NS Corp works with developer for 800-unit affordable housing project

SEREMBAN: Potential homeowners, especially from the lower income categories, in Mantin near here have reason to be happy as 800 affordable landed housing units will be built in this former mining town that has been experiencing rapid development in recent years.

The project, a joint venture between NS Corporation and Multiplex Development Sdn Bhd, would be carried out on a 24.6ha site with work scheduled to start at the end of this year.

State Investment, Industrialisation, Entrepreneurship, Education and Human Capital Committee chairman Datuk Dr Mohamad Rafie Ab Malek said the project was yet another initiative by the state government to allow more people to own homes.

The land was owned by the NS Corporation, of which Mohamad Rafie was also chairman.

"Such projects are necessary as people, including the younger ones, are finding it difficult to even own their first property due to reasons such as affordability and escalating prices.

"The state government will do its best to ensure the people, especially those from the B40 group, are also able to own houses so they would not be left out of mainstream development," he said at the ground breaking ceremony for the project.

He said 160 units measuring 20ft by 60ft costing RM80,000, 120 units (20ft by 65ft) priced at RM250,000 and another 520 units (20ft by 70ft) valued at RM360,000 each would be built.

He said priority to own the affordable homes costing RM80,000 and below would be given to residents living in the area.

"Preference will be for those living in the Nilai constituency. If there are extra units, we will offer them to those living in surrounding areas," he said, adding that those keen to own the units should register with the state government's housing unit.

Mohamad Rafie said the state government had approved the construction of 24,430 affordable homes since June 2018 and of these, 7,518 cost RM80,000 and below.

This, he said, showed the state government's commitment to ensure there were such units for those in the lower income categories.

The state government, he said, had also come up with a "Live, Work and Play in Negri Sembilan" policy aimed at attracting more people to move to and work in the state in line with the state government's aim to attain developed status by 2045.

Mohamad Rafie said the state government would also approve the construction of another 12,500 affordable units in Smart County in the Malaysian Vision Valley 2.0 area in the near future of which 5,000 units would cost RM80,000.

Multiplex Development director Datuk Lee Chi Loon said the Mantin project would be completed in stages by 2026.

"We have been in the property development business since 2001 and have built and delivered some 1,000 properties such as houses, commercial units and factories.

"In total, we have, over the years, completed 31 projects which were mainly located in Seremban, Mantin and Nilai," he said, adding that the latest project would have a gross development value of RM220mil.