After Sabah quake, should Malaysian property investors rethink risk?

Following the Sabah earthquake, Malaysian property investors are questioning how seismic risk could impact property values and buyer confidence. Read more at straitstimes.com.

KUALA LUMPUR – When Ms Mastura Malak bought her first home in Kajang, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, in 2018, she thought about location, price and capital appreciation. Earthquake risk did not enter the equation.

The 37-year-old mother of three paid RM245,000 (S$79,615) for the property. Two years later, she added a condominium in the coastal resort town of Desaru, Johor, for RM400,000. Both have since appreciated. For her, like many Malaysians, property is a means to long-term financial security – not a seismic gamble.

Then, just before 1am on Feb 23, the ground shifted.

A 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Sabah, sending tremors as far as Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. There was no tsunami warning, no major structural damage and no reported casualties. The shaking lasted only seconds.

But Malaysia is a country where homes are often a family’s largest investment – a wealth-building tool, a retirement buffer, an inheritance asset. Seismic risk has rarely featured in buying decisions.

The Feb 23 tremor in Sabah has changed that calculus, at least for some property buyers, and prompted an uncomfortable question: What happens to property values and buyer confidence if a stronger quake strikes closer to urban centres?