HOMEOWNERSHIP CHALLENGES FOR MIDDLE-INCOMES GROUP IN SMART CITY BATU KAWAN, PULAU PINANG
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v24i41.2014Keywords:
Homeownership Challenges, Middle-income Group, Smart CityAbstract
Batu Kawan has been designated as a Smart City by the Penang State Government, placing it alongside other major Malaysian smart city developments such as Cyberjaya and Iskandar Puteri, which have similarly experienced rapid urban growth and population inflows. As observed in these smart cities, accelerated development in Batu Kawan has been accompanied by a sharp rise in housing prices for both existing and new units, indirectly creating homeownership challenges for the middle-income (M40) group. This study was conducted using a quantitative approach to identify the level of affordability for smart city in Batu Kawan, Pulau Pinang and to examine the homeownership challenges for smart city in Batu Kawan, Pulau Pinang. A total of 100 Malaysian respondents who live and work in the area participated in the survey through structured questionnaires. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation and mean score analysis. The findings revealed that the level of housing affordability using HAR stood at 28.7%, within the 30% affordability benchmark, yet a notable share of respondents still faced unaffordability. The findings reveal that the main challenge is the mismatch between house prices and income (mean = 4.37, σ = 0.71), reflecting an affordability gap among the M40 group.
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