Introduction

There is no national housing policy in Malaysia, although the quinquennial Malaysia Development Plan does outline social and macroeconomic objectives. These stated objectives are to ensure that all Malaysians, particularly low-income groups, have access to adequate and affordable housing.

Housing delivery in Kuala Lumpur and elsewhere in Malaysia has been undertaken by both private and public sectors. The private housing sector comprises large and small-scale developers, individuals, cooperative societies and groups of individuals. Almost 96 per cent of private sector housing has been provided by developers. Hence, cooperative societies and the other agents in the private housing market remain little more than supplementary sources.

The private sector has built not only high and medium-income housing but also low-cost homes. Since the Fourth Malaysia Plan, the state has required private sector developers to cooperate in the provision of low-cost homes. More specifically, the government requires the private sector to provide 30 per cent of housing units that are low-cost in their developments.

The public housing sector comprises largely a range of national and sub-national agencies. Public low-cost housing programmes have been undertaken by the sub-national government agencies under the supervision and monitoring of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government. These programmes comprise low cost housing units, sites and services schemes as well as housing loan schemes. The national government has provided loans to the sub-national agencies or state governments to carry out the low-cost public housing programmes. These funds are channelled through the Ministry of Housing and Local Government.

The State Economic Development Corporations and the Urban Development Authority are other agencies which contribute to public housing within each state at the sub-national level and particularly in urban areas. City Hall in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur prepared the Kuala Lumpur structure plan that since the 1980s has been aimed at addressing urban issues such as housing. The plan actually envisaged that every resident in Kuala Lumpur would have his or her own home.

Housing policies during the colonial period, not unlike those seen in British colonial cities elsewhere, generally adopted a laissez-faire attitude particularly in terms of the provision of housing for Asian urban dwellers. The policies of the Malaysian government have been more interventionist.