Defects in Affordable Housing Projects in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Several affordable housing programs were introduced by the government of Malaysia to achieve the objectives of several plans; however, the success of the housing programs was reduced because of reported quality problems and defects. This research aims to identify the types of defects in affordable housing and to determine what is causing the defects, so that solutions may be devised to raise the quality of housing stock in Malaysia. A questionnaire survey was distributed to 310 residents in affordable housing, located in four different regions of Klang Valley, Malaysia. The most commonly occurring defects in affordable housing were leaking pipes, total failure of water supply systems, cracking in concrete walls, faulty door knobs, and concrete walls dampness. This suggests that improvements in workmanship, use of superior materials, and changes to more customer-oriented supervision and monitoring may reduce the incidence of defects. Local conditions, such as heavy rainfall, may influence dampness, and may reduce the generalizability of findings to other areas with different weather patterns. The findings have been reported to the Construction Industry Development Board of Malaysia to improve the quality of affordable housing.