From the shockingly high fuel hike last June and its subsequent fall, instability of building material supply and prices, liberalisation of importing building materials and the recent amendment to the Stamp Act 1949, the construction industry is facing one challenge after another.It was not that long ago when unstable building material supply and prices, especially that of steel bars and cement

Sunway City Bhd (SunCity) has joined the league of Malaysian developers whose projects have been awarded the coveted Green Mark certifications by Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA).Sunway Palazzio development in Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, a residential high-rise development, obtained the BCA’s Green Mark Gold Award (provisional), while Sunway Challis Damansara in Sunway Dama

No one would expect an affordable or low-cost housing project to win an international property award but this year, the Fiabci (International Real Estate Federation) Prix d’Excellence Awards found one such winner.The project came out of China, a first-time participant in the awards. Of the four entries from China, two were winners and one a runner-up.

It is not unusual nowadays to see developers jumping on the “green” bandwagon in their new developments.

While many developers are lying low in the current economic downturn, there are some that have gone ahead with their plans.

For over two decades, Damansara Utama’s main commercial centre, Damansara Uptown, has been a hub of activity for businesses and residents in the area. Undoubtedly, Damansara Uptown, located in Selangor’s Petaling Jaya, has been a commercial success for its developer See Hoy Chan Sdn Bhd.

About 1km from the Sibu Airport in Sarawak, is the 1,400-acre Sibu Jaya township. Visitors can get to Sibu Jaya via the Pan-Borneo highway, which also links Sibu to Kuching and Miri. Upon entering Sibu Jaya, you see conventional walk-up shophouses as well as industrial lots.

While the finishing touches are being put to the two-tower Pavilion Residences, the owner of one of these towers is getting ready to sell the luxury condo units in what is described as a “depressed market”.IMMO Pavilion, a German investment services group that acquired Tower 1 en bloc in 1H2008, believes it is the right time to sell as it sees confidence returning to the market.

Azuan Arif Ariffin seems to have a perpetual smile as he looks out the window from his large executive room at the top floor of Wisma Prowara, located off Jalan Melaka in downtown Kuala Lumpur. At 34, he oversees more than RM9 billion worth of property projects in Malaysia for the government-linked AmanahRaya Group.

If you have not visited S P Setia Bhd’s Setia Eco Park in Shah Alam for a while, you might not recognise it today.  The Green-Canopy Lifestyle Biz-Park, covering some nine acres, is the first thing you see in the 791-acre development. S P Setia’s 4-storey corporate headquarters and Canopy Club, the residents-only clubhouse covering 3.5 acres, are located here.