Malaysia really screwing it up big time

The latest advice by Maybank about the oversupply of housing in Johore, first the Iskandar Economic Zone and now the Forest City built on 4 newly created islands with more housing available must be kind of like a thunderbolt. How are they going to sell anymore housing to the daft Sinkies? With the warning, no matter how daft the Sinkies are, they must know that things are not looking good. And there were talks of developers offering buy one get one free offer. Too good to be true or things are looking real bad, and developers are bailing out before they lost their pants?
 
The housing and commercial projects in Johore were really a very welcome initiatives and many Singaporeans were really salivating and wanting to cash out from Singapore, from their CPF, to move to Johore. There were so many comparative advantages that cannot be ignored. The advantages were real, not imaginery or fictional. It was a good deal, work in Singapore, live and rest in Johore. High income, good exchange rate, low cost, low property prices and cheap cars. The best of both worlds! The Malaysians have been enjoying it for so many years. Now Singaporeans too can have a bite of the cake.
 
Unfortunately good things don’t last. The warning by Maybank is sending shivers to many potential home buyers, even factory owners. And the developers must be trembling in fear. So much money pumped in and now the takers are fleeing. How man? What is happening man?
 
Why is Malaysia killing the golden goose before it lays its golden eggs? I can only see one reason, too many parties want a piece of the cake. The Johore royalties, the local govt, the federal govt, all must be looking at the piece of cheese like a hungry rat. Actually the Johore royalties have all the rights to get a big chunk of the pie. They started with the idea, authorized the projects, even as full participating investors. They deserved to have their profits.
 
But what about the local govt and federal govt? They would find their ways to carve a slice for themselves even undermining the whole concept that makes it viable. How could they be left out of the foodchain? Everyone in the chain must have his bite. Fair. But don’t take too big a bite that all the comparative advantages become disadvantages and turn a win, win project into a lose, lose project. The buyers are not taking the bite. The developers are losing their pants and the royalties falling flat on their faces if they don’t get the acts right.
 
Doesn’t anyone in Malaysia know simple economics or arithmatics? The buyers must have a good deal and the developers too must make their profits. The third parties, the vultures that do nothing, must be careful not to clean up the bones. This apparently is the case. If the Singaporeans, most likely the biggest group of buyers, can see benefits they would come in droves and just buy and buy, buying up everything. The present numbers could easily be absorbed if the conditions are good and make economic sense. When the cost or advantages become meaningless, what is the point? Why pay S$20 daily just to cross the causeway?
 
Singaporeans are daft. No doubt about it. But they cannot be so daft not to notice the advantages are no longer there. From now going forward the two projects would be hitting a stone wall. Well done Malaysia, for cutting your own nose when you could make a good killing and making both sides happy. You can’t believe that Singaporeans are so daft to empty their pockets in a lose, lose proposition right?
 
What’s next? Can the two projects be saved? Would they turn out to be short term mirages? Can the Malaysians work out the sums, make it attractive and make money from it? You can’t have the cake and eat it at the same time, and make the daft Sinkies pay for it? No way, in real life things are not as simple as this, stupid. You must creative value for the buyers. And don’t think you can continue to come out with nonsensical rules and regulations in the future to screw the daft Sinkies. They learnt and know the trick after a while.