Total unit numbers can conceal mismatches across affordability, type and location
KUCHING: A gap between Sarawak’s housing stock and household numbers should not be interpreted as evidence that the state has more homes than it needs. Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (SHEDA) president Datuk Augustine Wong said the Department of Statistics Malaysia’s (DOSM) latest preliminary estimates put the number of living quarters in Sarawak at about 888,900, compared with 666,600 households.
Wong, however, said the figures alone could not show whether housing supply matched demand by location, type and price.
“The number of living quarters recorded by DOSM was not necessarily equivalent to the number of conventional homes available for purchase or occupation in the formal property market,” he told Sarawak Tribune.
He said Sarawak’s settlement patterns also made a direct comparison difficult. Longhouses, water-village houses and other forms of accommodation accounted for about 18.5 per cent of the state’s recorded living quarters, but were not necessarily comparable with conventional landed houses, apartments and condominiums in the formal market.
At the same time, Wong said households already occupying a home could still require additional accommodation as employment, family circumstances and lifestyles changed.
Better connectivity and growing employment opportunities in urban centres had also increased movement between rural communities, towns and cities.
It was not uncommon, he said, for Sarawakians to maintain a family or longhouse home while buying or renting accommodation closer to their workplace.
“Some may stay in urban accommodation during the working week before returning to their communities at weekends.”
Wong said this meant a household already counted as having a living quarter could still generate demand in the formal housing market.
A growing household might also find that its existing home no longer met its needs because of its size, type or location.
“The issue is not simply how many houses we have, but whether we have the right houses in the right places at the right price,” he said.
Wong said statewide housing figures provided a useful indication of overall stock but could mask substantial differences between individual markets.
“The needs of a household in Kuching could differ significantly from those of one in Miri, Bintulu, a smaller town or a rural community.”
Demand could vary further within each locality depending on housing type, size, price and proximity to jobs, transportation, schools and other amenities.
For developers, Wong said this meant investment decisions could not be based solely on whether Sarawak appeared to have enough houses overall.
They also had to assess where demand was emerging, what types of homes were required and what buyers could realistically afford.
“A development could have sufficient demand in principle yet still face difficulties if its product, location or price did not correspond with the needs of the market.
“Conversely, an area experiencing strong population and employment growth could require additional housing even when statewide figures appeared to indicate there was already sufficient stock.” Wong said more accurate, timely and granular housing data would help reduce uncertainty for developers and improve public-sector planning.
Such information should provide a clearer picture of population movements, housing preferences, household sizes and affordability, as well as how these factors changed over time. “Without sufficient market insight, development decisions would inevitably involve a degree of uncertainty, with developers having to commit investment based on the best information available to them at the time.”
He said better housing-market information could also guide infrastructure and housing policies while helping developers decide where and what types of homes to build.
“By combining market information with the property industry’s practical experience, future housing supply could be better aligned with the needs of Sarawakians,” Wong said.
