By David Koh and Joe Choo | Feb 19, 2010
Hartamas vs Kiara Properties
ONE of the contributory factors to the popularity of Desa Sri Hartamas as an enclave is the presence of several high-rise condominium projects in its vicinity. Furthermore, the nearby Mont’ Kiara residential developments provided the right demographics and crowd to fuel growth in the area.
It was a good marketing strategy by the developers, who opted for the high-end market. From a quiet “jungle” land, Sri Hartamas quickly became a sought-after address. However, is it really just good marketing, good location and good timing that contributed to this?
After all, not far from here, the Hartamas Shopping Centre and Plaza Damas offer similar features. This is an integrated project with a spacious shopping mall, offices and condominiums of varied sizes and prices to attract middle to upper income home buyers. It turned out, many of these buyers were actually speculative investors, looking to make money out of rentals or capital appreciation.
Somehow, the project failed to attract sufficient interest and a number of owners are lamenting over the poor returns on their investment. Perhaps it was unfortunate timing: the project was launched when the economy was booming. Access to financing was easy and everyone was optimistic about property appreciation.
Then, the economy stuttered and did not seem to recover, as far as the owners here are concerned. Demand for rentals was low and there were few takers for properties put up for sale. The asking price was likely to be too high – since the original purchase price was considered a little on the high side in the first place.
 |
|
The demand for Mon't Kiara properties continue to rise.
|
Different results
Any analyst can come to the same conclusion. However, how does this explain the contrarian performance of Desa Sri Hartamas and the Mont’ Kiara projects? The same economic conditions prevailed and yet things worked out better here.
In our previous articles, we alluded to the landform impacting Hartamas Shopping Centre. Despite the middle to upper-class populace in the vicinity, and the considerable range of facilities and services offered by this integrated project, its popularity still seems to pale by comparison. It may be ideally located as a central point of interest, but it is certainly no 1 Utama or the Curve.
From a landform perspective, the early phases of Mont’ Kiara sit in a little valley with Bukit Kiara at the west and a small hilly range to the east, where Hartamas Shopping Centre and the new Istana Negara (under construction) are located.
This would include properties found along Jalan Kiara and Kiara 3, such as Plaza Mont’ Kiara, Vista Kiara, Mont’ Kiara Pelangi, Mont’ Kiara Aman, Mont’ Kiara Meridian, Aman Kiara, One Kiara, Kiara Designer Suite and Vista Kiara. A valley is good because earth energy accumulates here after traversing down from higher ground.
To fully benefit from this, the landform must be contoured to capture this energy. This could be in a form of a bowl where the valley is actually like a crater, or there could be hills on three sides with the fourth side blocked by a river or sea.
No enclosure
Such an enclosure was missing in the neighbouring Taman Sri Hartamas, which could explain its lacklustre appeal compared to Desa Sri Hartamas. As you may recall, the valleys found here were the result of parallel hill ranges.
Desa Sri Hartamas, on the other hand, is enclosed on three sides by highland.
Plaza Mont’ Kiara is a nice looking office and retail complex. It was one of the earliest hub in Desa Sri Hartamas and was quite a popular place. Nearby, there is another food and shopping village called Shoplex. This was originally earmarked as a clubhouse for Kiara Palma and Pines but somehow got diverted into a retail centre.
This is just as well, because the area is well-suited for it. It is relatively small, easily accessible and has a certain neighbourhood charm to it. This is certainly better than being yet another under-utilised clubhouse.
Plaza Mont’ Kiara likely benefited from a river that used to run in a gulley separating Mont’ Kiara from Desa Sri Hartamas. This reflected and deflected earth energy into a gentle and homogenous pool which Plaza Mont’ Kiara tapped into.
That stream has since been converted into a sewage treatment plant. Furthermore, the construction of the Sprint Highway linking Sri Hartamas to Damansara has altered the landform significantly. A number of flyovers, ramps and elevated roads were built to facilitate traffic dispersal (although traffic jams are still a part and parcel of everyday life here during peak hours!).
Artificial mountains Raised highways are artificial mountain ranges. Vibrations and other energies are generated when vehicles move on them. These vehicles also create wind turbulence, which can disperse energy pools. With such a configuration, it is easy to see that properties should not be located too close to a highway. Those that face such highways receive strong energy, yet at the same time, they cannot benefit from any energy pools formed by other surrounding high land. Hence, we are concerned about the effects of the new highway on properties right beside it, such as Mont’ Kiara.
If the complex deteriorates over time, the new landform could be a factor since there are few other changes: it could be a declining economy, or expensive rentals. Traffic-wise, the planners were clever to ensure that Jalan Bukit Kiara (which runs parallel and below the highway) is easily accessible and that traffic does not become too congested, even though the road also serves Jalan Desa Kiara.
Jalan Desa Kiara services a number of hill slope and hilltop condominiums, including Kiara Mas Ayura, Kiara Mas Sutera and Amarin Kiara. These condominium developments are similar to Puncak Kiara nearby. They are projects that tout hillside and hilltop living as the ultimate symbol of success and affluence.
Properties on hill slopes experience fast-moving energy, which is too strong and overwhelming for the inhabitants. In such a scenario, the only way to mitigate is to have the building face downhill, so that the building shields itself from the energy.
Gentle Eddies
Think of it as being neck-deep in a fast-flowing river. Obviously, facing the oncoming stream is not recommended as the danger of drowning is higher. Turning to face downstream is better as the back of the head blocks the water and gentle eddies form around the front.
Properties on hilltops are probably much worse as these do not benefit from any earth energy infusion. By being the highest point, such properties actually generate energy which flows downhill to benefit others. Over time, it gets drained of energy.
Only places of worship and, on the other extreme, vice (such as gambling) would be able to handle being in such a location. The former is under the auspices of the almighty God who makes the rules. The latter does not want to accumulate energy as a “prosperous” environment may mean lady luck favouring the patrons instead of the proprietor!
Thus, we are concerned for the wellbeing on those who dwell in these hill slope and hilltop properties, never mind if they are awfully close to the Bukit Kiara Forest Reserve. For such properties, the most ideal orientation is generally east or facing a downhill slope.
The Garden International School has been here from the early days, and seems to be doing very well despite its low profile. This could be due to its ideal orientation, facing east and downhill, with a small claw of highland embracing its back and sides.
Jalan Kiara 1 runs north and eventually joins Jalan Duta Kiara, which parallels a part of the New Klang Valley Expressway that leads to Jalan Duta. There are many more developments here, culminating in the massive and impressive looking Solaris. (More on that next week.)
Related stories by Master David Koh and Joe Choo:
|