Malacca is NEXT to Sepang and Malacca is where the Arab City is.
Situated a short distance from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang lies the laidback coastal area of Bagan Lalang where, on a fine day, the sea laps gently against the shore and beach-goers enjoy the quiet and slow pace of life. This is the location of the Sepang Gold Coast (SGC) development.
SGC is developed by Sepang Goldcoast Sdn Bhd, a 70:30 joint venture between Permodalan Negeri Selangor Bhd and Sepang Bay Sdn Bhd (Sepang Bay). The latter is the local subsidiary of Indonesian property development company Istana Group. The entire SGC project, covering 22km of coastline, is estimated to have a gross development value (GDV) of about RM3 billion, and is slated to be completed in 15 years.
City & Country had the opportunity to take in the vista of its first project in Phase One — the Golden Palm Sea Villas. This gated development stretches about a kilometre into the Straits of Melaka.
Traversing the sea
To get to the Golden Palm Sea Villas, golf buggies ferry visitors to the showhouses, which showcase a resort-like interior with alang-alang roofing imported specially from Bali. Sold as an investment resort property, the sea villa investment package has two options — own use or leaseback. For the former, owners have to pay a maintenance fee and contribute to a sinking fund.
As for the leaseback option, buyers will have their property managed and operated by international hotel operator Swiss-Belhotel International as a bona fide five-star accommodation. Swiss-Belhotel International manages several hotels in the region, including China, Australia and New Zealand. As for returns on their investment, owners will receive a rental return based upon the purchase price of about 8% nett for the first two years.
“The leaseback arrangement is for 15 years. From the third year onwards, the returns will be based on the occupancy rate. Swiss-Belhotel has indicated with confidence that it can bring at least 8% to 12% returns to investors,” shares Steven Yap, Sepang Goldcoast Sdn Bhd’s head of sales and marketing. All the maintenance charges and contributions to the sinking fund will be borne by the developer.
At the moment, the take-up rate of the 366 units is over 90%, with 85% of buyers choosing the leaseback option. Overseas buyers make up the bulk of owners mainly from the UK and Dubai. Unit sizes vary from 570 to 2,422 sq ft, with prices ranging from RM571,815 to RM2,500,696.
The development is modelled after the Palm in Dubai; the only significant difference is that the Golden Palm Sea Villas are built on stilts and not reclaimed land. Inside all the units, which come fully furnished, are fixtures and fittings tastefully selected for the resort feel, aided by the alang-alang roofs. The units do not have any cooking facilities to eliminate fire hazard, especially since the roofs are made of alang-alang (thatched roofing).
Adjacent to the Golden Palm Sea Villas resort is a leisure and recreational area called the Open Resort, which blends the best of resort and residential living. Exact details are still sketchy as plans are yet to be finalised. However, what is certain is that it will be for members only and residents of the resort.
The Golden Palm Sea Villas’ GDV is RM315 million and it is slated to be completed at end-2009. Swiss-Belhotel takes over the reins in January 2010.
Moving ahead
The original plans for project No 2 of Phase One were for a serviced apartment block on seven acres called Sea Tropics Village, but the developer is now redrawing and upgrading its plans and concept for the site. “The reason for the change is that we have come up with a superior development concept hatched from a recent prolonged brainstorming session. This concept embraces a resort holiday yet home lifestyle, which was pioneered by Club Med International. We want to go beyond what Club Med has to offer. That’s why we are prepared to revamp the entire Sea Tropics concept to bring together a rich variety of new features, which both local and foreign investors will find it hard not to invest,” says Ho Hok Seng, president of Sepang Goldcoast Sdn Bhd.
Isa Bella Lin is a Singaporean Peranakan with roots originating in Malacca, Singapore, Indonesia and China.
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