The rising cost of housing remains one of the main issues today and there is an urgent need to address this soon to make the property more affordable.

This is probably top on the wish list for Malaysian property developers, homebuyers, and real estate practitioners.

According to an online survey conducted by Juwai IQI, a top priority for real estate professionals across the country is to address the rising cost of housing.

Seventy-five per cent of surveyed agents agreed that the government should do more to address the higher cost. That includes 57 per cent of surveyed agents who 'strongly' agreed and 18 per cent who 'somewhat' agreed.

Juwai IQI co-founder and group chief executive officer Kashif Ansari said Malaysia has a relatively young population and workforce, and this creates strong demand for affordable residential properties in the major metropolitan areas.

"People are moving from rural areas to Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, and Johor, but property prices in these areas have increased over the past year five years. At the same time, our urban population has increased by 20 per cent, from 20 million to 25 million," he said.

Kashif said the process of urbanisation and the global wave of rising asset costs has pushed prices up even higher than predicted.

He said although the pandemic has temporarily slowed the rate of urbanisation, the rural-urban population shift will resume once Covid-19 becomes the past.

"Real estate professionals work with homebuyers every single day, so they know the challenges they face. We believe that is why so many agents feel the upcoming Budget 2022 should include measures to address the rising cost of the property," he said.

The survey showed that 60 per cent of real estate professionals in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor want more measures to address the cost of housing, 50 per cent in Penang, 57 per cent in Sabah, and 55 per cent in Sarawak.

Kashif reiterated that housing is a basic need and a basis for asset accumulation.

According to Research for Social Advancement, in 1990, the price of the average home was equivalent to about 4.7 years of per capita income and it has nearly doubled to 9.5 years today.

Between 1990 and 2019, the average home prices have increased 5.6 times or a 460 per cent capital appreciation.

"Malaysians who bought their own homes before prices climbed have been able to build financial security for their families. Those who can buy today will benefit from future price gains," said Kashif.

He added that the new government will have a lot on its plate, including addressing the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.