Lagenda Properties forms JV with Bina Darulaman

KUALA LUMPUR: In the quest to build residential units priced below RM200,000, LPB Development Sdn Bhd and BDB Land Sdn Bhd (BLSB) have entered into a joint-venture (JV) cum shareholder’s agreement to develop an affordable housing township with gross development value of RM565 million on 230 acres (93 hectares) in Bandar Amanjaya, Sungai Petani, Kedah.

LPB Development is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lagenda Properties Bhd’s (LPB) and BDB Land is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bina Darulaman Bhd.

Both parties today incorporated a joint-venture company, BDB Lagenda Sdn Bhd (BDBLSB) with each parties having 50 per cent stake.

Situated next to the North-South Expressway with an estimated population of 200,000, the affordable freehold housing development project is known as Darulaman Putra, predominantly consisting of single-storey terrace houses, coupled with some elements of commercial development to be built in phases.

Lagenda Properties managing director Datuk Jimmy Doh said the JV agreement is the starting point to building affordable houses for the much underserved B40 community in Kedah and beyond.

"We actively plan to develop beyond these 230 acres, in line with our goal to develop 1,000 acres (404.6 hectares) of land in each township we build.

"We also actively look for more land in Kedah to achieve our target of building 20,000 to 30,000 houses in the state within the next 10 years. We expect to launch the Kedah township in 2022, and complete it in two years from the commencement of construction,” he said in his keynote address at the signing ceremony here today.

Doh said home ownership has been a constant challenge faced by all Malaysians, therefore, ensuring prices match what the people can afford is Lagenda Properties utmost priority.

"Kedah is one of the states with the highest B40 income group ratio where the B40 household income is at RM2,700,” he said.

On Bank Negara Malaysia’s remarks on the dire need for one million affordable houses to be built, he said affordable houses and affordability cannot be solved overnight and the pandemic has certainly heightened the issue.

"We urge more landowners to come forward either for a sale or JV,” he added.

Meanwhile, Bina Darulaman president and group chief executive officer Faris Najhan Hashim said the partnership demonstrates BLSB’s commitment in providing opportunities to Kedah citizens to own affordable homes.

"BLSB will continue to aim to be the catalyst for affordable township development in Kedah and will continuously support the government in providing affordable housing to the people in Kedah,” he said.

Faris Najhan hopes the JV agreement will be able to help more people from the B40 and M40 income groups to own their dream home at an affordable price.

"BLSB is also expecting positive spillover effects from this affordable township development, which will boost the state’s economy through the commercial and services sectors,” he added. - Bernama