40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Applying Housing Loan in Malaysia

This book of mine is already out in bookstores across Malaysia and can be bought online at my publisher's website since December 2014. My publisher's website can be access here : Book Planet.com.my

This book is the continuation of my other books : 40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Buying A Residential Property in Malaysia, published in 2010; and 40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Buying A Residential Property in Malaysia, published in 2013.

All the Ask the Lawyer series books

I also have the books in Bahasa Malaysia with 40 Soalan Yang Anda Patut Tanya Peguam Anda Sebelum Membeli Rumah di Malaysia being sold as a physical book since 2011 and 40 Lagi Soalan Yang Anda Patut Peguam Anda Sebelum Membeli Rumah di Malaysia sold as eBook. The link to my eBook is aptly named Lawyer Hartanah (Property Lawyer) and can be access here : Lawyerhartanah.com.

I am currently writing the Bahasa Malaysia equivalent for 40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Applying Housing Loan in Malaysia named 40 Soalan Yang Anda Patut Tanya Peguam Anda Sebelum Memohon Pinjaman Perumahan di Malaysia which will be released soon.

Here are some previews of the book :

What is a housing loan and how many types of housing loans are there?

I am writing a new book. It is about Housing Loan and of course, in continuation of my Ask The Lawyer series, I have titled the book '40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Taking A Housing Loan in Malaysia'. I want to be as concise as possible so there will not be 40 More Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Taking A Housing Loan in Malaysia.

My two books tackled issues about buying residential property from housing developer and is skewed towards buying these residential property in cash. Why? Because I opined you need to understand the basic before involving purchasing property using a housing loan. A housing loan needs it's own book to be understood. Now that I have columns in New Straits Times' Real Estate and Decor and also in thestarproperty.my with occasional articles in various other publications, I will complement my published books and to-be published books with articles in them. 

As always, I use this blog to gauge responses from my readers or would-be readers. If you still have not got my book from bookstores like MPH, Times or Kinokuniya, you can order online through my publisher Book Planet. The link for my books is here : Ask the Lawyer series in Book Planet. 

While waiting for my book to finish, go through this first chapter. Consider it like reading an excerpt of the whole book as this first question is the whole template for the whole book. Comments and complains are welcome, as usual :

Question 1 

Housing loan is a financial instrument borne out of a need of the consumers, who are house buyers seeking to buy houses. In this day and age, everyone has some form of debts or another. Borrowing money has become a norm and it is recognised by financial institutions around the world as the best way to check the financial credibility of a potential customer. In short, the more debts you have with one financial institution, the potential for you to get any type of loan from another financial institution is higher. Of course, as a borrower, you must make sure you are capable to manage all the loans you have taken from all the financial institutions you have taken loans from before you are given another loan by another financial institution. One of the biggest amounts of money by borrowing one will take in his or her lifetime is the housing loan. House, even the smallest one, is expensive. The need for a house has never diminished as people need somewhere to live whether they can afford it or not. Hence, housing loan is needed to help people to buy a house according to their need and for those who buy house as investment, as one way to finance the investment.

   In the whole scheme of property purchase, there can only be two types of house buyers. There are those who buy a house to stay in it and those who buy a house as a form of investment. All the housing loans in Malaysia are tailored for those who buy houses in order to stay in it and not for those who buy a house for investment. With the current property climate in Malaysia where government has to intervene in order to fulfill the supply of affordable houses to the masses, I don’t think we will ever see financial institutions coming up with housing loans for the investors. That is why all borrowers of housing loans are asked to sign a letter of undertaking (which will be explained in this book) affirming that they will be living in the house they bought and taken a housing loan for. In order to answer the question “What is a housing loan?” the answer is - any type of loan taken from a licensed financial institution in Malaysia to finance the purchase of a residential property in Malaysia. In order to explain the concept of housing loan further is to dissect each type of the housing loan available and to see the mechanics of each type of housing loan. As questions relating to housing loan are answered one by one in this book, the enigma surrounding housing loan is unraveled one by one.

