Is Sentosa Restu a reliable property developer?

Is Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd. (a subsidiary of Talam Group) a reliable property developer?  I am having doubts now.  The Selangor state government has recently announced the re-purchase of some of theTalam’s land bank, due to non-payment of debts to the government. How can a PLC  having debts due to a government (Selangor was under BN then) for so long?  Again, there is something amiss. Your guess is as good as mine.

Talam group, specifically Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd, the developer of Suria Kinrara Commercial Centre and Komplek Suria Kinrara appeared in the news again for the wrong reason. This time is regarding the issue with SYABAS on the disconnection of water supply to Suria Kinrara Commercial Centre (the commercial project next to Komplek Suria Kinrara). See the picture ==>

       

What amazed me is the issue of bulk water meter and non-payment of maintenance fees. First issue is why should there be a bulk water meter, when all the property owners have already migrated to individual water meter installed by  SYABAS? Second issue is why should there be maintenance fees for the shop/office lots. There is no common property in the project. Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya should have taken over the responsibility for street lighting. Public road maintenance and garbage collection, once the CF is issued and assessment raised on individual owners. The owner should pay the municipal tax and not the maintenance fees. What is going on?  There are some missing connections somewhere. Can Sentosa Restu officers clarify on these issues?

Hopefully, the same issues do not recur in our Komplek Suria Kinrara. We have to form the  Residents Association and the JMB quickly. I have lost confident in the management of Talam and Sentosa Restu.

See the news clip from Star

***********************************************

Saturday December 11, 2010

Syabas reconnects bulk meter after payment by developer

By EDWARD R. HENRY 
edward@thestar.com.my

WATER supply to 80 business operators at the Kinrara Commercial Centre in Taman Kinrara Section 3, Puchong, was restored after three days when the developer paid an initial deposit of RM20,000 to Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) yesterday.

Syabas disconnected the bulk meter to restaurauts, laundry outlets, air-conditioner shops after the developer, Sentosa Restu Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Talam Corporation Berhad, failed to settle RM119,510 in bills.

Talam Corporation senior vice-president I Tan Bak Hai said the action to disconnect water supply to the business premises was harsh.

“We understand that there has been unpaid water bills but this is linked to certain matters with the Joint Maintenance Body (JMB) that was formed in 2008 but later disbanded.

“No maintenance fees is being collected except for the quit rent,” he said after meeting the operators at Kinrara assemblyman Teresa Kok’s service centre in Taman Kinrara.

Tan said they made an initial payment of RM20,000 to Syabas to reconnect the bulk meter with the balance to be paid in instalments.

Air-conditioner outlet operator Kuan Hong Chan, 38, claimed he did not receive any notice on the supply disconnection.

“It is unfair as in 2008, we had migrated from the bulk meter to individual meters. Most of us with the individual meters make good our payments and should not be penalised if Syabas is not able to account for the non-revenue water,” he said.

Kuan added that the bulk meter should be dismantled as business owners had been given individual ones.

“We can’t go on footing the difference between the total amount of water used at the premises and the recorded figure on the bulk meter.

Water leakages are outside the shops and this non-revenue water charges must not be plastered on us,” he said.

Restaurateur Prem Mohan, 40, said he found it hard to operate his business without water.

“We are prompt with our payments and Syabas should not penalise us but resolve the matter with the developer.

“It is absurd and unethical for Syabas to get its non-revenue water dues by shutting the taps of businesses after collecting payment for the individual meters,” he said.

Kok urged the business operators to re-establish the JMB to ensure no other problems would occur.

“It would be good to have the JMB as the owners would be able to resolve issues regarding utilities and even the garbage collection in the area,” she said.

Komplek Suria Kinrara Update

This whole complex is still not ready for occupation. No electricity is connected to the individual unit of apartments and shops yet. The question is how MPSJ can issue the Certificate of Fitness for Occupation at this juncture. It is also morally wrong for the vendor to hand over the property to purchasers without full completion.

