KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 98.8 per cent of the target of 500,000 affordable housing units under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) has been successfully achieved so far, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, said as of last June, a total of 493,874 housing units had been completed or were at various stages of implementation.
“As of June 30, 2025, a total of 197,311 units had been completed according to the initial plan, but that number is far from what is needed. That is why in the new emphasis, we have added 217,371 units or 43.5 per cent which are currently in the construction stage, while another 79,192 or 15 per cent have received planning approval.
“In 12MP, the target was high, but the implementation was weak, that is why it was given priority under the supervision of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government. With the cooperation of the state government, the remaining target of 6,126 units will be completed,“ he said.
He was replying to a question by Datuk Ahmad Amzad Mohamed @ Hashim (PN-Kuala Terengganu) on the status of affordable housing construction under the 12th MP, during Ministerial Question Time, in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Anwar said the housing concept encompasses various approaches including affordable housing, Rent To Own (RTO), transit oriented development and new projects such as Kota MADANI which was launched in Putrajaya and Cheras.
“In Putrajaya, 90 per cent of the 10,000 units involve the construction of 3,000 residential units for the first phase followed by 7,000 units in the second phase and this is for civil servants in Putrajaya who have been waiting for a long time to get a house, as the demand is very high,” he said.
On the Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme (HCGS) which was introduced since 2008, he said starting in 2023, the government has channeled guarantees worth RM20.9 billion involving 88,507 applications.
“This shows that without government assistance and guarantees, buyers, especially the M40 and B40 groups, find it difficult to buy a house. Some think that the existing loans are still insufficient because the house needs to be repaired or the cost of moving and so on,” he said.
In this regard, Anwar said MADANI HCGS is now offering loans of up to 120 per cent to help buyers cover other expenses including moving and purchasing furniture,” he said. – Bernama