The problem of 1.9 million unoccupied homes

Property expert Cha-Ly Koh said cities in Malaysia appeared to have been built without data or a comprehensive understanding of conditions.

"A key metric that we track is the over and undersupply of housing in Malaysian cities," Koh, the CEO of a property data company in Petaling Jaya, said.

"The areas with oversupply naturally translate to vacancies."