AFFORDABLE HOUSING: SPNB'S RMR 2.0 HELPS YOUNG MAN SECURE HIS FIRST HOME

PELABUHAN KLANG, June 25 (Bernama) -- A young man's dream of owning his own home by the age of 20 came true when Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB) approved his application under the Rumah Mesra Rakyat (RMR) 2.0 programme last April.

Muhammad Nurjihad Ramli, a recipient of the RMR 2.0 house, expressed his joy at no longer needing to rent, as the house in Telok Gong here, built with savings he and his mother accumulated, is expected to be completed this August.

"My mother works as a cleaner during office hours and sells nasi lemak after work at home to supplement our income.

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"In addition to helping my mother with her business, I also work as a 'live host' on social media. With the money earned and saved over time, we will soon own our own home," he said.

He shared this during an interview with Bernama at the handover ceremony of the first RMR 2.0 house in Selangor, officiated by SPNB chairman Datuk Husam Musa today.

Muhammad Nurjihad described SPNB's programme as highly significant in helping those in the B40 group like him to own a comfortable home at an affordable price.

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Meanwhile, Imran Izzuddin Samrizal, 27, the first recipient of the RMR 2.0 house in Selangor, said the programme should be expanded, as it offers the target group the opportunity to own homes on their own land at a very reasonable price.

"This 750 square feet (69.68 square metres) house is RM75,000 but we only need to pay RM55,000. It is considered very reasonable given the high and rising cost of building materials,” he said.

Meanwhile, Husam said SPNB had built 65,817 units of RMR houses (RMR 1.0 and RMR 2.0) nationwide since 2002.

He said that for RMR 2.0, they had received 1,149 applications since its introduction in February, with 386 units currently under construction and 10 units completed and ready for occupancy.

Husam said that the Ministry of Finance had also agreed to allocate an additional RM240 million through the Ministry of Housing and Local Government to build more of such houses this year.

He explained that the eligibility criteria for applying for RMR 1.0 and RMR 2.0 were the same, with a household monthly income not exceeding RM5,000, with applicants receiving a government subsidy of RM20,000.

“The difference is that RMR 1.0 applicants need to take an interest-free loan of RM55,000 through SPNB and must mortgage their land, with approval granted based on a waiting list.

“For RMR 2.0, applicants do not need to mortgage their land, and the remaining payment of RM55,000 is paid in cash to SPNB, making the approval process much quicker as there is no waiting list,” he said.

Those interested in the RMR 2.0 programme can apply online via the official SPNB portal at www.spnb.com,my. 

-- BERNAMA