KUALA LUMPUR – The Government should focus on making existing housing laws and buyer-protection measures work instead of measuring progress by the number of new Acts, regulations, portals or initiatives introduced, the House Buyers Association (HBA) says.
HBA said Malaysia already had numerous laws, regulations, agencies and enforcement mechanisms dealing with housing and property, making effective implementation and enforcement a more pressing concern.
It questioned whether introducing another law would solve problems if existing legislation was not being properly enforced.
“If an existing law is good but poorly enforced, passing another law may merely create another layer of bureaucracy,” HBA said.
The association said the same principle applied to regulatory requirements, arguing that creating another form or mechanism would not necessarily solve a problem if existing requirements were not properly monitored.
HBA said housing policy should ultimately be judged by whether fewer homebuyers were harmed, rather than by the number of new laws, regulations, guidelines, portals, committees or initiatives introduced.
It called for greater emphasis on preventing sick and abandoned housing projects instead of relying mainly on measures to rescue projects after they had already failed.
HBA also called for stronger, effective and genuine enforcement and prosecution against errant developers.
The association said another priority should be genuine housing affordability rather than simply increasing buyers’ borrowing capacity.
It also called for meaningful transparency so prospective purchasers could properly assess the real risks associated with a housing project before committing themselves financially.
HBA said better coordination was needed between housing, financial and planning authorities, while existing buyer-protection measures should be implemented more effectively.
It also called for policies that reduce the risks faced by ordinary homebuyers and stronger measures to deal with private liquidators in cases involving defunct property developers.
The association said serious consultation with stakeholders should take place before major housing legislation was introduced.
For HBA, the emphasis should therefore be on outcomes rather than the appearance of reform.
It said a housing system should be measured by whether it actually protects buyers, prevents problems before they occur and makes housing genuinely affordable.
HBA said these were basic requirements of a housing system that puts the interests of homebuyers at its centre. – October 7, 2026