Malaysia Money Matters

Let's be a little snarky for once - really, "Astoria" .. is the developer trying to 'tumpang glamour' from the Waldorf-Astoria of New York? Did you know where the name Astoria comes from? It is from the old-money New York family, the Asters. Specifically, the erstwhile matriarch Mrs Aster was so incensed that the Waldorf hotel was built next to her mansion that she decided to move out and build her own hotel on the site called the Astoria. The two hotels later joined up and became the now famous Waldorf-Astoria. So what does this story have to do with Astoria Ampang? Nothing really, except for the penchant of Malaysian developers to choose fancy names for their condos that have NO RELEVANCE whatsoever. :) Anyway, I saw the ads and came across their show booth during the Renovation Expo at the KL Convention Centre that was held during the 3rd week of January. Only had a cursory glance and a brief conversation with their sales people - the lady was nice ...

Was walking through Publika after dinner and came across their booth - also, my friend was talking to me about it earlier that day, so it piqued my interest. Looks like a nice design. The location is decent - being in Ampang but there are some cons to it that I will get to in a bit. A brief run through:  - Leasehold  - Unit sizes from 500 sf to 1,100 sf  - Cost per square foot starts from RM600+; so the small studio is about RM400,000  - About 1,000 units (very dense) with 1 car park per unit  - The tower blocks are oriented in an East-West manner; West facing = KLCC view, East facing = Ampang / mountain view Didn't really go through all the facilities and payment option but I hear tell that it is a quasi-DIBS with minimal downpayment and large discount. My thoughts are: Pros: Location is close to town, still within DBKL limits, I believe Small size, fairly affordable and easy to rent out (maybe!) Easy access to MRR2, AKLEH and DUKE highw...