UOA expects steady property demand

UOA Development Bhd, which had sold RM146mil worth of properties so far this year, expects demand to be steady despite concerns about the goods and services tax (GST) and strict lending rules by banks.

“We expect revenue for 2015 to be consistent, taking into account the projects to be launched this year,” said general manager Eugene Lee after the group’s 11th AGM yesterday.

“Construction costs are expected to rise. Although, we have added GST in our costing, it’s too early to estimate how much it’s going to go up,” he said when asked the outlook for the year.

UOA had a good start in 2015, as first quarter ended March 31 net profit surged 76% to RM78.48mil from RM44.65mil a year ago on the back of a 79% hike in revenue to RM313.70mil from RM174.98mil.

Lee said projects in the pipeline for 2015 has an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM2.42bil, which included a mixed integrated development on 10 acres in Kepong (GDV of RM1.5bil) expected to be launched in the second half of 2015. - The Star