Page 372 - The Guide To Sarawak

370 USEFUL INFORMATION
The ASEAN Bintulu Fertiliser head office in Bintulu sets a benchmark for modern office buildings in Sarawak, with communal spaces planned on each floor of the work environment.
southern corridor, which use land more efficiently and enable developers to offer very attractive homes at relatively affordable prices.
APARTMENTS & CONDOMINIUMS Apartments and condominiums are a relatively recent addition to the Sarawak property scene, with no serious developments until the late 1980’s. However, this sector is now becoming increasingly important and there is a wide selection
of properties available for sale or rent, from modestly priced walk-up apartments to luxurious penthouses. There is also an emerging trend to build attractive out-of-town or seafront properties for second home investors, especially in the Santubong Peninsula near Kuching and the seafronts of Miri and Bintulu.
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY
Nearly all of the commercial property available for sale or rent comes in the form of shophouses. These are modern terraced buildings based on a traditional Chinese concept, usually 3 or 4-storeys, designed for mixed retail, commercial and residential use. They are usually bought by small investors or as a retirement plan, with the ground floor being let out to a shop
techniques and economies of scale to provide quality homes for lower middle- income buyers.
MIDDLE INCOME HOUSING
The majority of middle income homes in Sarawak are in mixed developments of terraced and semi- detached homes. These can range from small private developments to huge satellite townships, such as the Naim Group’s Bandar Baru Permyjaya in Miri, MJC Group’s MJC Batu Kawah or CMS Property’s Bandar Baru Samariang
in Kuching. Whilst most
of these properties are conventional in design, there is a growing trend
for townhouses, and even gated communities with
pools and other leisure amenities.
LUXURY HOUSING
Luxury housing in Sarawak usually means properties above RM1 million, although some superb executive homes can be found for far less if buyers are prepared to carry out some modernisation. At the top end, the trend is for luxurious detached residences on large plots of land in popular areas such as Jalan Bampfylde in Kuching or Luak Bay
in Miri. However there
is a growing trend for gated communities and
a recent development
is the emergence of luxurious semi-detached homes, pioneered by the Ibraco Group in Kuching’s