City & Country: Size and value don’t matter

The haven/The Edge My Dream Home Contest is back!

Brought to you by Alliance Bank and organised in association with Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) and Institut Perekabentuk Dalaman Malaysia (IPDM), the contest has been crafted to recognise homes that are outstanding and truly unique.

This is the third year of the annual contest and looking at the entries in the previous contests, there is no doubt that dream homes abound in Malaysia and by extension outstanding architectural, design and interior design talent.

Let us revisit the attributes of a dream home.

Fret not if your dream home is hardly sprawling in size. Or that it is not half as pricey as perhaps your good friend’s. In our idea of a dream home, size and value are not prerequisites. We are searching for homes that push back the boundaries of architectural skill, design and taste.

A dream home must be aesthetically pleasing — architecturally and in both its interior and external spatial planning. It must be comfortable to live in, functional and well maintained. It should also be environmentally friendly and help promote sustainability.

The real estate could be situated in the heart of the bustling KL city centre, for instance. Or it could be perched among greens in suburban Selangor. We are convinced that city living does not mean saying goodbye to nature. By the same token, a home in the suburbs need not be short of modern conveniences. All in all, a dream home can exist in the heart of a city or away from it.

Last but not least, a dream home must be one that encourages a strong sense of neighbourliness. It is difficult to imagine living in a dream home that is surrounded by upset neighbours!

If you are living in your dream home, we would like to hear from you.

For six weeks starting from this issue, we will be revisiting the gold and silver winners in last year’s contest.



This article appeared in City & Country, the property pullout of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 749, April 6-12, 2009