   There are so many types of housing loan available to finance the purchase of any type of property in Malaysia. These housing loans relate to all types of properties available for sale from either housing developers or individuals. There are so many ways to divide housing loans into basic categories. Types of properties are divided into property issued with title and property without title or property to be subdivided later. Housing loans available to finance the purchase these properties can be divided into the same category too. The documentations for housing loan given by financial institution for residential property with title is very much different from documentations for housing loan given by financial institution for residential property to be subdivided later. The difference between these documentations will determine the process and the cost to prepare the documentation for the housing loan. The documentation for the housing loan to finance purchase of property with title is more straightforward than the documentation for housing loan to finance property to be subdivided later. The nature of residential property to be subdivided later requires another round of documentations to be executed when the property is finally issued with a title.

   However, the more popular way to divide the types of housing loan on offer by financial institution is whether a housing loan is a conventional loan or an Islamic loan. As financial institutions streamlined the operation of their conventional banking and Islamic banking, when a bank officer attend to a customer’s enquiry about housing loans, the first question the loan officer will ask is whether the customer is applying for a conventional housing loan or an Islamic housing loan. Both housing loans are different from each other and the documentations for both types of housing loans are very much different. Both conventional housing loan and Islamic housing loan are different products. The terms used to explain how the conventional housing loan and Islamic housing loan is given and disbursed are different among financial institutions. Conventional banking term such as ‘interest’ is substituted with ‘profit’ when being referred in Islamic banking. This is just one of the terms which differ between a conventional housing loan and Islamic housing loan. An explanation on the difference in either the concept or the documentations of an Islamic housing loan can be found within this book.

   There is no right way to list the types of housing loans. Like all loan products offered by financial institutions, when you want to take a housing loan, the important question is to ask yourself why you are taking the loan. It is understandable if the housing loan is to finance the purchase of your dream home. If you have saved to pay the deposit on the house and able to pay the installments until the time the house is yours, there's an array of housing loans to choose from. However, there are many other types of housing loans which relates to houses but is not intended to be used for the purchase of a house. These types of loans include, as was mentioned above, taking housing loan for investment purpose, refinancing of existing house after a few years as value of the house rises and mortgaging a house free from any encumbrances to the bank for cash. Currently, housing loan for residential property is one of the cheapest loans around among a bank’s various products and is a favorite way to own a property under your own name.

Household debt clean-up : A personal journey

Personal financial stability is not something easy to resolved. If you were ever in an economy classroom, either during high school or as part of your college or university degree, no matter how much you understand the concept of 'want' and 'need', believe me, you will never get to feel the 'forcefield' pulling you to spend on the unnecessary thing in life, until you have 'disposable income'.

Whoever invented modern credit is evil. Financial institutions, be it banks or cooperative or finance companies, is always on the prowl for you to take whatever they can give you in the form of credit cards and personal loans before you have even step out into the real world and become part of the 'workforce'.

However, how else can you afford the basic thing in life if not for credit? It is a Catch-22 situation as most of the basic needs like food, a place to live and transportation cost money. Coupled that with the self-appointed financial guru who propagates the need to own your own place and transport (though this now seems to have been losing steam), you will feel left out if you don't own a house or a car by a certain age. Then to make matter worse, you live in a world where everywhere you turn, you are bombarded by advertisement promoting so many things like a brand handphone, a computer, a tablet, the need to travel to see new places and more expensive version of your need.

That was what happened to me.

In my years of living, I have bought more than one house, sell a few, kept a few; bought a few cars, sold a few, had two cars at one time, one car at another time, owned cheap cars, owned expensive cars; bought more than one personal computer for my house, left it dusty before buying a newer version; owned a tablet; a few smart phones. All this thanks to the supposedly disposable income I have which I increased to more than 10-fold thanks to the easy approval of credit cards and personal loans. Some are obtained through 100% loans which allow me to buy cars and houses (it doesn't exist for awhile in Malaysia but it is making a comeback through various affordable housing scheme)

When 2012 arrived, I am more than a few hundred thousand Ringgit Malaysia in debt. One thing I have always made sure is to never have any arrears in any of my installments. My business helped me to make sure of this but it is not a perfect personal financial stability that I aspire to have. So, I started to get my personal finance in order.

I listed out my debts which include a car, a house, an Amanah Saham Bumiputra (ASB) loan, a personal loan and a few credit cards which when tabulated comes up to more than RM100,000-00 disposable income but are mostly maxed out. Some of the credit cards are there as I have taken a balance-transfer credit card to lower down the interest charged on my other credit card debt. I was surprised that more than half of my drawing from my businesses goes to paying the credit card debt. And yes, the first thing to a cure from an addiction is to admit that you have a problem. Then, look for a solution.