The purchasers’ committee met with the management of the vendor and the maintenance company on 26 November 2010 to resolve some of the issues.

1.      Maintenance fees.

The maintenance company started collecting maintenance fees from October 2010 when no services are provided. Subsequent to the complaints and protest from the purchasers, the maintenance company has agreed to temporary waived the maintenance fees for the months of October to December 2010 but purchasers have to pay a reduced amount of security fees of RM50 per month for the same period. For purchasers who had already paid the full maintenance fees, the amount will be credited and used to offset January to March 2011 fees.

The new maintenance fees effective from 1 January 2011 shall be reduced to RM130 per month. This works out to 15 sen per sq. foot, plus sinking fund and garbage collection fees.

2. Perimeter fencing will be retained for safety reason. All gates will be opened when  a shop is opened for business.
3. Residents Association is to be formed as soon as possible. The management of Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd is to provide the full list of all purchasers to enable the pro-tem committee to call for meeting and draft the constitution.
4. Security facilties  - car park card access system is in place but the lift lobby and stair case control facilities are not installed yet.  The Card access system to the lift lobby will be installed by the management company. One- way fire exit doors will also be installed at the ground level of all staircases.
5. Lifts to all the blocks will be in service by 1 December 2010. There will be one lift at each lobby operating by then.
6. Water supply is now connected to all units.
7. Electricity supply will be connected to all units by 15 December 2010.
8. Bulk water deposit must be paid by all purchasers. The deposit receipt will be transferred to the Joint Management Board. The deposit is refundable.
9. Defect rectification will be completed within 2 weeks from notice of defects after inspection.
10. No transfer fees levy on purchasers selling the property.
11. Renovation is permitted with the approval of the maintenance company and payment of a deposit of RM1,000. Purchasers are not obligated to use the appointed renovation contractors. Fixing of security grilles and lighting is not classified as renovation and no deposit is required but approval is required from the maintenance company.
12. LAD issue is not resolved. The vendor has no means to pay now. Purchasers should compromise and defer the LAD claim without surrendering your rights to the LAD. Agreed to defer claim but NOT WAIVE the CLAIM. To enable the vendor to proceed with the strata title application, all purchasers should compromise and refrain from any legal action. Legal action at this point in time could jeopardise the strata title issuance.

If there are other issues which purchasers want to highlight for resolution with the vendor, you are welcome to post them on this blog under the “:COMMENT”.

I will bring them to the attention of the committee.

I appeal to all purchasers to co-operate with one another and observe the house rules. Security is the responsibility of every resident. You cannot depend entirely on the guards. We can jointly make Komplek Suria Kinrara a safe and nice place to work (for the business) and live.

Is it ready or not ready for hand over?

The good news of this project is that IJM Construction did a good job by finishing this abandoned project. IJM should also be commended for the fairly good interior finishing, as compared with apartment projects built by other contractors. Of course, there are still defects. But these defects are minor and easily rectifiable. See some of the pictures on the defects.

  

Three weeks has lapsed since the letter of hand over was issued by the vendor. About 50% of the purchasers have taken possession of their units. But can they move in?

Lifts are not fully functioning, swimming pool full of algae not usable, apartment car park access control system not in place. Perimeter chain link fencing still locked, restricting purchasers' access to the premises. Only two guards on duty and no access permitted at the time of visit.

Is this called final completion and ready for handover? The Architect of this project should be taken to task and reported to PAM (Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia).

On top of this, the Management company appointed by the vendor started to collect maintenance fees for the month of October 2010. Is this legitimate and fair to the purchasers? What services are they providing?

All purchaser should demand that no maintenance fees is payable until full services are in place. Purchasers should also demand that the vendor ensure that the premises is habitable before hand over.

See this panoramic view from level 7 Block D

Issues on Hand over of the Suria Kinrara property.

