KUALA LUMPUR: YTL Land & Development Bhd expects 50% occupancy by year-end for its newly-completed Centrio development in the highly popular Pantai Hillpark address.

"We handed the keys on July 7 and we will expect to achieve 50% occupancy by year-end and 100% by the first half of next year," its customer relations manager, Karen Tan, told a media briefing after a tour of the Centrio here on Thursday, July 22.

Centrio is a low-rise mixed commercial development located at Pantai Hillpark in Bukit Kerinchi.

It was launched in December 2006 and completed early this year.

The development comprises 306 units of small office/home office (SOHO), boutique offices, boutique garden offices and retail stores on 1.52 hectares in Bukit Kerinchi.

With a gross development value of RM100 million, Centrio is developed by Syarikat Kemajuan Perumahan Negara Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of YTL Land.

Tan said the value of the property has almost doubled since its debut in 2006.

"The launch price for Centrio was RM280 per sq ft and RM350 per sq ft for the SOHO suites and boutique offices respectively, and in just over three years, they are currently valued at RM600 per sq ft," she said.

The current rental rates for the SOHO suites and offices are between RM3 and RM3.50 per sq ft, she said.

Tan said SOHO units were in demand due to increasing number of young people preferring to work from home, growing Internet penetration as well as increasing demand for a better quality of life.

She said the retail stores, owned by YTL Land, were now ready for lease.

"With an immediate catchment of more than 10,000 from the surrounding area, Pantai Hillpark is already creating a demand on its own for Centrio, making it a good business move," she said.

The retail store will be leased at RM7 per sq ft. — Bernama
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