ago.

"Over 90% of the respondents also observed a higher increase (in the price) of building materials compared with the previous year,"Ho said.