Another myth in this modern age is to make sure you have savings for your old days. Yes, that is not bad advice. However, how about living your old age without debt and having a stream of cash supplementing you? That is equally important right? Without delay, I listed my assets and see whether I can match my liabilities.

My assets seem to be part of the problem too. A house still under a mortgage. An ASB certificate which is not mine. A few unit trusts. The car is never an asset as it is always a liability. After calculating all this, I find that it is easier for me to cancel a few loans such as the ASB loan and the few credit card, especially those which have high interest charged to it every month. Then I decided to sell my car which was already 6 years old this coming May and bought a cheaper car. I then did one of the most surprising decision ever, even to me. I put the current house I am living in on the market. At a very steep price. Canceling the loans allow me to be liquid as dividends are paid for the ASB for 2011, unit trusts are sold with cash as payment and the car was sold at a good price.

The journey is not over yet. I have only cleared 30% of the debt I have. I still have to see whether I can get the price I want for my house. What I do after will require another entry. As I cleared a few of the credit card debt, banks which always on the look-out for someone who has more than he can spend is already calling more offering me new loans. Then, my feet, knowing me, starts to itch to travel somewhere far. 

Let us see how much of the 'want' I can resist so I can totally clear up the debt.

Biggest property news in Malaysia in 2011 Part 2

This is the continuation from my first blogpost on the 'Biggest Property News in Malaysia in 2011 Part 1'. In the first part, the issues were about affordable houses; the effect of MRT on the land cost and the tussle between the landowners and the MRT Corporation on the land acquisition process. The second part covers some of the news affecting investors in 2011 and the few mega property projects in the Klang Valley announced by the private sectors.

Here are four other property news in the limelight in 2011 :

5) 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) in the news

Announced in 2010 as a fully government-owned sovereign wealth management fund with various fingers in various pies including; a joint-venture with PetroSaudi International Limited to invest in oil and gas and real estate which has since made 1MDB, according to their website, RM425 Million profit through part divestment; the building of Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD) in the 30 hectares of the Imbi area bordering Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan Sultan Ismail and the MEX highway and the building of Bandar Malaysia at the current Sungai Besi airport which will offer affordable houses.

1MDB was in the news at the end of 2011 due to the funding that they were said to have received from the government a subsidy of RM1.11 billion in the 2012 Budget although they raised a sukuk worth RM5 billion in 2009; the lack of work on KLIFD; and the acquisition of the 495-acre land parcel which was the Royal Malaysia Arm Force (RMAF) Sg. Besi airport which will be turned into Bandar Malaysia. 

The first news is opposition's fodder which claimed that 1MDB seems to be getting funding which it does not need. The second news was finally put to rest with the tender process announced by 1MDB for major foundation work for KLIFD due to take off in early 2012. The last news ran smack into the competitive nature of other government agencies which have already been tasked with building such houses as the price of houses at Bandar Malaysia was announced to be between RM220,000-00 and RM300,000-00.

Here are links you can go through about 1MDB :

- 1MDB official website

- News about Bandar Malaysia in Sg. Besi

- News on the tender process on KLIFD

- The need for fund for 1MDB

6) Return of the mega property projects

At the start of 2011, the mega projects seem to have lost some steam due to the property slowdown within the well-known area of the Golden Triangle of Kuala Lumpur, or so it seems. This happened even when someone bought a RM38 Million penthouse condominium at The Binjai on the Park near KLCC in middle of 2010. It seemed then that the days of the launches of mega property projects in Malaysia are numbered. Then a few announcements which made headlines dispelled this notion. Some of these property developments were old news with new owners or new managements. Some were new projects which seemed to have been planned a long time ago but were just recently launched in 2011. Here are two of the most notables mega property project launches in 2011.

There seemed to be a lot more of property launches as we entered the middle of 2011 as opposed to the quiet 2009 and 2010. It is so much so that banks have started to be choosy in giving out loans. One of it those that made the news was the launch of a new mega development project by NAZA TTDI of their KL Metropolis at where the Matrade building is now situated. Spanning 75.5 acres, it is envisioned itself as the new international trade and exhibition district. Developed in the span of 15 years, it will be done in 3 phases. The gross development value is estimated at RM15 Billion and was launched by the Prime Minister in October 2011.

