Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has revealed that despite the high number of People’s Housing Projects (PPR) and Public Housing (PA) units available to low-income residents in the city, about 63,000 applicants are still waiting for their chance to own their own home.
DBKL director for housing management and community development Wan Mohd Ghazali Nor told Bernama that part of the problem stems from several housing receipients renting out their units for profit.
“If they already have their own house, give back the PPR or PA units to DBKL. They are many more people who need the houses,” he said.
DBKL executive director of economic development Mohd Sauffi Mohamad also commented on the matter, saying that PPR and PA recipients who are found to have flipped their properties for rent money would have their units taken back.
Mohd Sauffi added that based on a survey conducted last year, 35% (16,723) of the 46,454 units of PPR and PA houses were believed to have been rented out by the registered lessees, who were the original recipients of the housing units.
Several PPR and PA units have also been rented out to foreigners for between RM300 and RM500 a month, with some units being rented out for as much as RM1,000 a month.
As of March this year, DBKL had repossessed 150 PPR and PA housing units after the registered owners were found to have leased the houses to other people.
Last year, 490 units were seized and the names of the recipients were blacklisted, he added.
Mohd Sauffi said DBKL would continue to conduct checks at PPR and PA housing to ensure no breach of the lease agreement by recipients of the houses.