There are a few issues with the developer, Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd.(Vendor), on the final payment and hand over to be resolved:-

1. LAD claim. The vendor requested that we defer the LAD claim. We should deny their request, unless some form undertaking is given by the vendor to compensate the buyers.

The vendor is insolvent. If the LAD is not paid, we have to file legal action, only to liquidate the company. Nothing left to claim.

2. We should request to offset LAD claim with final payment. The LAD is slightly more than the final payment sum. Approximately RM11,000 for each apartment unit.

3. There is no stakeholder (lawyer) appointed to hold the 5% for rectification work. Reason is because the project is a commercial property. Henceforth, there is no stakeholder for the final 5% for defect claim. If the vendor, after receiving the final payment does not complete the defect rectification, we have no avenue for remedy other than futile legal action.

4. I have worked with Ms Theres Kok of DAP, MPSJ and Syabas to get the separate water meter for every unit. We have to pay the individual Syabas and TNB deposits. But why are we required to pay for BULK Water deposit of RM300 each? I have met up with the Manager, Mr. Gan and the marketing staff, Mr. Chew, to protest. The management will meet next week to discuss. We should not pay this amount. The bulk water deposit should be paid by the maintenance company.

5. If the vendor refuse to offset LAD with this 10% final payment and the waive the collection of bulk water deposit, we have to accept the risk of no LAD claim and non recoverable deposit of RM300.00. If buyers refuse to pay, the vendor may withhold the  hand over, but we can collectively go to the court to get a court order to hand over the unit to us.

Another issue is the maintenance fees and the maintenance company. The committee should be consulted first on the appoinment of the maintenance company and the fees to be charged.

I appeal to all the committee members to take up the issues with the vendor.

We hope that goodwill will prevail and all parties' demands can be settled amicably.

The good news. Komplek Kinrara is ready for handover.

Finally,  the good news has arrived.  Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd. has sent the letter to all purchasers for the final 10% payment and the hand over of the apartment unit and shoplot/office lot.

The news of the handover has aroused interest from property agents and potential buyers. You should have received telephone calls from property agents, expressing interest in your property, either for sales or rental.

Every owner is responsible for promoting Komplek Suria Kinrara and helps to maintain the good image of this property. This will enhance the value of the property in the long run and also attract quality occupants to the apartment.

You can also expect better rental income, if you choose to lease the property.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

e-mail and reply to one of the interest party in Komplek Suria Kinrara.

Dear Sonia,

Welcome to Komplek Suria Kinrara. You should have no regret staying here.

The property, Komplek Suria Kinrara, is ready for hand over to buyers now. 

Damansara is a pricey and higher end housing areas, as compared to Kinrara 3. Suria Kinrara is located at the Kinrara 3 commercial area. I cannot speak on the Komplek itself now, until the residents and the business operators have moved in and I can observe the property management's conduct and services. Security should be the top priority.

In term of value and accessibility, this is a value-for-money apartment in a superb location. Bandar Puteri Puchong (by IOI) and Bandar Kinrara (by I&P) are just a short distance away. These are the high end and the most sought-after properties in the Klang valley. The value appreciation is higher than any other projects in the  Klang valley.

This is also the most vibrant business and entertainment hub for the locals, who have moved from Bukit Bintang, Bangsar, and Pudu areas.

Access to the bustling Sunway and IOI Puchong is only 5 minutes away, via Kesas Highway, barring the jam at the toll. There is no toll to IOI Puchong, Bandar Puteri Puchong and Pusat Bandar Puchong. The 3 projects are the " IN " places for all your needs, good food, entertainment shopping, banking etc. 

There is one toll at Sunway for access to Sunway, Kelana Jaya, One U, Uptown and Damanasara.. Only traffic jam is on LDP at the Sunway toll and IOI mall areas. If you use Kesas, it is jam free.

