With the current outbreak of COVID-19 in Malaysia and around the world, the Malaysian real estate industry is rapidly moving online – and buyers purchased every one of 329 newly launched apartments in a Kuala Lumpur building in just five hours on Saturday.
Kuala Lumpur-headquartered IQI, the No. 1 real estate network in Southeast Asia and the Middle East and member of the Juwai IQI group, has adopted the use of virtual tours and other tours to move the purchasing process online. The company has also moved online the large events it hosts every week for its thousands of real estate agents in Malaysia.
The company has rolled out a virtual tours initiative in the past week, showcasing property from developers such as Exsim Group to an overwhelming response.
Kashif Ansari, IQI Group CEO, said: “Virtual reality marketing has helped buyers purchase all 329 units in the Bukit Jalil project by Exsim Group in just five hours. These units, ranging from 700 to 1155 sq ft, were priced between RM570,000 and RM860,000, and received overwhelming response from the public. Clearly, the love affair for Malaysian property is continuing despite rising concerns of the spread of COVID-19. In fact, we had more buyers than units and could have sold more if we had had them.
“The safety of our team and the general public is our utmost priority during this outbreak. Sometimes, buyers want to be there in person, to touch and feel the quality of the home they are buying. Investors are the buyers who are most likely to embrace the online real estate transaction instead of in-person. We are making it possible to research, choose, and buy Malaysian real estate without ever leaving your home.
“Over the last couple of months, since the outbreak in Wuhan, China, we have been laying the groundwork to enhance our online offerings. We began looking at ways to promote new developments and showcase property to local and foreign investors purely online. Now that the virus has been declared a pandemic by the WHO, we have almost everything in place.
“Buyers can virtually walk through a three-dimensional image of a property directly from the comforts of their home using their mobile devices or computers. Virtual reality has transformed the entire customer journey and experience. This is especially important in locations where overseas buyers are the sales target as these people want to have a comprehensive idea of what a residence is like before committing to the purchase.”
When it comes to IQI’s team events, Ansari said, “the company has moved all its physical events to online sessions. Our weekly Terrific Tuesdays and Fabulous Fridays usually gather between 100 to 150 people each, but we have moved them completely online.
“This is a great way to keep the team engaged while mitigating risks of infection.”
