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Recently, I was seriously thinking about moving from Kuala Lumpur to Penang after reading and being told about the progress and development brought to the state by the DAP.

After doing some research myself, I agree that Penang today under Lim Guan Eng is no longer the same as during the days when Koh Tsu Koon was chief minister. Penangites today have a better quality of life and have seen their income grown in recent years.

Take properties for instance.

As we know, land matters fall within the jurisdiction of the state governments.

And I read that the Penang DAP state government introduced several new policies in 2009. One of them is the charge for the enhancement of land value that was increased from 25 percent to 50 percent for the island while the mainland, for the first time ever, saw a charge of 12 percent introduced.

As I understand it, if the initial value of an acre of land is RM1 million and the value increased to RM5 million due to changes in land use (eg agriculture to residential), the 50 percent charge on enhancement of land value or RM2,000,000 will be imposed. If an acre of land can build only 12 terrace homes, the above policy will only add on just RM170,000 to the cost of the home.

That’s not a lot and I am sure DAP has taken into account the income level of Penangites.

Not many of you will go to Balik Pulau because it is quite a remote area but it is a beautiful part of Penang. The cost of a condominium there is quite cheap at about RM470 per square foot and a two-storey terrace house is only RM500 per square foot.

If you move closer to the city centre, one can easily grab properties at a bargain price of RM700,000 for a 1,000 square feet condominium.

Of course, if we would like to have a bit more space and the opportunity to have a pet dog for our kids, we can also choose to buy a terrace home for just RM 2.8 million or monthly repayment of RM13,000.

But if you can only afford about RM2,600 in monthly repayments, there are also terrace homes in Seberang Perai at RM600,000. Affordable options aplenty in Penang.

Using the financial rule of thumb that your monthly loan instalments should not exceed one-third of your monthly salary, one will certainly be earning about RM7,500 per month to be able to afford a terrace home in Seberang Prai or RM40,000 per month in Penang Island.

Already affordable in Penang?

So, sometimes I don't understand the fuss with BN folks who talk about affordable housing. Recently, the Housing and Local Government Minister Abdul Rahman Dahlan said that states, except Penang, provided federal agencies with land so that affordable housing could be built and that 10,000 units of affordable homes in Penang have been held back because the state government has not approved them.

I understand where DAP is coming from. Who needs them when homes are already affordable in Penang?

It is clear to me now and I concede that Steven Sim was right when he slammed Federal Economic Planning Unit Minister Wahid Omar for saying that the average household income in Malaysia is RM5,900 per month.

Abdul Rahman Dahlan and his colleagues in the cabinet must be living in another world and have lost touch with the progress that DAP has brought to Penangites.


GOH WEI LIANG is a senior analyst at a government agency. He blogs at http://manifestogwl.blogspot.com

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