Regards

E-mail received On Mon, Oct 11, 2010 at 11:58 AM, from Sonia Lim <silver_irony16@hotmail.com> wrote:

Hi there,

While googling about the new service apartment - Suria Kinrara, I stumbled upon the blog you dedicated to it. It's quite a good read for someone who's new to all this. y 

Firstly, the price is really attractive, now about RM130,000.  And I'm under a budget, so the price seems right for me. But I'm not very sure about Puchong area because now I'm currently renting in Damansara, which I've always fond of staying. But, as we all know, the prices of properties here are quite pricey. Hence, I'm opening up my option to Puchong area. And looking at this, it's a good buy. But I'm not too sure whether it'll be a good stay. Can you share your thoughts on this?

As I know, the jam in Puchong can also be extremely terrible and I'm actually working in Kelana Jaya. So, would like to know how's the traffic like at that area. And how's the environment around the apartment like as well?

Hope you can share with me more info on this service apartment, for eg. will this also be a good investment? Sorry, if there are too many questions to ask you. As, I've mentioned, someone new to all this.  Very much appreciate if you can share some light with me on this.

Thank you very much! Looking forward to your reply.

P/S: Btw, do you know when the residents be able to shift in? 

Cheers
--
Sonia

Check-list for Suria Kinrara Hand-Over.

Purchasers of the Suria Kinrara apartments, offices and shoplots must be anxiously looking forward to the hand-over date.

Based on the feedback from workers and staff at the site, the certificate of fitness for occupation is expected to be out soon. You can expect the hand-over to purchasers anytime between now and October 2010.

However, do not be too anxious to accept delivery of the vacant unit. Prepare a check-list of all the items that were promised and agreed to by the developer in the original S&P and the court order.

I have listed the items to assist in your compilation of your own check list.

A). Petition No. D6-26-61-08

High Court of Malaysia

(Commercial Division)

Court Order (Perintah Mahkamah) dated 17 September 2008

Issued by the Assistant Registrar of High Court Kuala Lumpur

Puan Normaizan binti Rahim.

Conditions of the petition is to:-

1. give 8 months to the petitioner (Sentosa Restu Sdn. Bhd.) to complete the project.
2. waive rights to claim LAD from the contracted completion date in the S&P to the court sanctioned date of completion i.e 12 September 2009.
3. stop or limit action to be initiated or taken against the developer during the court sanctioned completion period.
4. remove all caveats lodged on the land title of the project.

In consideration of the above conditions granted by the purchasers to the developer :-

1. ceramic tiles to be installed to the yard areas for all purchasers.
2. steel grille gate to be installed at the main entrance door of the unit.
3. electronic security access system to the car park for the unit owners.

B). Other matters to pay attention before signing the hand over acceptance letter from the developer are the items specified in the original S&P and the sales brochure:-

1. Examine the walls, ceiling and the column finishing for any sign of cracks.
2. Check all the paint work – walls, ceiling, doors, grilles & railing.
3. Check all the tile work. Examine closely. Malaysian workmanship for tiles is generally very poor.
4. Check, test and verify all the fittings such as lighting points, 3-pin plug power points, air-conditioner points, fan points, TV aerial socket, telephone socket, switches, tap faucets, WC, shower heads, basin and kitchen sink.

Write down all your claims or complaints on the delivery acceptance letter yourself. Don’t let the site supervisor do it. And make sure both parties sign on the list of defects and complaints.

Very important – before taking the keys to your unit, ensure that you bring along your own padlock. Better still, come with your locksmith to change the main door lock on top of your padlock.

There have been many cases where workers of contractors/sub-contractors of the developer targeting the newly handed-over unit and stripping off all the fittings the day after you took over. Some of the thieves have been observing the owners, while others gather information from the office of the site supervisors or the contractors’ workers.

Don’t be a victim of “Delivery Today, Burglary Tomorrow” and find your unit  completely stripped-off of all the fittings. This is a very common phenomenon nowadays.