SP Setia, once a favored property counter on Bursa Malaysia, has finally launched its long awaited KL Eco City in November 2011, which is located at a narrow piece of land at the former Kampung Haji Abdullah Hukum. Located at the opposite of the always busy Midvalley City, one can just imagine the hectic traffic situation of the area bordering Bangsar and the New Pantai Expressway, once it is completed. It will comprised of mixed-used commercial and residential properties which will be placed in a few towers within the 10.1 hectares of land. It is also said to be the first mixed-used commercial property to receive the currently sought after Malaysia Green Building Index (GBI) standard and will be completed in 10 years.

Links on the projects stated above and news on mega property projects :


- KL Metropolis website

- News on launch of KL Metropolis

- KL Eco City website

- News on the launch of KL Eco City

- Wrap up on mega property launches for 2011

7) Real Property Gain Tax

The tax treatment on the disposal of property was changed in 2010. Between April 2007 until the end of 2009, the Real Property Gain Tax (RPGT) was given a holiday. Due to the property market condition within those year, the move was done to fire up a lackluster property market as the world's economy took a tumble. When it was reintroduced in January 2010, the tax treatment for RPGT was totally a different animal than what it was  before April 2007.

Before April 2007, RPGT was tiered according to how long you have owned the property. RPGT is calculated based on the profit you make when you dispose of a property at a maximum of 30% within the first year of ownership but becomes 0% on the sixth year of ownership. This only applies to residential property. With commercial property, the amount of 5% from the profit will have to paid as RPGT even after the fifth year.

When it was reinforced (the law was never abolished but was just put on hold) in 2010, the tax treatment for the disposal of property was given a flat 5% tax from the profit you make if the sale was done within the first 5 year of ownership of the property. The way RPGT is collected also differs with a 2% of the transacted price has to be paid before being refunded by Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri once it is checked and cleared.

Now, in 2012, after it was announced in the 2012 Budget in October 2011, the RPGT was changed again. Starting from January 2012, RPGT will now be two-tiered. within the same vein when it was reintroduced in 2010, RPGT, which is taxed on any profit gained from the sale of a property will beat the rate of 10% for any disposal below 2 years of ownership. Any property disposed after 2 years of ownership but less than 5 years will still have a 5% levy but none will be levied after 5 years of ownership.

Links on the issue of RPGT :

- My blogpost on RPGT in 2012

- Official portal of LHDN

- Online brochure of RPGT by LHDN

8) Regulation for banks in giving out property loans

In 2011, as announced in Budget 2011, in order to slow down the overheating property market and to stop property speculator in damaging the economy of scale for genuine buyers, especially those who are in need of affordable houses, the government changed the rule on the amount of property loans given by financial institutions at any one time. Using Bank Negara Malaysia as the enforcer, financial institutions can only gives out housing loan in the margin of 70% for anyone who has more than 2 properties. It means that if someone who already has 2 properties bought using housing loans, the next property loan he takes will be limited to a margin of 70%. This does not deter anyone who is cash rich to buy more than two houses and still speculates.

The rule had affected sales of properties as only genuine buyers may now buy property and not speculators. The news of the change of how housing loan is given out by banks through a new ruling by Bank Negara Malaysia did not help, either. It was decided in not so many words, the criteria on the margin of loan and maybe the interest rate levied on a property loan will now change due to the way a housing loan application is calculated. On the table but not yet announced or implemented is the new rule where the calculation for an application of a housing loan will be based on nett income of a borrower and not the current usage of gross income. It may even means that one person or one household with incomes below RM5,000-00 can now only own one property below the price of RM300,000-00. It will be in line with the promotion of affordable houses by the government though.

The links on this not yet determined its accuracy news can be found below :

- News on the nett income calculation for housing loans

- Banks may offer more competitive home loans

- Round up of Budget 2012 on property and construction sectors



These are all the news I consider worthy to be mentioned as the biggest property news in Malaysia during 2011. Some are already being implemented and some are coming days. From what I see, there are only a few keywords to the news : Affordable houses and Curbing Speculations.


HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!

7th World Islamic Economic Forum (a post mortem)

I am now back in the office after more than a week in Kazakhstan for the 7th World Islamic Economic Forum. Imagine my surprise when most of my social media friends are interested whether the Prime Minister was really marrying off her daughter than anything about his presence at the Forum or any of the bilateral meets he was in. That's politics I guess, which I am not a part of at all unlike those few personalities like Khairy Jamaludin whom I hung out with as we were attending events at the Palace of Independence, the venue for the Forum.

