There should be a standard structure for financial contributions from real estate developers concerning the country's demands for social housing, said Rehda Institute chairman Datuk Jeffrey Ng Tiong Lip.

This is in place of a mandatory quota for such properties and controlled pricing, he said during the Rehda Institute Regional Housing Conference 2023 today.

According to Ng, a consistent financial contribution system will promote greater consistency and transparency in cost management.

"This would lead to more manageable housing prices throughout the country," he told stakeholders comprising local and international senior officials from housing governments, and those involved in housing development.

Ng said that different state governments now use various financial contribution models.

According to him, the cost of doing business is raised by the lack of openness and uniformity across the numerous state authorities' policies.

"If such models can be uniformly streamlined, this would allow the Ministry of Local Government Development (KPKT), with assistance from Rehda, to set up a centralised fund that is funded by the developers, to launch and deliver social housing projects with economies of scale by the public sector, which could lead to lower cost of construction if modern construction technologies are implemented," he said.

The housing conference is organised by Rehda Institute, which is the research, education, and training arm of the Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (Rehda Malaysia).

Deputy Minister of Local Government Development Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir was the guest of honour.

It brings together various international stakeholders involved in housing, including government-linked companies, fund managers, contractors, property developers, landowners, consultants, architects, and engineers.