Talk by Hartamas Group

Group photo of UTAR staff and students with director, associate director and top executives from Hartamas.

The Centre for Sustainable Development and Corporate Social Responsibility in Business (CSDCSR) in collaboration with Department of Building and Property Management welcomed Hartamas Group’s higher management for a knowledge sharing session on the 7 July 2015 at Sungai Long Campus.

A total of two talks were conducted entitled “Property Market Outlook – Opportunities and Trends” and “A Career in Real Estate” for academic staff and students. The talk was presented by Sales and Marketing Director Kelvin Lim, and Christopher Chan, Associate Director from Hartamas Real Estate (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd. They were accompanied by 6 colleagues from Hartamas namely:

Patrick Chong, Executive Director of Hartamas Asset Management Sdn Bhd;
Desmond Tho, Branch Director at OUG Branch of Hartamas Real Estate (M) Sdn Bhd;
Francis Kon, Branch Director at Kota Damansara Branch of Hartamas Real Estate (M) Sdn Bhd;
Maxwell Tan, Branch Director at Setia Alam Branch of Hartamas Real Estate (M) Sdn Bhd;
KC Chan, Team Manager of Hartamas Real Estate (M) Sdn Bhd and
David Wu, Training and Marketing Manager of Hartamas Academy Resources Sdn Bhd

On hand to receive and welcome the guests were CSDCSR Chairperson Dr Falahat Nejadmahani Mohammad, Head of Department of Building and Property Management Low Chin Kian and UTAR academic staff.

The main purpose of the talk was to introduce academic staff and students to the latest market analysis and outlook of the property industry in Malaysia and the career opportunities available in this industry.

Kevin started off by explaining the vibrancy of the property sector since year 2014 until today. However, due to the global and local economic uncertainty, he indicated that the rest of the year would show slower progress. He foresaw property developers launching their properties with more creative selling techniques, especially for residential properties. As for office and commercial spaces, he indicated that there was oversupply in the market which led to market overflow, but stressed that properties in good locations may not be impacted.

He further presented five trends indicating why Kuala Lumpur would be a good place to invest. The trends such as urban migration leading to higher densities, availability of public transportation, upscale-luxury which is the availability of luxurious brands and services, decongestion via alternative transportation and the green movement which emphasises on environmentally conscious development and activities.

Subsequently, Christopher presented the floor with the opportunities available in real estate for employment purposes. He demonstrated that real estate is a huge industry which comprised of over 250 ancillary industries supporting the mainstream property industry.

Lim (Left) and Chan (Right) presenting to academic staff and students

Q & A session and discussion from the floor.

Dr Falahat presenting a token of appreciation to Lim and Chan