As a delegate of the 7th WIEF, what did I managed to garner? Some will say attending forums like this are a waste of time and will cost you a bomb. Some forums could be said to have caused me a dent but this one is considered the lesser of all those other forums. My real cost was the flight tickets I had to forked out. It would have been cheaper if not for the late confirmation by other Malaysian delegates which would have gotten us a cheaper deal for the flight tickets from Air Astana (the only Kazakhstan's national carrier). As for my accommodation, let just say I knew a few persons who allowed me to bunk-in with them. The fee of USD500 which are charged on any delegates

The 7th WIEF consisted of 3 days. On Day 1, it was the Young Leaders Network Forum and the Women Entrepreneurs Forum together with the Marketplace. The Young Leaders Network Forum targets those who wants to connect and meet with all those Muslims who have made it as CEOs and have been contributing to Muslims growth worldwide. We have speakers from Malaysia, Kazakhstan, banks, corporations, individuals, artistes, coordinators and NGOs. The Women Entrepreneurs Forum did the same but the issues are skewed towards women. These two forums finished in the afternoon at 5pm but most of the delegates stayed for the whole 3 days.

As for the Marketplace, showcase by visual artistes and performance are shown. Here are some of those performance :

Day 2 : Grand Opening by President of Kazakhstan, keynote speeches by Prime Minister of Malaysia, Vice President of Indonesia, President of Djibouti, Prime Minister of Azerbaijan and President of Islamic Development Bank. It was chaired by Tun Musa Hitam, the Chairman of World Islamic Economic Forum. Then the forums started in the afternoon and you had to make a choice of either going to two plenary sessions with regards to various topics or go to see more performances and talks about arts.

Day 3 : There were only plenary sessions which included one topic close to my heart as an Islamic finance practitioner entitled 'Islamic Banking : Raising the Bar'. They also had some scientific discussion about food safety, food security, halal industry and a few others. 

What I managed to gain :

1) Contacts from those who travel from Malaysia with me as we are stuck in the same airplanes, airports, hotels and conference halls;

2) Meet and greet with personalities I can only imagine trying to meet in Malaysia like ex-Prime Ministers, Ministers, television personalities, singers and such;

3) Meeting foreign delegates whom I either managed to garner businesses from or connect with clients of mine who were also there at the same time;

4) Promoting my books either among delegates or dignitaries;

5) To a lesser extent, manage to get to know new culture (and food);

6) Actually had a mini-reunion with a few of my schoolmates who have now become Malaysia foreign service officers;

Was it worth? Short answer : Yes. Long answer : Depends on what I do with all the contacts I have found there.

Here's the link to my book fanpage to see whom I have given my book to :

Malaysian personalities and my book

Islamic economy is all about risk

In 4 more days, I will be flying to a foreign land called Kazakhstan to attend the 7th World Islamic Economic Forum. I have heard of Kazakhstan but I never dream I will ever go there. Let us not start on the Borat references when people mentioned Kazakhstan. As there are a few of my friends going there, with their separate reasons, and most of them are on Twitter, we have been discussing what we may find there. It seems that one common theme we found out is that they have a very close relationship with horses. They ride them, use them in their everyday live and they even eat horse meat.

However, let us look at why at Islamic finance and Kazakhstan. Why would anyone would want to bring something new to a new frontier? Wouldn't it be risky if something goes wrong? Why don't we compete for a piece of the pie in London or New York? Or maybe even Singapore? At least, all these countries have the facility which will help Islamic financial institutions to gain footings and spread out. Anyone who knows about the politics of Islamic finance (yes, there is politics when you want to establish a strong foothold as the hub of anything to do with finance) will know why.

Malaysia has long want to establish itself as an Islamic finance hub. Our nearest competitor was once Bahrain. However, all those old-moneyed financial hubs like London, New York and Singapore wanted the oil-dollar which is synonym with Islamic finance. Kazakhstan is a new frontier. No one actually know what to expect from this country. What people know is that they were part of the former Soviet Union and they have oil. So, why don't Malaysia take a risk and market our expertise as the expert in Islamic finance. And no one can deny that as we have a lot to offer in Islamic finance. It is much like the trip I did to South Korea with an Islamic bank in Malaysia which is trying to introduce Islamic finance to South Korea.