Is Suria Kinrara Complex a Serviced Apartment?

I received a couple of e-mails from my blog followers and this latest e-mail and my response is posted for sharing. The same questions could be lingering in your minds too.

Dean has left a new comment on your post "Ray of Hope at Suria Kinara":

Hi Yeong,

I just came across this blog of yours while looking around for an apartment. Thanks for the info of what you have posted, do you mind if I ask a few questions here? Hope you can give your view and comment on it.

1. It seems this is a delayed project from Talam and then revived by IJM. I know there were issues with Talam before and what had encouraged you to invest on this unit?  Answer:In any property investment, the main criteria are LOCATION, PRICE and DEVELOPER. The location is superb, with ease of accessibility to KL, Petaling Jaya, Shah Alam and KLIA/Putrajaya(refer to my blog). Talam , before its financial crisis, has a reputation of delivering medium cost housing to Malaysian and also has the reputation of bad finishing. But finishing can be rectified, as most owners would renovate after taking delivery. So, finishing is non-issue. It is known and accepted facts. Purchasers have discounted this in the price of the property.

2. Since this is known as 'serviced apartment', what is the difference compared to other apartments/condos? Is it furnished? Answer: The term "serviced apartment" was used to skirt around some development regulations. This is not a true serviced apartment but a commercial cum residential complex.  A serviced apartment is one that is fully furnished, with house-keeping services and interior maintenance.  At this point in time, it is not certain if the management company of the property can provided house-keeping and maintenance services. Even, if they do, individual owners may opt for outside service providers for better quality and efficiency.

  

This concept was well established in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines. Malaysia is catching up with the new Pavilion Residence.

3. Have you had a chance to look at the interior yet and check on the quality/finishing? Answer: No. Certificate of Fitness for Occupation is not issued yet. So purchasers are barred from entering. According to the workers at the site, the final touch up is being carry out by the contractors. Utilities are connected and the swimming pool is being filled with water for leakage testing.

My request to take some pictures was denied.

Since the price is known as the cheapest in PJ, not sure if it comes with 'add-on' values to it. Answer: It is plain Vanilla. Bare vacant apartment.

Thanks for sharing! 

Supplementary Agreement for Car park Lot

Water and electricity supply to the project has been connected.

Purchasers were required to sign a supplementary agreement for the car park allocated to them with legal fees of RM250.00 each.

The project is targeted for handover in October 2010. This is a delay of 13 months from the court sanctioned completion date.  Purchasers should rightfully be entitled to claim LAD (liquidated and ascertained damages) for late completion, at the rate stipulated in the original S&P.

With the supplementary agreement for the car park signed, the developer should arrange for strata title for the car park to facilitate future selling and buying by interested parties.  According to the lawyer for the car park supplementary agreement, Ricky Tan & Co., the developer is likely to arrange for this.

What are the advantages of having a separate strata title for the car park? The owner of the car park can sell it if he does not need it. Another unit owner who has more than one car can purchase this additional car park from the seller. The developer can also sell the spare lots or visitor’s lots to interested parties.

The disadvantages are additional legal fees and stamp duties for the strata title, repair and maintenance of your car park and also less free parking space for visitors and more money paid to developer for car park already allocated in the principal agreement.

So, this is a brilliant business idea to squeeze more money from the purchasers, right? We lose a bit but we should console ourselves that we are finally getting the unit we purchased. Some unscrupulous developers do not even revive the abandoned projects at all!

One item that is still outstanding is the individual electricity and water deposit payments to Tenaga Nasional and Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor respectively. Most purchasers have already signed the utilities agreements. Do prepare some reserve cash for these deposits, which may be quite soon.

Complex Suria Kinrara

The promise not fulfilled and the long wait is dreadful. The whole project looks promising and gives hope to the buyers who have to pay progress payments and service loan interest at the same time but deprived the usage of the premises. The Court sanctioned completion date is September 2009. It is already delayed for nine months and still no sign of delivery date. Call to Talam’s office went unattended.  

