Adhering to the standard operating procedure, the judges wore masks during the judging sessions. Seated from left are Suhardi, Lau, Serina and Noraida while
standing from left are Lai, Abu Zarim, Adzman, Wang, Subramaniam and Wong.

To reflect the increased number of award categories offered this year, the number of experts enlisted for the StarProperty Awards 2021 judging panel increased to 10. This was also to reflect the more robust and extra-stringent criteria set for the participating property developers. This year’s panel of judges comes from varied disciplines and different backgrounds, which adds prestige to the 2021 awards.

The group boasts the expertise of an architect, surveyor, valuer, designer, landscaper, engineer and town planner, who all have extensive experience in the property industry. This year’s panel also took into consideration judges with vast experience in property management and valuation for the new Investor’s Choice Award, as well as other awards that include property valuation as part of the criteria. Moreover, the diversity of the judges provides the StarProperty Awards with more comprehensive judging criteria.

In addition, a number of judges provided their input into this year’s awards as well as future ones to ensure that this event’s prestige will continue to reach new heights. This makes the awards a more interesting one going forward. This year’s panel of judges are invited from a number of organisations that are closely linked to the property industry. As stakeholders of the real estate sector, their input towards the StarProperty Awards was indispensable.

The organisations include the Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP), Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM), Malaysia Green Building Council (MalaysiaGBC), Institution of Engineers Malaysia (IEM), Institute of Landscape Architects Malaysia (ILAM), Malaysian Institute of Interior Designers (MIID), Malaysian Institute of Property and Facility Managers (MIPFM), Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM), Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents and Property Consultants in the Private Sector, Malaysia (PEPS) and Star Media Group’s StarProperty.

Here’s what they had to say about the entries this year:

In congratulating the winners, Suhardi said the developers had done a good job in improving the living environment for Malaysians. “As a landscape architect, I really welcome the acknowledgement by the developers of the importance of landscape spaces and features for the development,” he said.

Suhardi is pleased that developers are now taking an active role in ensuring that landscaping becomes an integral part of their developments. In a similar vein, Abu Zarim was pleased that many of the developers went the extra mile for their properties, not just to win awards but also to elevate the standards of properties for home buyers.

He hoped that the developers would continue with their winning ways so their future developments would see further improvements, which will also be beneficial to the real estate industry. Wang pointed out that there were overall steady improvements in the reports submitted for the judging.

“I can see quite a few of them are able to relate to the disadvantages of the times, and design in such a way and package in such a way as to make the projects better,” he said. He was impressed that the developers were able to incorporate value creation into the projects, which is crucial in today’s tumultuous times.

"To be on this list of winners, you have already achieved a brand for yourselves. To maintain a brand is not easy. When you have a brand, you have to maintain your brand," said Lau. If purchasers are happy with the product, they could inadvertently become indirect brand ambassadors for the developers, she added. 

"So maintain your brand and make sure you deliver what you promise," she advised the winners, adding that with many purchasers being of the younger generation, developers need to be both innovative and flexible to cater to their demands as well as the new norm. Echoing this sentiment, Adzman said he would like to see more of such innovations coming to the fore in future projects.

"With the Covid-19 pandemic, we have seen many new requirements and expectations coming from the purchasers and residents. These are related to work, play and stay issues," he said. He said new concepts would have to be incorporated into new developments for the new generation and the multigeneration ones.

Continue to give good concepts and, at the same time, provide products with added value to propel the people's living standards to the next level, he urged the award-winning developers. Wong was pleased with the number of entries despite the challenges and restrictions that the developers faced during the prolonged MCO periods. 

“From the projects shown to us, we can see how developers are trying their best to meet the demands of homebuyers by coming out with the best property specifications to satisfy them. What is impressive is that the developers were able to read into the demands of the new norms and come up with facilities that adhere to the standard operating procedures,” he said.

Such innovations include the parcel collection storage and collection rooms for the increased online shopping and food deliveries, touchless elevator systems, facerecognition security access, automatic doors and waste disposal systems, he said. The developers have taken into consideration the importance of caring for the environment by adopting the green concept as well as implementing sustainable practices within their projects, Wong said. “I believe that the dedication of developers in trying to come up with fresh ideas is what helps them thrive at this arduous time,” he added.

Stay ahead of the crowd and enjoy fresh insights on real estate, property development, and lifestyle trends when you subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.