Where do we stand in Islamic finance? We have Malaysia Islamic Finance Center which is basically a one-stop center for anything to do with Islamic finance. My second degree which comes from International Center for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF) is also a MIFC initiatives. Banks and other financial institutions have opened and are opening branches in Malaysia as fast as our Central Bank can issue them. Our own banks have forayed into other market and even our food franchises like KFC has break into new markets like India and Cambodia. And yes, also the World Islamic Economic Forum which is in its 7th year.

World Islamic Economic Forum wants to be the platform like World Economic Forum is. Group discussion, place for announcement of new initiatives for Islamic finance, roundtable discussion among the Islamic finance players either on the government level, authority level and Islamic financial institution level. It was held in Kuala Lumpur last year and I attended most of the forums. Other than forums, it also showcase talents like painters, musicians, filmmakers, artistes and thinkers in Islamic world under the Marketplace. That is why my friend Altimet, who can be considered as the Malaysian feel-good rapper with songs like Syukur and Kotarayaku, is going there too.

It is important to note that Islamic economy is not just limited to Islamic finance. Islamic economy include everyday commerce, food, creative endeavors and every commodities which conventional economy also trade in as long as it doesn't deal with anything prohibited by Islam like alcoholic drinks, pigs or any other things not allowed under Islam, free from any elements of riba', gharar and maisir. It must also be based on real economy in contrast of making money out of nothing such as speculation. The short version of Islamic finance principal is 'No Risk, No Gain'.

This time around as we are there while we are attending the forums, observing showcases and basically being in the thick of things, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook and other social media links which you can add us on through the links below (just hoping we can get good internet connection) :

Links for updates :

Facebook : kruel74 Facebook
                   Ask The Lawyer Facebook page
                   Khairul, Suhaila & Hazlina Facebook page
                   Altimet Facebook page

Twitter : @kruel74 Twitter page
               @altimet Twitter page

And to know more about the 7th World Islamic Economic Forum, here is the link to their website : 7th WIEF.

My First Home Scheme breakdown : Choose your first property carefully

A few days ago, on 8th March 2011, after announcing it in Bajet 2011 in October 2010, Malaysia's Prime Minister, Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak finally announced the mechanism for the First Home Scheme (Skim Rumah Pertama) in Malaysia. Malaysia is not the first country to have a First Home Scheme as a few other countries like Australia also has the same scheme for its citizen.

A few days, there was an announcement from the Housing and Local Government Minister, Datuk Chor Chee Heung, that they will amend the Housing Development (Control & Licensing) Act 1966 to ensure housing developer will be more accountable. This was said during the launch of SP Setia Berhad's smartphone application. According to the news report, which you can read here, he was to have said first time buyer to not be too choosy when buying their first property. That seems to be a contradiction from his first statement.

As announced by the Prime Minister, let us look at the breakdown on how does one get to be a part of this scheme :

1) You must be below 35 years old and never own a house before;

2) Your household income (combined income if you are married) must not exceed RM3,000.00;

3) You don't need to come up with the ten percent down-payment of the house which you want to purchase. This 10% will be guaranteed by Cagamas Berhad;

4) The price for the property must be below RM220,000.00. Some news report has put the amount to be between the price of RM100,000.00 and RM220,000.00;

5) Currently, a stamp duty discount of 50% is already being enjoyed through a stamp duty exemption given on any instrument of transfer and loan agreement instruments for houses priced not more than RM350,000.00. This means that the exemption of 50% will also be enjoyed by those who do not participate in the First Home Scheme. The exemption is given under Stamp Duty (Remission) (No. 3) Order 2010. The Valuation and Property Services Department has set the mechanism for one to get the exemption, they must give an undertaking through a statutory declaration which specifically said they have bought a property costing not more than RM350,000.00. This 50% discount applies for any Sale & Purchase Agreement executed between 1st January 2011 and 31 December 2012;

6) All the matters regarding the application to get the 100% loan (including the 10% downpayment for the property guaranteed by Cagamas Berhad) is handled by the few banks which has been appointed by the government as the financiers for the First Home Scheme. Some of the banks are Alliance Bank, Standard Chartered As-Saadiq, CIMB Islamic Bank, AmBank Berhad and Maybank Berhad. These banks should have a product which relates to the First Home Scheme;

The mechanism for buying a property under this First Home Scheme is stated below :