The project was expected to complete by June 2010.  June came and still no news of the handover.             

Lots of activities are still going on at the site. A chat with some of the workers revealed that the project is due for completion soon.

According to the workers on site, water and electricity supply is not connected yet. Lifts are not installed.

TNB substation is ready but no power supply.










Suria Kinrara, now known as “Complex Suria Kinrara” is a service apartment cum commercial complex. 

This type of residential cum commercial project is commonly found in Jakarta and Bangkok. Suria Kinrara is adopting that concept, albeit on a smaller scale. Those in Bangkok and Jakarta have service apartment or condominium sitting on top of a huge shopping mall. Examples are the Central World, Bangkok and Taman Anggerik, Jakarta. Our equivalents in Malaysia are the Pavilion and Plaza Damas, Desa Hartamas.

Suria Kinrara is a medium cost project in a mainly residential suburb of Puchong. It has superb accessibility and public convenience.
View Larger Map The proposed LRT extension will pass through Jalan Puchong, with a station at Taman Phiak Hong, just at the corner of Suria Kinrara. Public buses ply Jalan Puchong and the surrounding areas. It stops right in front of the complex. For impatient passengers, a short walk to Jalan Puchong main road for more frequent direct bus services to KL town centre.

The project is surrounded by roads and expressways. The Kesas Expressway is just 500 meters away to the north. The old Jalan Puchong is at south corner of the building. The Sungei Besi–Puchong highway is 1.5 km away via Kinrara 2. A new link to the NPE (New Pantai Expressway), Jalan Kelang Lama and Petaling Jaya old town is under construction. For quick access to the KL-Seremban highway and LDP (Puchong-Damansara Expressway) use KESAS or Sungei Besi-Puchong Highway.

The inter-change (picture on the right) link Jalan Puchong to NPE and Petaling Jaya old town, run through Taman Sentosa in Jalan Kelang Lama.

The work on the connecting bridge over the Klang river is going at a fast pace. You can see Menara MPPJ at the far end of the picture.

Other commercial outlets including banks, supermarkets and hyper-markets are all within 1-2 km from the complex.       The bridge is almost completed.

Wishing You a Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year 2010

Wishing all owners and future residents of Suria Kinrara a Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year.

We are looking forward to take possession of the unit we have purchased and hopefully move in very soon.


We believe Suria Kinrara is the first apartment in Selangor with separate water meter installed by Selangor water work (Syabas). We must thank Ms Theresa Kok of DAP and the President of MPSA for their assistance in this achievement.


Sentosa Restu (M) Sdn. Bhd has sent the request for payment of the second last 10% progress payment. I hope owners have paid before the due due date on 9 February 2010. By paying promptly we can assist IJM to complete the interior of the units faster.

Let’s us usher the year of Tiger with a loud roaring.

Suria Kinara is near completion.

Our dream of moving into Suria Kinrara is coming true, albeit some delay. I visited the site on 30 January 2010. The internal road has been paved. The playground and landscaping is still in progress.

Unfortunately I was unable to view the interiorof the building, the car park and the swimming pool areas. Workers are busy putting up the final touch.

View from across the road looks good. See some of the pictures attached.

See the block B & D.(view from the Jalan Puchong traffic light.)   


Oooph! the contractor has forgotten to label block D.  

See the block A & C (view from Caltex station across the road)

See the internal road and playground. 

With the court sanctioned scheme of arrangement, I am wondering how can we claim for the loss of use/liquidated damage for the extended delay from the court sanctioned completion date.. Can somebody shed some light on this issue?

The committee members appointed to represent the buyers have been very quiet for some time. Any ideas what is going on?

Progress up to November 2009

See the  pictures taken in November 2009.

This picture is taken from the Kesas Highway side.

This picture is taken from the 3-storey shop houses on the side of the apartment.