PROPCAFE Guide: High or Low Floor? Key Factors to Consider When You Buy or Rent a Unit of High-Rise Property

When comes to buying or renting a property, it is not just about location-location-location, it is equally important to select a right unit in order to ensure you have the most value buy. However, best value may not be the case for those who buy it for their own stay. there are a few important aspects you should consider when comes to choosing one of the most expensive assets in your life. PROPCAFE hopes this article can help you with this.

As mentioned, there are many factors to consider when you select a unit of property whether you are buyers or tenants. From water tank location, refuse chamber room, lift lobby, privacy, direction, to own Ba-Chi Fengshui requirement, it is all depend on individual”s preference as many times, the negative is positive to others. For example, nearer to lif lobby could be seen as noisier to some buyers but it could be a positive for others who do not like to walk far from the lift lobby to their unit, especially if there is an additional fireproof door at the lift lobby with proper “soft close” door. Same to refuse chamber room, not many like to carry the thrash for long and the key is to ensure there is the design of the thrash room is segregated properly with additional doors and ventilation. 

PROPCAFE is not covering all the above but focuses on the biggest dilemma of the buyer which is to make a decision on whether to go for a high or low floor. We will solely focus on this area to share the pros and cons of high and low floor units.

What is so good about the high floor?

1. The scenery and Aerial View – The panorama view of nature or the city to many residents is priceless. For those without a balcony and a small sliding door/window, it will be relatively less important. One common mistake is to pay the premium and buy a high floor but lower than the mountain because it means you will not be able to enjoy anything at night but a total blackout! In addition,  sometimes the view could be blocked in the future by new developments.
2. Lower Interest Payment During Development – Although higher floor units are more expansive, as it is the higher floor, based on the schedule H, the progress payments will come in much later than the lower floor, therefore, you may save more loan interests than others.

Unfortunately, there are many negative factors that may affect the high floor units

 

 

1. Lift waiting time – Given the lifts are likely to park on the ground floor, waiting for the lift will take some time, not to say it is during the peak period. The worse is, if the building comes with high density and relatively fewer lifts provided. You just need to be a very patient resident :). Some developments mitigate this issue by having high-speed lifts which in fact help a lot and separating the high and low floor zone may solve this issue as well. So, always ask developers about this given the density of the property nowadays is getting higher, thanks to the artificial cheap offering in the market.
2. Crowded Journey – As it is at the high floor, be prepared the journey will be long and crowded as you will be the one who will stay the longest in the lift together with others.  
3. Noise Pollution from Highway and Main Road – Many buyers do not aware that the noise will travel up and it will be louder for higher floor units. For those who have units on a high floor and facing the main road or highway, good luck! If you think you can still avoid the noise late at night because of lesser traffic, please think twice. You just need one motorbike to wake you up at night! PROPCAFE fully experienced it when we were at a service apartment from Genting Highland. OMG! Even though the road is very far away, but the noise traveling from the lower part of the hill to the apartment is so bad that we had to give up the fresh air and close all the windows and sliding doors. Even that couldn’t help much! 
4. Leaking issue – The highest floor always exposes an additional risk of leaking from the top of the building. The good news is, you don’t need to deal with your neighbor but a developer or JMB/MC who are more responsive than others.
5. Risk of Emergency Escape – Any emergency like fire, landslide, earthquake. You will probably be the last to get out of the building if everyone goes out at the same time. The high floor residents always need to act fast in this sort of emergency.
6. Fear of Height – If you have acrophobia, forget about the high floor. You will not enjoy it and waste your balcony for life or until you are treated by “exposure therapy”. :).
7. Low water pressure – Depending on the location of the water tank of the building, the water pressure could be low if the water tanks are located at mid-floor.
8. Risk for Children and Suicide – There are many cases of children falling down accidentally from the high floor and those who are suffering from mental health may be more prompt to commit suicide to fall from the building.
9. The inconvenience of lift maintenance issue – If the lift breaks down like the traffic will be slow and the high floor will be affected the most. Under the scenario of all lifts are malfunctioning, the high floor residents may need to have iron man capability to use the staircase.
10. Close Proximity of Other Buildings – If your property is surrounded closely by other buildings, you are not only having walls and other balconies as you view, your privacy could be affected as well. Your high floor premium price will be depleted. 

What’s make the low floor unit a better choice sometimes?

1. Facility and Garden View – Without an aerial view, low floor unit residents may have a nice facility floor or garden view sometimes can be surprisingly beautiful
2. Shorter Lift Waiting Time – This is certainly the benefit for low-floor owners. Some may just choose to walk e.g. you are at Mezzanine or first floor. This will help a lot too when you are to go down and take up your food or item deliveries. Of course, relatively less concern on lift maintenance.
3. Faster Emergency Escape – This is the opposite of high floor units and imagines about 911 or on fire when lifts are shut down?
4. Elderly and children friendly – The lower floor is easier for the elderly and children to move around and especially nearer to the garden or other facilities which they may hang around often. 
5. Height Scared Heaven – This is the one for those who are having acrophobia.  

What are the cons of having a low floor unit?

1. Higher progressive interest payment – On the surface, the purchase price could be lower than others, but low floor owners need to pay more progressive interest payment due to the schedule H. 
2. Noise and Pollution – If the low floor units face the busy main road or highway, the units may get direct noise and carbon dioxide pollution. 
3. Privacy – The low floor may have a privacy issue if it is too near to the main road which has high traffic. The tinted window and sliding doors are compulsory. 

In short, choosing a high or floor is not as straightforward, it depends on the location of the property and the direction of the units. It may give you a different answer. So, don’t worry if you only see few pros for high floor units :). 

The own-stayers and tenants need to weigh the pros and cons and choose the one that best fits their own needs or health condition. As we mentioned above, for those who have an elderly parent or acrophobia, then don’t get a high floor for the sake of the view. The decision is simple and clear. Those who can take more risk, are young and patient, and always want to sip a cup of coffee at the balcony, go for a high floor unit. The view may change your mood for the day. There is no right or wrong when it comes to own use as it is all very individual.

Investors normally will love the high floor and are more than willing to pay for a premium. This is because it is always perceived that more tenants or future buyers appreciate the view. Is it true? Yes, or No, it is all about how high is the premium, view (relatively to the low floor) when it is transacted in the secondary market and rental market. The relative comparison comes into pictures. During the depressing environment today, it probably just serve as a liquidity factor for owners than having the right to demand more premium.

Generally, tenants and buyers are not fully aware of the pros and cons of the high and low floors which make perception skew toward the favoritism of the high floor.  It could be very annoying for owners to hear from agents that their low floor units cannot demand the same as the high floor units without further understanding the benefits of the low floor for certain profiles or types of tenants or buyers. With this, PROPCAFE hopes to provide more information and humble view here for own-stayers, investors, tenants, agents, and developers to build a better understanding and eco-system of the property market in Malaysia. There is right or wrong when come to the floor selection, it is all depend on your own tolerance (negative factors) and preference (positive factors). Happy hunting!