KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia should not impose restrictions on property purchases, as this could harm the housing industry and the 180 related sectors, ultimately impacting the national economy, according to the Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (REHDA) Malaysia.

REHDA has expressed support for the Minister of Housing and Local Government's (KPKT) opposition to proposed limits on the number of residential properties Malaysians can purchase.

The president of the association, Datuk Ir Ho Hon Sang agreed with the minister's stance that Malaysia is a free-market economy and it is detrimental to impose caps on investments made by home purchases.

"Property purchases are made for other reasons too, besides shelter, hedge against inflation, and wealth preservation. There are those who purchase as gifts to family members, such as parents buying a home for their children," he said in a statement.

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"We also need to consider Malaysians who cannot afford to purchase a home and instead rent homes from homeowners. Renters come in all shapes and forms.

''Other than financing issues, there are also people who lead nomadic lives, those who move along with their jobs, and those who simply do not intend to invest in homes and would rather invest or spend elsewhere. For these groups of rakyat, renting is the answer."

Ho said that curtailing property investment will only result in less production of houses, whereas the country's population is still growing.

And when demand exceeds supply, it can lead to an increase in the prices of homes, as well as rent, and may even cause homelessness, he said.

"Rather than controlling the number of houses a person can purchase as a way to address housing issues, the government should instead provide more incentives for more houses to be built at the correct locations.

"In a competitive and well-served market, homes will become competitively priced for the benefit of the population at large," Ho said.