1) Go look for the property and pay a booking fee to a housing developer of your choice. Make sure you choose a reputable developer if you are buying it from a housing developer and if you are buying it from another individual, make sure you have check thoroughly the property;

2) Inform the vendor that you are going to apply for the First Home Scheme;

3) Choose the bank which participate in the First Home Scheme and apply for the loan. You must proof to the bank of your eligibility to apply under the scheme. Supply them with your proof of income and information about the property you are buying;

4) When your loan have been approved, appoint a lawyer to handle the transactions with regard to your Sale & Purchase Agreement and loan agreements which will prepare all the undertakings for the First Home Scheme;

5) Monitor the progress of your property and your loan (including the repayment)

Basically, this news is good for the young working adult in the whole country but you will be hard-pressed to find any house at the price of below of RM220,000-00 within the city areas. It may even be a way for the government to move the concentration of people populating city centers. However, this will only bring another question : When will the issue of connectivity be resolved? Here's hoping to the MRT project is one of the answer.

2010 : 2 achievements which made it memorable

I have been posting so many updates on these two events that I seem to be beating it to death by blogging about it again and again. However, when these two achievements are the only events which I take it as another landmark of my still young life, I need to make a marker for them on the only life highway I own.

So, let make it short as you can see through my other postings how much I treasure these milestones.

One was adding a title to my name as a published author. Never mind the fact I was targeting to be a fiction writer but my books (same book, different language, both written by me) are out there being sold and can be found in most of the bookstores in Malaysia like MPH, Popular and even Kinokuniya. 

The English version is '40 Questions You Should Ask Your Lawyer Before Buying a Residential Property in Malaysia' whilst the Bahasa Malaysia version is '40 Soalan Yang Patut Anda Tanya Sebelum Membeli Rumah Kediaman Anda Di Malaysia'. One was out on 1st February 2010 and the other on 1st May 2010.

Through these books, I was invited to be speakers in seminars and talks. Through it I can be found in the web as more than just a lawyer or a blogger (or more of a social media whore). I have a Facebook page for these books and I am constantly checking the availability of these books and even update my search for it. Now both books are in its second print. Seem like people are buying it.

After that achievement, I was told in October, a week before my birthday, I am a graduate of International Center for Education of Islamic Finance (INCEIF) in Certified Islamic Finance Professional. Add another title of CIFP at the back of my name. Building my legal firm into a force to be reckon with on Islamic finance.

These two are just but small achievements as they are selfish indulgence.

This year, I want to be more proactive in contributing to society. Looking for a worthwhile project or maybe even projects.

As I tweeted before : 

My 2011 resolution is 

to be resolute in my resolutions

Islamic Finance weekend plus Monday

It was a very important occasion for me on a personal level and my legal firm as I graduated from International Center for Education of Islamic Finance ("INCEIF")on 23rd October 2010. I now can add Chartered Islamic Finance Professional at the back of my name or CIFP (INCEIF) in short. I started the part time program of this course in 2007 and now I managed to graduated with around 80 other graduands. Our names were published in the newspaper on that day.

All this week, other than the graduation ceremony of INCEIF graduands, there was a bigger event in Malaysia relating to Islamic finance. It was the Global Islamic Finance Forum or GIFF in which INCEIF played a very big role. As Islamic finance grows, these professionals are needed to fill the needs of Islamic finance institution like syariah advisory boards, takaful operators, Islamic banks, sovereign funds of Islamic countries and universities which are supplying these professionals.

On Sunday, 24th October 2010, the Association for Chartered Islamic Finance Professional was launch and it is supposed to be a platform for all CIFP members to connect with each other exchanging ideas even after they became graduates. In short, it is an association for those still studying and those who have graduated, which is most universities is known as alumni.

On Monday, 25th October 2010, it was the first day of the Global Islamic Finance Forum  (GIFF) which had the Malaysian PM, Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak, the Central Bank Governor, Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar, and the patron of Malaysia Islamic Finance Center, Raja Nazrin Shah gracing the opening ceremony. At the end of it, there was the announcement of the International Islamic Liquidity Management Corporation to manage Islamic countries the liquidity of the countries who agree such as Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Bahrain, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Indonesia and a few others. It was a coup by Islamic Financial Service Board as they will be managing the fund.

All this Islamic finance development is made more meaningful as I also achieved a new personal milestone and this picture is one of the best that I will treasure forever :

With the Chancellor of INCEIF and Governor of Central Bank Msia