Plaza Batai Shoplots Will Be Demolished To Make Way For Serviced Apartments

By Ammar Haziq  •  25 Jan 2021 in News

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Say goodbye to your favourite cocktail spot at the 49-year old Plaza Batai that will be demolished and redeveloped for serviced apartments according to The Edge Markets.

Comprised of 16 two-storey terraced shop lots, the “upmarket” area located in Damansara Heights is reported to have been bought by businessman Tan Sri Desmond Lim Siew Choon for an estimated RM100 million.

According to The Edge Markets, industry observers told the publication that “based on the existing plot ratio of two and pricing the serviced apartments at RM1,500 psf, a back-of-the-envelope calculation would give a gross development of RM230 million for the project.”

The report also states that if Lim manages to get a plot ratio of three and assuming that, in two to three years, the priced of the serviced apartments will increase to RM1,800 psf, then the GDV could be as much as RM420 million.

“Based on unofficial reports of the acquisition price [of RM100 million], a medium-rise development is most likely, as it would probably face fewer objections than a high-rise,” said Savills Malaysia deputy managing director Nabeel Hussain.

“Damansara Heights is a blue-chip address. You cannot go wrong. Of course, there may be an oversupply now, but this won’t be forever. Covid-19 or not, our economy will bounce back and the property market will recover by 2022/23,” said Shiva Shankar, CEO of real estate agency at Rahim & Co.

“If the product is in the right location, priced right and has the right design, it should sell well. This is not Bukit Beruntung, this is Damansara Heights,” he added.

A valuer who declined to be named said the development in Plaza Batai “may have height restrictions, owing to its the proximity to Istana Negara”, and that any development within 800m from Istana Negara has to adhere to height restrictions.