PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s housing policy must move beyond boosting homeownership and prepare for an ageing population by offering more housing options that match people’s changing needs and financial capacity, says the Rehda Institute.
Its chairman Datuk Jeffrey Ng Tiong Lip said the National Housing Policy 2026-2035 (NHP 2026-2035) was a step in the right direction, particularly in its focus on data-driven housing planning and provisions for senior citizens.
He said Malaysia was expected to become an aged nation by 2048, when those aged 65 and above would make up 14% of the population.
Department of Statistics Malaysia figures showed that Malaysians aged 65 and above accounted for 8% of the population in 2025, up from 7.6% in 2024.
“With demographic changes taking place, future housing supply must respond to the different needs of households throughout their life cycle,” he said.
Ng welcomed the policy’s proposed measures for senior citizens, including tailored housing financing schemes, retrofitting grants to support ageing in place and incentives for private developers to build liveable senior care centres.
He said housing planning should be based on more detailed data at district and sub-district levels, taking into account population trends, household income, existing housing stock, vacancy rates, unsold units and mobility patterns.
This, he said, would allow the government to identify actual demand, avoid overbuilding in weak markets and address long-standing mismatches between housing supply and demand.
“Better data can also enable Malaysia to move from reacting to abandoned projects towards identifying risks earlier and preventing abandonment in the first place,” he said in the statement on Thursday (Aug 13).
Ng said the objective should not be to increase homeownership at all costs, noting that Malaysia’s homeownership rate stood at 78% in 2024.
Instead, he said the country needed a balanced housing ecosystem that gives households access to ownership, rental, rent-to-own and transit housing, depending on their stage of life, needs and financial position.
He also welcomed indications that affordable housing could move away from a blanket RM300,000 price ceiling towards a model based on household income and local demand.
“Affordability benchmarks should be reviewed periodically against local household incomes and actual demand, with more location-specific allocation mechanisms,” he said.
However, Ng said regulated prices for price-controlled homes must also reflect actual delivery costs.
He said 82% of developers surveyed in the institute’s Housing for All study reported that regulated prices were below actual development costs, citing increases in land, construction, labour, compliance and infrastructure expenses.
On financing, Ng said loan eligibility remains one of the main barriers for aspiring homeowners.
He welcomed the policy’s proposed measures, including the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme (SJKP), stepped financing, shared ownership and long-term fixed-rate mortgages.
He said affordability should be assessed beyond the initial house price or monthly rent, taking into account the long-term cost of financing, occupying and maintaining a home.
“Household income, expenses and financial commitments can change significantly over time due to income shocks, family formation, retirement and other life events,” he said.
Ng said the Rehda Institute was ready to support the Housing and Local Government Ministry through research, training and collaborations, including the Malaysia-Cambridge Urban Platform, to strengthen housing affordability measurements, big data analytics and evidence-based policymaking.
The National Housing Policy 2026-2035, launched by Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming on Aug 10, outlines the government’s direction for the housing sector over the next decade.
