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THE country’s public housing system (PPR), originally intended as temporary shelter for low-income urban families, is increasingly becoming a long-term poverty trap for many residents, according to a new study that highlights worsening economic vulnerability and deteriorating living conditions across major housing estates in the Klang Valley.
The report, titled “From Roof to Resilience”, found that nearly three-quarters of residents surveyed in the PPR scheme remain highly exposed to financial shocks, with limited savings and little opportunity for upward mobility.
Conducted by urban policy and community development organisation Think City, the study surveyed 2,884 residents across 10 public housing communities under its Kita-untuk-Kita (K2K) initiative funded by the Finance Ministry.
According to Malay Mail, researchers found that almost 20 per cent of households had no savings whatsoever, while 56 per cent reported having savings sufficient for only one to three months.
The report also revealed deep structural vulnerabilities within many families living in the housing complexes.
Around 40 per cent of households depend on a single income earner, while almost one in 10 households — largely involving persons with disabilities — reported having no breadwinner at all.
The prolonged economic hardship has contributed to the rise of multigenerational households, with grandparents, parents and children continuing to live together in cramped units decades after first entering the programme.
Most respondents said they had remained in public housing for more than 30 years, while almost half of the households surveyed consisted of more than five family members, exceeding the national household average of around four people.
“It also suggests that the next generation who have grown up in public housing are unable to achieve social mobility and remain stuck where they are.
“Of concern is the fact that eight out of the 10 sites had multigenerational households of more than 5 per cent, suggesting that one in 20 households were stuck in a poverty trap in these geographies,” the report stated.
The findings further indicated that living standards within many PPR communities have either stagnated or worsened since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Residents surveyed cited persistent littering, vandalised public facilities and chronic lift failures as part of their daily reality.
Nearly half of respondents said they avoided using shared public facilities because of poor hygiene and safety fears, including rubbish allegedly thrown from upper floors.
Frequent lift breakdowns have also created additional financial burdens for residents, particularly those living on higher floors.
“In PPR Bandar Tun Razak, for instance, residents reported that gas cylinder cost rises from RM28 to RM50 every time the lift stops working.
“Residents also report paying higher costs for bottled water and other services like food and grocery delivery due to the frequent lift breakdowns,” the report noted.
Think City warned that short-term policy measures and piecemeal interventions would be insufficient to address the systemic issues affecting public housing communities.
Instead, the organisation urged the government to expand the Forum Komuniti (Forkom), a community-led platform introduced under the K2K initiative, to all public housing developments nationwide.
The report also recommended that authorities collaborate with Forkom to establish a comprehensive local database of vulnerable residents to improve targeted welfare and social protection measures.
In addition, Think City called for the formation of a high-level national task force to review public spending and formulate a long-term roadmap for the transformation of Malaysia’s public housing sector.
Established by Khazanah Nasional Berhad in 2009, Think City focuses on urban regeneration, policy research and community-based programmes aimed at creating more liveable and sustainable cities across Malaysia. - May 24, 2026
