Rise in OPR will affect M40 house buyers

ALOR SETAR: The rise in Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) to 2.50 per cent will likely influence Malaysians to reconsider purchasing houses, particularly the M40 group, who may have bank commitments such as personal loans.

Kedah/Perlis Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association Malaysia (REHDA) chairman Yeoh Su Guan said currently many in the M40 and B40 groups are waiting for the Budget 2023 announcement before making any house purchase as they hope that there will be something for buyers or developers to cushion the impact of the OPR for house purchases.

"The rise of OPR to 2.50 per cent will impact property developers because when instalment rates rise, it will cause house buyers to hesitate, especially the M40 group that have many other commitments," he told reporters after the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Kedah/Perlis REHDA and a fully-owned Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) subsidiary, Allo Technology Sdn Bhd here today.

He added that the shortage of manpower, increased cost of building materials and the implementation of the minimum wage had made it hard for developers to recover in the current post-COVID-19 pandemic period.

"Many developers have been forced to delay their projects following these issues, and they are trying to figure out ways to complete their projects as soon as possible," he said.

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) had recently announced that the OPR would be raised by 25 basis points to the current rate of 2.50 per cent, the third consecutive increase this year.

-- BERNAMA