KUALA LUMPUR: Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming has dismissed a proposal to impose limits on home purchases for investment.
He said that it was not the government's role to restrict investments in the real estate sector, which has proven to be an effective hedge against inflation and a means of wealth preservation.
He said that such restrictions could lead to a collapse in the property market and adversely affect some 200 industries connected to real estate, including contracting, plumbing, banking, and legal services.
"If the real estate sector collapses, the consequences for our country could be dire," he said during a press conference on the ministry's 2025 budget allocation.
Nga also said that the government's priority was to ensure that no bubble exists in the real estate market, and current conditions remain stable.
Previously, former Umno leaders Khairy Jamaluddin and Shahril Hamdan suggested in the Keluar Sekejap podcast that limiting property purchases could alleviate the affordable housing crisis by addressing the surplus of unsold high-end homes that inflate prices.