Contributed by Shan Saeed

Being the serious business that it is, strategic property investment requires a lot of market intelligence reports. You don’t invest by listening to others; you invest with your expertise.

I will share my investment outlook with readers in four broad areas: risk, opportunities, trends, and outlook.

In 2018, the trade war between the United States and China was a hot topic among key global players. Its effects will continue this year and leave investors on edge. With the government shutdown in America, the investment risk keeps rising.

The global economy in 2019 will witness lots of volatility and upheaval, especially in the advanced economies.

Change in investment approach

When I was attending a real estate course at the University of Chicago, I learnt that the location phenomenon has gone. In fact, quoting “location, location, location” as the three main attributes of any real estate investment is now referred to as an old joke.

Instead, real estate has three critical asset-level dimensions – namely property type, geography, and life cycle.

It is about the demographics of buyers, life-cycle of real estate and, most importantly, adopting a different perspective.

Nobody is interested in a rundown property. Everybody is looking for new condominiums and properties that promote a luxury lifestyle. Branded residences such as Ritz Carlton, Sofitel and Jumeirah are favoured by many investors.

People are also looking for short-term rental properties such as small apartments and condo units so that they can leverage on the Airbnb platform.

In the long run, investing in these properties will be a smart move.

Good investment entry point

In the Klang Valley, many investors are now focusing on Old Klang Road (OKR) because the area is connected to five major points: Puchong, Petaling Jaya, Mid Valley, KL Sentral and KLCC.

Many developers, infrastructure and market dynamics are at play in OKR. This is where smart investors take a position, looking at this area from a strategic perspective.

Ultimately, this place will become an investment hotspot in Malaysia. It is undervalued by 15% to 20% and still not saturated. It is still growing.

If you are looking to invest, you have to take a position in the real estate cycle when it is either in the introductory phase or the growth phase. At this moment, OKR is in the growth phase.

Shan Saeed

Shan Saeed is Chief Economist at IQI Global, a leading property and investment company. He has 18 years of financial market experience in the areas of private banking, risk/compliance management, commodity investments, and brand and business strategy.

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