Given the oversupply of residential units and a rather sluggish outlook for the Kuala Lumpur property market in the year ahead, savvy investors are looking beyond the KL city centre, towards other locations with great potential for growth.

Genting Highlands is one location many property gurus are strongly advocating.

With its spring-like weather, Genting Highlands is both a popular getaway for city folks and a tourist hub. The popularity of Resorts World Genting's (RWG) plentiful entertainment and leisure offerings are further bolstered by its proximity to KL and the accessibility of its roads compared to many other highland destinations.

RWG welcomed 28.7 million visitors in 2019 (2018: 25.9 million) with 24% of visitors comprising hotel guests and the remaining 76% being day trippers. Given the steady growth trajectory, RWG had expected 30 million visitors this year. The outbreak of Covid-19 and Malaysia's movement control order (MCO) have thrown a spanner in the works. However, since RWG reopened its doors on 19 June, the visitors are coming back.

In the first half of July, visitor numbers to RWG have already recovered to more than 50% of pre-Covid-19 levels, according to CGS-CIMB Research, quoting RWG operator Genting Malaysia Bhd. Pretty good considering that our borders are still closed. Once the dust of Covid-19 settles, the growth trajectory is sure to resume, driven by the 10-year RM10.3 billion Genting Integrated Tourism Plan (GITP).

Analysts, market observers and hoteliers alike expect visitor numbers to skyrocket once RWG's outdoor theme park is operational.

RWG's current portfolio of some 10,500 rooms is insufficient to cater to future demand, especially as its average hotel occupancy rate has already hit 95% in 2019 (source: Annual Report 2019).

Once the new outdoor theme park opens, RWG will garner more visitors and there will be more job opportunities, subsequently creating a spill-over effect on the demand of residential and commercial properties within the vicinity, opined Nawawi Tie Leung Property Consultants.

GITP opened up a profitable market to cater to the big gap between a healthily increasing number of visitors and the limited accommodation choices currently available. It is within this context that motivated Tropicana, a renowned household name in property development in Malaysia, to develop Tropicana Grandhill to offer a cool resort experience that attracts nature-loving urbanites to the profitable market.

Prime locations and desirable lifestyle propositions are distinctive hallmarks of Tropicana's developments. Tropicana Grandhill heralds a new health-centric lifestyle trend at 3,000ft above sea level, where the air is cool and fresh, and the environment green and refreshing.

The 112-acre Tropicana Grandhill is the first township development in Genting Highlands with contemplative master planning. It features six pillars -residential, commercial, education, wellness, park and silver hair - to be developed in three phases. Its first residential component is TwinPines Serviced Suites.

TwinPines features hotel-style amenities, facilities and services, including exclusive on-demand concierge services. Its host of modern tropical facilities include an outdoor heated swimming pool. Its two residential towers offer 13 types of units, ranging from 379sf studios to 1,330sf four-bedroom dual-key units. All units will be fully outfitted with furniture, fitting and equipment.

Tropicana Grandhill is minutes away from all the key attractions in Genting Highlands, and is the nearest development in the highland from KL direction.

Investors interested in short-term returns can confidently benchmark their potential gains with comparable properties in the area, which have shown impressive average rental yields of up to 5.7%, according to PropertyGuru. For those focused on the long-term, prospects are even more promising as these freehold units are expected to appreciate dramatically with the culmination of the GITP in 2023, as well as the ongoing expansion of the Tropicana Grandhill megaproject over the next 20 years.

Given the expected surge in demand and supply shortage ahead, investors can look forward to good yields from Grandhill.

Now is a good time as any to secure a piece of future action. Interest rates are currently at historic lows. The government has reintroduced the Home Ownership Campaign (HOC). Those who sign a sales and purchase agreement (SPA) between 1 June 2020 to 31 May 2021 will enjoy the benefit of full stamp duty exemption on the instruments of transfer for properties with a value of up to RM1 million, and on loan instruments for properties valued up to RM2.5 million.

Tropicana Grandhill is also part of Tropicana's 10-TEN Campaign which features 10 not-to-be-missed deals.

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